01
Players are being misread.
Struggling to retain tactical information, shutting down after criticism, missing written tasks, or avoiding group demands can be read as attitude. Sometimes it is neurology.
Online academy staff training
Your staff arealreadysupportingneurodivergentplayers.
The question is whether they know what they are seeing. ND Training Pro Academy gives coaches, academy managers, heads of education, player care leads, and all academy staff a practical online route into neurodiversity, reasonable adjustments, and defensible support practice.
Self-paced. Academy-specific. Built around the quiet player, the masked player, the misunderstood player, and the staff member who wants to help but has never been trained properly.
12 modules
Around 4.5 hours
Knowledge checks throughout
Certificate on completion
Resource pack included
ND Training
64% complete
Current module
Spotting players who go under the radar
✓
Why this mattersThe scale of neurodiversity in academy cohorts.
✓
Understanding neurodiversitySpiky profiles, stigma, and developmental age.
✓
ADHD in the academyAttention, regulation, criticism, and coaching fit.
05
Your legal obligationsReasonable adjustments and documentation practice.
11
Transitions, release and aftercareHandling release well, and the duty of care that follows.
15-20%
Widely used UK working estimate for neurodivergence across the population. In academy terms, that is not a niche issue.
Neurodiversity is already in your academy.
Some players arrive with paperwork. Many do not. The player most likely to be missed is not always the disruptive one. It is often the quiet, compliant, talented player whose struggles sit in education, communication, reviews, sensory load, emotional regulation, or feedback processing.
What makes this urgent
Three pressures are arriving at the same time.
This is not a soft awareness topic. It sits across player development, parent trust, legal exposure, and the academy's ability to understand the young people already in its care.
02
Families know more now.
Parents are more aware of ADHD, autism, dyslexia, masking, reasonable adjustments, and the duty of care owed by professional environments.
03
Documentation is weak.
Academies often try sensible things. The problem is that observations, adjustments, handovers, and outcomes are rarely recorded in a way that survives scrutiny. Under the Equality Act, adjustments that are not documented are extremely difficult to rely on.
The course
12x
Twelve modules designed for the academy environment, with knowledge checks after every module, a final assessment, a certificate, and a resource pack for practical follow-through.
This is not a video course. It is a text-and-interaction based learning experience with a 75% pass mark on the final assessment. Staff can complete it at their own pace and return to any section they need.
01. Why this matters
02. Understanding neurodiversity
03. ADHD in the academy
04. Autism in the academy
05. Your legal obligations
06. Spotting hidden players
07. Practical strategies
08. Training load and the medical picture
09. Parents and carers
10. Documentation and process
11. Transitions, release and aftercare
12. Final assessment
What is included in the resource pack
Player ND Profile template
Observation log
Adjustment record
Conversation record
Review cycle template
Complaints filter card
Parent induction paragraph
Condition reference guides (ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia + more)
MALE*FEMALE*MIXED*MALE*FEMALE*MIXED*
Male version
Case studies, gender-specific presentations, and academy context built around a male programme environment.
Female version
Reflects the women's game specifically — presentations of ADHD and autism in girls and women, and the context of the women's academy pathway.
Mixed version
For academies running boys and girls programmes, or foundations and mixed delivery environments.
How it works
Purchase. Access. Complete. Certified.
No scheduling, no cohort, no waiting. Staff can start the same day and work through it at their own pace.
Step 01
Buy and get immediate access
Purchase online. Each staff member gets their own login and starts the course straight away. Team Pack and Annual Licence buyers receive a registration link to forward to their staff.
Step 02
Work through 12 modules at your own pace
Each module unlocks after the previous one is complete. Knowledge checks throughout make sure the content lands before moving on.
Step 03
Pass the final assessment
Module 12 is a 28-question assessment with a 75% pass mark. Resits are available. It tests applied judgement, not just recall.
Step 04
Certificate and resource pack unlocked
On completion, staff receive a certificate they can submit as CPD evidence. The full resource pack — templates, guides, observation logs — is available immediately.
