England Netball is delighted to announce that Professor Chris Cushion will be joining the governing body as its Head of Coaching.
Starting on 1 October 2021, Professor Cushion’s role will span coaching across the whole game from the international teams through to coaching within the sport’s community programmes.
A significant role for England Netball, Professor Cushion will be responsible for leading England Netball’s coaching community which will see him design, develop and deliver a new coaching development system. As Head of Coaching, he will assist and provide learning opportunities for coaches at all stages of the player pathway.
The Head of Coaching position will help raise the standard of coaching across the whole game, ensuring all stages of the netball pathway continue to develop and operate at the highest level.
Professor Cushion will continue as a Professor of Coaching and Pedagogy at Loughborough University delivering teaching and research related to performance sport and coaching, as well as leading coaching projects with high-profile sporting and non-sporting clients. Professor Cushion is a highly experienced coach and coach educator having previously worked extensively in professional sport and across talent development pathways in the UK and overseas.
David Parsons, England Netball’s Performance Director said of the appointment: “We are delighted to have someone of Chris’ calibre to join the team at England Netball. He has vast experience of developing coaching pathways across a range of elite sports, which means we welcome someone who can truly drive excellence and consistency for coaches working with our youngest players through to those supporting the Vitality Roses. We’re proud of the progress we’ve made in this area recently but as an organisation we want to continually evolve and provide the very best learning environments for our coaching staff and players, and we are confident that Chris can help us fulfil those ambitions.”
Professor Cushion added: “I’m delighted to be joining England Netball at this exciting time and look forward to developing a world class, evidence informed coaching and coach development strategy that can support the ambitious vision for the development of netball over the coming years.”
