The Royal National College for the Blind (RNC) in Hereford is the UK’s leading college for young people (16+) with a visual impairment.
RNC has developed a unique Sports Academy specifically offering support to aspiring athletes in a professional training environment, with world class accessible facilities and specialist support services alongside the highest standard of coaching.
We offer anyone looking to pursue their passion for sport the chance to study on a specialist programme irrespective of their visual impairment or sporting ambitions and success.
In addition to offering similar support to that found at other TASS Delivery Sites, RNC’s fully accessible and disability-led Academy works alongside a number of key partners in Disability Sport including: The Football Association, Goalball UK, British Judo Association, England Golf and British Blind Sport. Such links have been instrumental in the success of the RNC Sports Academy to date, allowing unique access for our students to train alongside other elite athletes and work closely with National team coaches.
We are passionate about the benefits sport can have for students and we are committed to providing the best possible provision to meet their individual needs.
In addition to fitness and excellence in sport, our students gain increased confidence, mobility and spatial awareness, social and communication skills, leadership qualities, team work, self-discipline and motivation alongside the many well-known health benefits associated with being physically active.
Our newly formed partnership with TASS is a testament to the progress RNC has made within sport and further demonstrates our ambition to help students reach their potential. As a TASS delivery site our highly skilled and experienced team of practitioners will support athletes in the following areas:
– Personalised strength and conditioning support and programmes
– Lifestyle support/mentoring
– Access to local off-site physiotherapy provision
– Introductions to sport psychology and sports nutrition for athletes
– Full access to our sports and well-being facilities
– On-site sports massage therapy.
For further information regarding TASS support at RNC please contact our Sports Academy Teacher and TASS Lead Aaron Ford – aaron.ford@rncb.ac.uk (01432 265725 ex. 3138).