Who it is for
Built for the staff who see the player most.
The course should not be hidden inside welfare. Academy staff do not need to diagnose players. They do need to observe better, respond earlier, communicate more carefully, and know when the pattern is bigger than behaviour.
Coaches and phase staff
For the staff who see the player most often. The Tuesday night observation matters. So does the feedback conversation, the handover, and the adjustment that worked once but never got written down.
Academy Managers
For leaders who need a consistent baseline across departments, clear evidence of staff development, and a better answer when a player pathway decision is challenged.
Heads of Education
For staff seeing the off-pitch signs first: written work, attendance, journals, GCSE pressure, learning needs, EHCP conversations, and the player who performs but does not submit.
Player Care Leads
For the people holding family conversations, welfare concerns, adjustment discussions, and the difficult middle ground between support, safeguarding, and performance.
Sports Science and Medical
For S&C coaches, physios, sports scientists, and medical staff. Neurodivergent players don't always report pain, fatigue, or illness accurately, and sleep and fuelling problems are far more common. This module helps the performance and medical team read the signals self-report misses.
What staff learn
The outcome is practical judgement.
The course gives staff enough understanding to stop over-personalising behaviour and start asking better questions. Not diagnosis. Better observation. Better adjustment. Better records.
The course now runs the whole journey — from first contact at recruitment through to release and aftercare — not just the period a player is settled in the building.
Recognise patterns.
Staff learn what neurodivergence can look like in academy life, including the players who do not match the stereotype.
- ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia
- Masking, shutdown, RSD, demand avoidance, sensory load
- Developmental age versus chronological age
- Body-signal differences: interoception, sleep, and fuelling, and why "I'm fine" isn't always reliable
Respond with fit.
Staff get concrete coaching, education, and communication strategies that do not require them to become clinicians.
- How to change instruction, feedback, timing, and environment
- How to support without lowering standards
- How to work with parents without becoming defensive
- Handling high-stakes moments: recruitment, the disciplinary conversation, and release
Record what matters.
The course lands in documentation because memory is not evidence. If an adjustment was tried, it needs a record.
- Observation logs and player ND profiles
- Adjustment records and review cycles
- Cleaner handovers across age groups and departments
Pricing
The Annual Licence is the right choice for most academies.
Unlimited staff, no per-head counting, new starters covered automatically. Priced by EPPP category — confirmed at point of invoice. All prices are ex-VAT.
Recommended for academies
Annual Academy Licence
Unlimited staff for 12 months. New starters join mid-season — covered automatically, no extra cost, no procurement loop. The whole academy trained, including everyone who joins after day one.
Cat 1 & 2
£1,999
per year
Cat 3 & 4
£1,499
per year
Cat 1&2 renews from £1,599 · Cat 3&4 renews from £1,199
- Unlimited named staff accounts — whole academy
- Add new starters any time at no extra cost
- Each staff member gets their own progress record and certificate
- Admin completion dashboard
- Full resource pack for every staff member
- Supplier invoicing for club finance teams
- Annual renewal with loyalty rate
Prefer a live session first? We deliver in-person and Zoom training for academies that want a facilitated launch before rolling out online. Get in touch.
Team Pack
Up to 11 staff — a starting XI. A phase group, education team, or player care department that wants to train together. Good starting point — though most academies move to the Annual Licence once they see how staff turnover works.
£599
up to 11 staff · one-time
£54.45 per person · includes resource pack
- Up to 11 individual staff accounts
- Full 12-module course per account
- Each staff member gets their own progress record and certificate
- Admin view of who has completed
- Registration link to forward to staff
- Full resource pack download
Individual licences (£89/person) are available for grassroots clubs, non-academy organisations, and individual practitioners. Get in touch.
For Annual Licence buyers
Let's talk rollout
The Annual Licence is the right choice for most Category 1 and Category 2 academies. A call helps us work out the rollout sequence and access setup.
Annual Academy Licence
One annual investment. Every staff member covered — including everyone who joins after them.
