Academy Sports Psychologist

Derby County Football Club, established in 1884, is one of the founder members of the English Football League and has a rich and varied history, including two First Division titles in 1972 and 1975 and an FA Cup success in 1946. The club are currently playing in the Sky Bet Championship, the second tier of English Football following their promotion from League One in the 2023/24 season, and is under the management of Head Coach Paul Warne. The club also boasts a successful and respected Category One Academy, a status which has been held since 2014, and a Women’s side competing in the FA Women’s National League Northern Premier Division. Derby County recently embarked on an exciting new era following the change in ownership to Clowes Developments (UK) Limited, in the summer of 2022. Our track record of producing talent is outstanding, and we intend to protect that proud legacy, investing in key roles within the club to build on the foundations in place for success.

Derby County Football Club are looking for an experienced Sports Psychologist to join our Lifelong Learning department at our Category One Academy.

The successful candidate will develop and lead the delivery, implementation, and continuous review of the Academy Sports Psychology programme, which aims to enhance performance and support well-being in an elite performance environment, in accordance with EPPP requirements.

You will support the ongoing implementation of evidence-based practice within the Academy, providing insights and intervention strategies that support player development and performance excellence, providing a supportive and confidential sport psychology service.

The Academy Sports Psychologist will collaborate with the Lifelong Learning Department and take a lead on key aspects of the ‘Learning for Performance’ strand.

Key Responsibilities:

• Design and deliver an evidence based psychological framework, that provides players of all ages within the academy the psychological support and interventions to achieve performance potential.


• Support the development of a psychologically safe culture, providing ongoing CPD training and development for coaches and staff so they are equipped to deliver the psychological framework effectively to support the player's performance potential.


• Collaborate with the multidisciplinary team to integrate and embed the psychology programme in the player development curriculum, coach competency framework, and Lifelong Learning provision.


• Design and deliver appropriate parent/guardian and host family education workshops as part of the Lifelong Learning parent/guardian education programme.


• Contribute to the Academy Player Audits, ensuring information is accurate and shared in a timely manner.


• Provide appropriate performance psychology support to individual players.


• Take a lead role within the Academy Wellbeing Group to ensure the highest levels of appropriate support are provided for the players within timescales appropriate to their individual circumstances.


• Deliver a psychoeducation curriculum to coaches, staff, and players that supports the key objectives of the Academy Performance Plan.


• Conduct age-appropriate psychometric profiling to support player development, coach development, and team dynamics across all Academy age groups.

Essential personal characteristics and experience:

• Delivering psychological support to youth athletes in elite sport


• Understanding of an EPP Category 1 Academy environment is preferred


• Proven track record of working as part of an interdisciplinary team


• Working directly with children and young people is desirable


• 2 years post-qualification experience in high-performance sport is desirable


• Comprehensive understanding of adolescent development


• Confident, resilient, and self-motivated


• Excellent verbal and written communication skills & presentation skills


• Ability to work and thrive in a fast-paced, target-driven environment


• Ability to prioritise and manage own workload


• An experienced team player that is naturally collaborative in style and thrives within a multi-disciplinary team environment

Essential Qualifications

• MSc in Sport and Exercise Psychology


• Qualification in Sport and Exercise Psychology (Stage 2/BASES)


• Registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)

Desirable Qualifications

• Mental Health First Aid (Youth and/or Adult)

This is a full-time role of 35 hours per week. Due to the nature of working in an elite sport environment, the successful candidate must be flexible and able to work evenings and weekends as required.

Competitive salary, dependent on experience.

Everything we do as a Club is built around the three pillars of stability, integrity and progress. Our core values are:

• We are proud of who we are and what we do


• We are positive, inspired and passionate


• We are ambitious and driven


• We are prepared, honest and humble


• We are the heartbeat of our community


• We are the club of opportunity

Derby County employee benefits include:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays


• Two complimentary staff season tickets


• Two complimentary staff away memberships


• 20% discount at DCFC Megastore


• Company Pension with Aviva


• Discounts with select Club partners and sponsors


• Healthshield Cash Health Plan to support employee health and well-being and Perks for great deals and discounts


• Participating in our employee forum, ‘The Herd’


• Training and development opportunities


• Access to programmes and volunteering opportunities with Derby County Community Trust


• Subsidised lunchtime meals at Moor Farm