Our Sessions

Foundation Club Performance
Thursday - 6pm to 7.30pm
Sheldon School Sports Hall
Chippenham		 Friday - 6pm to 7.30pm
Sheldon School Sports Hall
Chippenham		 Thursday - 6.00pm to 9.00pm
Friday - 7.30pm to 9.30pm
Sheldon School Sports Hall
Chippenham

 

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Foundation
At the core of the NWBP Project is the objective to establish and deliver a network of quality foundation/grassroots

badminton sessions to children between the ages of 5 and 12 across the local community, each session delivering our own tailored curriculum comprising of fun and friendly games and activities designed to embed strong fundamental movement skills and sound badminton technique in an enjoyable environment, helping each child to develop the basic but vital skills to enable them to take their game to whatever level they aspire.  

It is no coincidence that our Foundation session curriculum encapsulates all of the attainment targets the government seek to promote via the national curriculum for pupils in Key Stages 1 and 2. We have worked hard to create a syllabus of individual lesson plans to accommodate the wide range of ages and abilities the Foundation sessions cater for, but we are equally aware of how fortunate we are to play and coach a sport that includes all of the attributes that the

government demand all primary school children are taught at school including at Key Stage 1 : 

  • basic movements including running, jumping, throwing and catching 
  • the ability to develop balance, agility and co-ordination, and begin to apply these in a range of activities 
  • to participate in team games, developing simple tactics for attacking and defending 
  • to use simple movement patterns 

and at Key Stage 2 :  

  • to use running, jumping, throwing and catching in isolation and in combination 
  • to play competitive games, modified where appropriate [for example, badminton, basketball, cricket, football, hockey, netball, rounders and tennis], and apply basic principles suitable for attacking and defending 
  • to develop flexibility, strength, technique, control and balance [for example, through athletics and gymnastics] 
  • to use a range of movement patterns 
  • to take part in activity challenges both individually and within a team 
  • to compare their performances with previous ones and demonstrate improvement to achieve their personal best 

Exposure to a range of fundamental movement skills at primary school level stands each child in good stead for electing earlier in life what sport will suit them most as they continue to grow and develop into sport. Whichever sport our players ultimately decide to pursue, we are confident the sound foundation in movement skills that are the focus of our Foundation sessions will give them the best start. 

Our Foundation sessions are designed to be an enjoyable welcome to the sport for children aged up to twelve years old. First and foremost, these sessions are fun and active, with all players participating in games that gently help them improve the fundamental movement skills that underpin badminton, as well as all other sports. It is an ideal introduction and underpinning for all sports for young children, although of course we focus most specifically on badminton. We incorporate content from Badminton England’s new Racket Pack initiative into the sessions, including an award scheme to monitor player progress. 

Ambitious players are welcome to attend our sessions to help develop their skills, the core programme content is identical across all our venues. Once our young players reach twelve years old, we ‘graduate’ them into suitable local junior clubs so that they can continue to play socially or competitively. 

NWBP’s Foundation sessions incorporate Badminton England’s new and exciting Racket Pack. The Racket Pack is a new primary age (5 – 11 years) focused initiative. It has been designed to deliver fun and engaging skill-based sessions, ensuring a positive first experience of badminton. The aim of The Racket Pack is to increase the number of young people taking part in badminton from an earlier age. Racket Pack offers progressive and enjoyable sessions following a simple structure of warm up, skill focus, and game play.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfZzn32tEmo

Club
The session is mainly, but not exclusively, aimed at children attending secondary schools and college and caters for a broad range of abilities.  The primary purpose of the session is to provide time for beginners and improvers to play some games of social badminton. We also provide up to an hour of coaching at the beginning of the session, catering for a variety of abilities. While some of our better juniors come along to get some match practice, there is also space for complete beginners to try this enjoyable and social sport for the first time. Our coaches are always on hand to organise the games and offer a little guidance if required. 

If you want some social games, a little bit of help and guidance to learn the basics, or if you have a bit of a competitive edge, then our Club sessions are the place for you. 

Performance
The Improver and Advanced sessions are targeted at aspiring young players. These sessions are largely led by our head coach, Melanie Vickery, and supported by other members of the coaching team, providing an excellent coach-to-player ratio to promote rapid player development. Players attending these sessions typically practice a combination of related movement and technical skills over the course of a coaching block, followed by the opportunity to apply and explore these skills in a tactical context. Physical fitness for badminton is also addressed within the sessions, either separately, in the warm-up, or within the core content.

All sessions largely follow a structured and progressive programme of specific coaching and training with the goal of supporting the players to develop the competence and confidence required to play at a competitive level. While individual sessions focus on specific skills and shots, the sessions are grouped into a ‘coaching block’ which build week by week on a focused group of related shots, ensuring that the learning is manageable and meaningful, and most importantly that players observe and experience the benefits in skill.

The Improver sessions are targeted at new or younger players, perhaps as they transition from the Foundation sessions or primary-school participation. Sessions are designed to build on player potential, developing the basic movement and hitting skills required to progress within the game, as well as begin to develop an understanding of the traits required to achieve success. These sessions include a high percentage of predictable feeds and practices to refine the key skills, as well as plenty of fun and engaging individual and team games and activities.

The Advanced sessions are appropriate for slightly older players who have established a sound basis of technical and movement skills. Sessions are designed to expand and apply the range of movement and hitting skills established in the Futures sessions and also to consolidate this learning in more challenging activities so players can execute these skills in less predictable situations. Advanced sessions also seek to improve tactical awareness with game-like situations and to further advance player understanding on how to train to succeed.

Although these sessions are run on an invitation-only basis, it is a simple matter of contacting us to arrange a free trial period where you can join in the activities and decide whether you want to join our coaching programme. It will also give us an opportunity to have a look at your skills and potential and agree how we can best help develop your skills. If you are interested in our challenging but rewarding coaching sessions, please either ask your club coach to refer you to us or just contact us directly.