A Team Pack covers a department. The Annual Licence covers the whole academy — every coach, education officer, player care lead, welfare staff member, and new starter — without counting heads or going back to procurement each time someone new joins.
The goal is not to sell you a course seat. It is to help your academy decide where neurodiversity training belongs in the staff development system.
FAQ
Questions academy leads usually ask first.
Is this live training or self-paced?
It is self-paced online training. Each staff member works through 12 modules at their own pace, with knowledge checks after every module, a final assessment, certificate generation, and downloadable resources on completion. There is no scheduled session, no cohort, and no waiting for a delivery date.
Who should complete it?
Academy managers, heads of education, player care leads, coaches, phase leads, welfare staff, and any academy staff member who works directly with young players or contributes to player pathway decisions. The course is built so every role gets something directly applicable to their day-to-day.
What happens if someone fails the final assessment?
Resits are available. The assessment has a 75% pass mark and is designed to be achievable by someone who has engaged with the course properly. Staff who do not pass on the first attempt can review the relevant modules and retake.
How does access work for a Team Pack or Annual Licence?
After purchase, the academy receives a registration link to forward to staff. Each staff member creates their own individual account, has their own login, and builds their own progress record and certificate. The purchasing admin gets a view of who has registered, how far they have got, and who has completed and been certified.
How long does access last?
Team Pack purchases come with 12 months access from the date of enrolment. The Annual Academy Licence runs for 12 months from the date of purchase for the whole organisation, and renews annually. Individual Per User access (£89/person) also runs for 12 months — email support@withinu.net to arrange.
Does it train staff to diagnose neurodivergence?
No. The course is explicit about staff not diagnosing. It trains staff to observe patterns, make practical adjustments, document what was tried, and refer or escalate appropriately when a concern needs specialist input.
Are there different versions for different academy contexts?
Yes. The course is available in men's, women's, and mixed versions so case studies, gender-specific presentation content, and academy context reflect the programme learners are actually working in. Select the right version at the point of purchase.
Does the course cover the performance and medical side, not just coaching and welfare?
Yes. A dedicated module covers how neurodivergence shows up in the body: interoception (why some players under-report pain, fatigue, and even concussion symptoms), sleep, fuelling and energy availability, and coordination. It's written for the whole staff, including sports science and medical, because the person who notices a player running on empty is usually the coach on the grass, not the doctor.
Does it cover what happens when a player is released?
Yes. Release is the hardest transition in academy football, and it hits neurodivergent players especially hard. A dedicated module covers delivering a release decision well, the mental-health risks around release, the club's aftercare and duty-of-care responsibilities, and how a player's support should travel with them on loan or transfer.
Is there a certificate, and can it be used as CPD evidence?
Yes. Passing the final assessment generates a certificate confirming the staff member has completed ND Training Pro Academy. Academies can retain certificates as evidence of staff CPD and internal training around neurodiversity awareness, reasonable adjustments, identification, and documentation practice.
Can we get an invoice for our finance team?
Yes. An invoice is generated automatically at purchase and can be forwarded to your club's finance team. For Annual Academy Licence buyers at larger clubs, we can also support supplier registration if your finance department requires it.
What is the course based on?
The evidence base includes UK legal sources, neurodevelopmental research, clinical guidance, and applied academy content. Legal and clinical review are listed as pre-launch requirements before paying clients see the course. Key sources include the Equality Act 2010, NICE guidelines on ADHD (NG87) and autism (CG128), and UK GDPR guidance from the ICO. The evidence base also draws on JCQ Access Arrangements guidance for exams, the 2023 IOC consensus statement on Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport, and a duty-of-care framework for released academy players.
Start with the academy conversation
Your academy already has neurodivergent players. Your staff need a shared way to recognise, respond, and record.
Start the Annual Licence directly — unlimited staff, new starters always covered, no per-head accounting. Cat 1&2: £1,999/year. Cat 3&4: £1,499/year. Or email us if you want to talk it through first.