Archery
Archery gb is the National Governing Body in the UK. As a result of the Sport England investment, Archery gb now have a specific development team tasked with delivering the Archery GB England Development Plan.
Archery is an Olympic and Paralympic sport that is highly accessible to a wide range of people. Archery helps you develop strength, conditioning, stability, fine control and concentration.
Yorkshire has a particularly good archery scene. There are 57 clubs in Yorkshire, 23 of which are in West Yorkshire. Many clubs have junior sections and disabled sections. Tournaments take place most weekends and are open to archers of any level of ability.
For more information about archery in Yorkshire, visit the website of the Yorkshire Archery Association:
www.yorkshirearchery.co.uk
Archery gb remits and contacts:
David Reader - National Development Manager
David is responsible for the national development strategy and managing the development team. He acts as the primary interface with internal and external development and funding partners. As well as ensuring current programmes are progressing, David is also keen to develop new initiatives that could help move the sport forward.
Tel: 07760 770395
email: david.reader@archerygb.org
Hannah Bussey - Coach Education Lead Officer
Hannah leads the staff team in the area of coach education. She works closely with the National Coaching Committee to move coach education matters forward and bring about new developments. Hannah also acts as a key contact for office enquiries about coach development.
Tel: 07525 233 591
email:
hannah.bussey@archerygb.org
Arran Coggan - National Club Development Co-ordinator
Arran co-ordinates all our club development activities. He works to design and implement club development initiatives at a national level. He also works with individual clubs around the country to address specific issues.
Tel: 07525 233 592
email:
arran.coggan@archerygb.org
Kate Moss - National Schools and Young People Co-ordinator
Kate co-ordinates all our schools and young people development activities. She works to design and implement school and young development initiatives at a national level. She also works with individual schools and school sport partnerships around the country to address specific issues.
Tel: 07587 133 894
email: kate.moss@archerygb.org
Getting into archery
It’s best to learn archery by completing a club’s beginners course in archery. This usually consists of a weekly one-hour lesson for six weeks. Prices vary, but most clubs charge around £30 for the full course. The club provides all equipment.
Beginners are advised against buying bows and arrows immediately. It's best to complete a club's archery instruction course and gain some experience in using the equipment before making a purchase, otherwise you could buy equipment that is not suitable for you. This is especially likely to happen if you go to a general sports shop or fishing tackle shop rather than a specialist archery dealer.
There are different types of bows that you may wish to shoot, and you can often try these at a club once you join, or at a specialist archery dealer.
There is no upper age limit in archery - some people continue well into their eighties.
There is no hard-and-fast lower age limit either, but many coaches have found that 10 years old is a sensible lower limit. Children younger than 10 sometimes struggle physically to control a bow, and children under 8 often don’t understand the safety instructions. If in doubt, a club’s coaches will often be willing to assess the child’s suitability at a special session. Many clubs do not allow children under 8, since doing so would require the club to register with Social Services.
Contact clubs in your area for details of beginners courses.
Forms of archery
Target archery is the most widely practiced form of the sport, and is the type that is shot in the Olympics and Paralympics. It can take place either outdoors or indoors, depending on the time of year. Archers shoot rounds consisting of a set number of arrows shot at targets at one or more distances. A typical round you might shoot is the Western – 4 dozen arrows at 60 yards, then 4 dozen arrows at 50 yards.
Field archery takes place in woodland and on moorland. Each target, like each hole in golf, is different. There may be a slope, awkward footing, tricky lighting or overhanging branches. The distances may be given or not given. It’s a very enjoyable and challenging form of the sport.
Clout archery (also known as “whanging ‘em”) is a long-range version of target archery. Flags are placed in the ground a certain distance from the shooting line – typically 180 yards for men, 140 yards for women, and shorter distances for juniors. The archers shoot towards the flags. When all arrows have been shot, a rope marked into scoring zones is attached to the flag and swept around. Archers score points depending on which scoring zone their arrows have landed in.
Flight archery is shooting for sheer distance. There are various classes covering standard target equipment and specialised distance-shooting equipment. The national championships take place annually at RAF Church Fenton in North Yorkshire, where many world records have been set. Distances of over 700 metres are regularly achieved.
Local clubs
Below is a list of archery clubs in West Yorkshire. Where no website link is provided, or you are having difficulty getting in touch with a club, please contact:
• Dave Phillips, County Secretary – bd.phillips@tiscali.co.uk
• Tim Mason, public relations officer – yaa@phoenixbowmen.co.uk or 07986 185882.
