The Northampton Saints Community team are pleased to announce a brand new partnership with the University of Essex to deliver their Men’s & Women’s rugby programme for the next three academic years.
The partnership will see Saints deliver coaching sessions, matchday support, and performance structures for both the men’s and women’s programmes, with long-term plans to scale this to include scholarships and formal focus-sport status.
The Community team has a successful track record of developing the sport within the education sector, and with Essex’s location within Saints’ broader catchment and shared interest in player retention across the eastern counties, there is strong alignment in the values and aims of both programmes.
“Over the past year, we have been shaping our long-term strategic framework to elevate rugby provision at Essex,” said Jonny Lowdell, Head of Sport Operations at the University of Essex.
“Our goal is to build an established dual-career pathway that attracts ambitious 18-22-year-old student-athletes to study in the East of England, compete in BUCS, and remain active within the high-performance club and community landscape.”
Ben Lawrence, Head of Community at Northampton Saints, added: “When Jonny approached us with his proposal, we were really excited to see their plans and aims for the future.
“We have a proven record of embedding ourselves within educational institutes, and our coaches can really add to the culture and quality of the university through this partnership.
“We are delighted that we are able to play a key part in developing rugby at Essex and driving the standards for both the Men’s and Women’s teams.”