Continuous Assessment (PDRs)
Personal Development Reviews (PDRs)
Football Academies are competitive environments - probably more competitive than your workplace. If you think your annual review is tough, children in academies are reviewed every six weeks and, by the end of the football year there is a strong chance some of them will be released by the club. The numbers vary year by year and range from nil to two or three to nearly half
the squad being released.
In the early years you might find PDRs
to be quite a casual meeting. Expect them to become more formal as your child reaches their teenage years.
In our experience, we saw a variety of tools used to manage PDRs and provide feedback - from spreadsheets to dedicated player management software.
Each review is an opportunity for the club to feedback on your child's progress in a face-to-face meeting where your child's performance is assessed and results presented to you across a range of areas which include: athletic performance, attitude, decision making, and core football skills that are required at their respective age.
In our experience, it is carried in out in a positive and polite manner where best traits are recognised and areas for improvement are highlighted and explained. You will be given a copy of the report which you sign. In our experience, the reports have been a fair reflection. We have found this view to be true of most parents, judging by their comments to me.
The significance of these reports need to be taken on board and you should keep every copy safe so that you can refer to them as an aid memoire to focus on where your child needs to improve and taken with you to future Personal Development Reviews to aid discussion and support your child.
Help the Coach With an Aid Memoir Too
We suggest that when your child achieves the required skill you discuss that with your coach after the match or training session so that it registers in their mind.
They have a lot of children to remember, so your conversation will act as a positive aid memoir and, even if it's forgotten, you can at least challenge any report score with a degree of objectivity.
"Do you remember the time I spoke to you after the match against xyz, when Harry made that smart decision?"
You may find the coach supports your challenge on that occasion which could be enough to see them through to the next phase.
There are usually two or three key development points that need to show improvement as the year progresses. By the time the new calendar year comes around, your child should be able to show improvement against the development points, so that by the football year end, your child has reached the required standard and progresses into the next year.
At Risk of Being Released
If by March your child has not recorded the required level of improvement on the development points, your child is at risk of being
released
at the end of the football year.
Decisions don't need to wait that long, If your child is evidently struggling, and the club has done all they can to support and aid your child's progress, they may put it to you that it is in your child's best interest to leave the academy sooner rather than later.
Nobody likes to receive this news but it doesn't necessarily mean it's the end of the professional football road. In all honesty, it does for most players. However some players will be watched by scouts when they return to grassroots football. Some will be invited back to trial again at the same club or the club might suggest dropping them into their development squad providing an opportunity to win their place back.
For some children, the news is devastating as its spells the end of a dream. Some clubs go out of their way to soften the news and will provide options for the way you want to be told. ie advance notice direct to the parent, so the blow can be softened by you and / or you prepare your child to receive the news in advance of the meeting.
Not all clubs do this and may simply say, "you no longer need to attend and the release forms are completed." This is especially true in the early years' development squads.
The Exam Years
When your child is studying for GCSEs, clubs have a duty of care to ensure any bad news given does not clash with formal school examinations, for obvious reasons. So in the final year of GCSEs your club should have notified parents and the player by the end of December - well before the exam season.
Impact of Injuries on Assessments
When your child has been injured for a while and they have missed out on games and training, and one review passes after another without anything being recorded other than 'Injured', it can be quite a tense time, especially when there is a two year Retain or Release period coming up.
Circumstances and context vary, so there is no firm rule that injuries will be waived and you progress to the next year.
Logic suggests player potential and ability is going to be at the heart of the decision making process. How much of a gamble is the club willing to take? Clubs might not be so patient with a struggling player compared with an outstanding player.