Club Location Website/notes
Adwalton Moor Archers Drighlington
Aire Valley Archers
including Aire Valley Archers Disabled
and Aire Valley Juniors Bingley, Keighley and Skipton www.aire-valley-archers.co.uk
Blue Light Archers Leeds Police employees only
Bowmen of Adel
including Bowmen of Adel Juniors Adel, Leeds www.bowmenofadel.org.uk
Bowmen of Leeds
including Bowmen of Leeds Juniors Garforth, Leeds
www.gnas.org/clubs/cditem.cfm?NID=58207
Bronte Archers
including Bronte Junior Archers Apperley Bridge, Bradford www.bronte-archers.org.uk
Leeds University Archery Club Leeds www.leeds.ac.uk/union/sports/archery/
Students only
Nishkam Archery Club
including Nishkam Junior Archery Club Leeds Part of a Sikh temple
NOVA Bowmen Birkenshaw
Panda Bowmen
including Panda Disabled Archery Club
and Panda Junior Bowmen Bramhope, Leeds www.panda-bowmen.org.uk
Phoenix Bowmen Halifax
Pinderfields Paraplegic Archery Club Wakefield Part of the hospital
Riggwelter Field Archers Otley www.riggwelterfieldarchers.co.uk
Savile Bowmen
including Savile Bowmen Disabled Archery Club
and Savile Bowmen Junior Archery Club Thornhill, Dewsbury www.savile-bowmen.org.uk
South Leeds Archers
including South Leeds Junior Archers Middleton, Leeds www.southleedsarchers.org.uk
Spen Valley Bowmen
including Spen Valley Bowmen Junior Archery Club Hunsworth near Cleckheaton www.spenvalleybowmen.co.uk
Spen Victoria Archery Club Batley
St Bede's Archery Club Bradford School club
University of Bradford Union Archery Club Bradford www.ubu.brad.ac.uk/sports/archery
Students only
Valley Bowmen
including Valley Junior Bowmen Huddersfield www.valleybowmen.co.uk
Wakefield Archers
including Wakefield Junior Archers Horbury, Wakefield www.thewakefieldarchers.com
White Rose Archers
including White Rose Junior Archers Hebden Bridge www.whiterosearchers.co.uk
Wyre Hall Field Archers Drighlington wyre-hall-field-archers.org.uk
Protection of children and vulnerable adults
Our national association has issued guidelines on the protection of children and vulnerable adults. All clubs are encouraged to follow these guidelines.
The guidelines require that a parent or guardian accompanies children under 14 years of age throughout the duration of the beginners course. At least two adults must be present, at least one of whom must be a member of the Grand National Archery Society.
Children aged 14 years or over may shoot only if there are at least two adults present. These adults may be club members, parents or guardians. At least one of these adults must be a member of the Grand National Archery Society.
Similar considerations apply to vulnerable adults. The exact rules will depend on the nature and severity of the vulnerability.
Coaching in Archery
YAA Coaching, part of the Yorkshire Archery Association, provides training for archers who wish to become coaches, and supports the continuing professional development of coaches.
There are different levels of Coach grade.
Many clubs, but not all, will have qualified coaches. These are not paid coaches who do this full time, but archers who have chosen to do this voluntarily. Because of this, coach availability might be limited. It is unusual for coaches to charge a fee to individuals, except for beginners courses.
All qualified coaches have had Child protection training and an enhanced level CRB check. Below is a summary of what the different levels of coach may be able to support. Individual coaches may exceed the skills shown below, since many are experienced archers whose knowledge and skills may be well above the level of their qualification.
Level 1 – this is the entry grade, designed to teach beginners safely and effectively to enter the sport with a good foundation of technique.
Level 2 – this is a grade which begins to develop performance, taking the novice into competitive archery at intermediate levels. Level 2 coaches will be able to work with all bow styles.
County Coach – this is a higher grade of coach who will be technically proficient in all bow styles and able to support higher levels of performance across different styles of archery. County coaches are deemed to be organisers, managers and public relations people as well as coaches, but the training provides a sound basis for developing into higher level performance coaching and coach training.
Senior Coach – these are trained at National level to work as coaching development managers, squad organisers, coach education managers and providers, and performance coaching at higher levels including elite. They will often work nationally rather than within a geographical area, and may become involved in national project development. They are coach education tutors, mentors, assessors and moderators.
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