CONTEXT Wigan Athletic Football Club (WAFC) is an English Championship football club based in Wigan, Lancashire. The main aim of the club's Academy is to scout and develop players who will potentially reach professional status. However, regardless of the level of success achieved in football, Apprentices receive advice and education that provide a solid platform from which they can move forward and make sound decisions in life. The framework for this education is the Advanced Apprentice in Sporting Excellence (AASE) programme, a unique sporting vocational qualification for young people with the realistic potential to achieve excellence in sport. OBJECTIVES The primary aim of this project was to enhance and improve the vocational training and development of Apprentices at WAFC. Working with host partner Odense BK in Denmark, the project also aimed to provide greater exit and progression opportunities for Apprentices upon completion of the programme. The project had 3 overarching strategic objectives: 1) Facilitating the transfer of European training methods, development environments, techniques and philosophies into both the WAFC AASE programme and Apprentices. 2) Exposing Apprentices to the European opportunities in both sport and other careers so these can be explored and more readily understood, accepted and pursued in the future. 3) Embedding LLP principles into the training and development programme and working cultures in order to equip Apprentices with the aptitude and skills to pursue employment, either within sport or outside of it, throughout their career. NUMBER AND PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTS Participants were the 20 Apprentices undertaking the WAFC AASE programme in the 2015/16 football season (i.e. the 2014-2016 and 2015-2017 cohorts). These Apprentices were selected for the Academy programme primarily on the basis of their football ability and therefore incorporate a wide range of academic abilities, socioeconomic circumstances and ethnic backgrounds. PROJECT ACTIVITIES The majority of the work placement activities took place at the Odense BK, including: - Regular training sessions to address the defined sports performance targets. - Games versus high quality Danish youth teams. - Daily feedback and evaluation sessions to confirm goal setting/reflection. Odense BK has outstanding links at a local, regional and national level which enabled WAFC to enhance the work placement activities of participants. For example: - Access to top flight Danish football teams, FCV Vikings and SønderjyskE. - A visit to the Universtiy of Southern Denmark. - Observation of a live Superliga fixture. METHODOLGY WAFC used the principles of the European Quality Charter for Mobility to set goals and define tasks for the key elements of the project: 1) INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE: production of clear and accessible resources. 2) LEARNING PLAN: clearly defining the project objectives and the role of each partner in achieving them. 3) PERSONALISATION: pre-visit assessment of participants' desired learning outcomes. 4) PREPARATION: a structured preparation programme tailored to individual needs. 5) LANGUAGE: provision of formal and informal language training. 6) LOGISTICS: a formal contract to be signed by both parties outlining practical and logistical responsibilities. 7) MENTORING: provision of suitably qualified staff to facilitate achievement of individual goals and ensure integration. 8) RECOGNITION: delivery of formal instruments to recognise individual learning outcomes. 9) EVALUATION: comprehensive and objective evaluation of all aspects of the project. 10) RESPONSIBILITIES: agreement by all parties on their roles and responsibilities in the successful delivery of the project, formalised in writing via a Memorandum of Understanding and individual participant Learning Plans. IMPACTS The impacts on participants included: - Development of life skills and experience that can be utilised throughout participants' education and careers. - Enhanced cultural and linguistic skills, facilitating openness to new opportunities both in the UK and Europe. - Improved knowledge and understanding of the European opportunities in sport and other careers. The impacts on WAFC included: - Enhancement of the WAFC AASE programme both in terms of improved technical sporting quality of Apprentices and coaches, and also Apprentice achievement rates. - Implementation of best practice across the WAFC AASE programme and also the wider Football League AASE programme. - Improved exit and progression opportunities for Apprentices, both within sport and outside of it, and in the UK and Europe.