Coventry City Academy and Alan Higgs Centre reach agreement on a permanent return
Coventry City’s Academy is to return permanently to the Alan Higgs Centre after the two sides agreed a new rental agreement.
The Sky Blues youth set-up left the multi-purpose centre earlier in the year and have since been based at the club’s Ryton first-team while using a variety of other locations, including the Higgs Centre on a week-by-week basis.
But the new rolling 12-month deal will mean that the youth programme from under-7s to under-18s will again be delivered at the Higgs Centre.
Coventry City FC development director Steve Waggott said: “This is a good agreement for all parties. We are delighted to be back at the Alan Higgs Centre and I know that parents of our players will be equally pleased.
“It had been our home since it first opened. The staff there know the club well and understand our needs, and the facilities are well suited to what we need to develop our players and bring forward future generations of City first team footballers.
“We are all very much looking forward to being back there and for normal service to be resumed.”
He added: “We have made it very plain that we see a successful Academy as the bed rock of all we are doing going forward.
“We want to develop young, talented players who then stand a chance of making it through to the senior ranks. Steven Pressley sees a flow of players through from the Academy to the first team squad as essential to his long-term plans.
“We have a dozen or so former Academy players now in our first team squad and it is clear to see the energy and commitment, as well as ability, they bring to the club.
“There has been a great deal of water under the bridge in recent months and I know that the Otium Entertainment Group is very grateful to the Alan Higgs Centre Trust for helping us establish a meaningful way forward for both parties.”