Sky Blues' Academy has now received written confirmation of their successful Category 2 status from the Football League and Professional Game Board
Coventry City have received written confirmation of a successful application for Category 2 status for the club's Academy from the Football League.
The Sky Blues applied for Category 2 status under the recently introduced Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) and were put through an extensive audit by the Professional Game Board alongside 19 other League One and Championship clubs during 2013.
Academy manager Richard Stevens and his staff submitted a 2,000-page document as part of the audit process which covered eight criteria including the Academy's footballing philosophy and it's ability to develop the next generation of professional footballers.
Stevens said: "It's absolutely fantastic news and a fantastic achievement by all of the staff who have worked incredibly hard to ensure that we secured Category 2.
"This allows us to continue to compete with other clubs in the Midlands area for talented young footballers and also help us to continue with what we have been working on for the past two-and-a-half years which is develop those players for professional careers.
"We visited the Premier League in February and received some unbelievable feedback about the technical aspects of our Academy department, the quality of our staff and the procedures that we have put in place so to get confirmation of this achievement is fantastic news.
"We must also extend thanks to my predecessor Gregor Rioch who played a huge role in this process before his departure so we would like to share some of that success with him."
Sky Blues development director Steve Waggott added: "This really is great news for Richard Stevens and his staff who worked incredibly hard to ensure the criteria for Category 2 status was met to protect our ability to attract the next generation of talented footballers.
"Some of this season's greatest success stories, such as Callum Wilson topping the League One scoring charts, are rooted in our Academy's desire and dedication to produce players who can go on to make a significant impact for the first team and Category 2 status protects the processes that have allowed that."