DAC Junior Induction Group
DAC junior athletes are encouraged to compete for the club in the 2025-6 Derbyshire Mini League Sportshall events at Queen’s Park Leisure Centre in Chesterfield. More details on this page.
The Junior Induction Group offers grouped sessions for athletes aged from eight years old, in the U11 athletics age group. Athletes in U13 and U15 age groups are also encouraged to consider joining one of our specialised training groups.
Competition age groups correspond to school years:
- U11 – years 4 and 5
- U13 – years 6 and 7
- U15 – years 8 and 9
Please note that these age groups are changing from 1 April 2026. There is more information in this news story.
Mini League competitions are ideal for all our younger athletes. Athletes need to be aged nine upwards to compete in Mini League.
Join our Facebook group – the Facebook group is for parents and carers of Derby Athletic Club members as well as members of Derby Athletic Club if age appropriate. Please answer the security questions when you ask to join the group.
If you are interested in joining the club, details are on this website, not on the Facebook group; but please be aware that due to a high level of interest in the club, we have had to close the waiting list for the junior section. Thanks for your interest.
About us
We endeavour to deliver elements of running, jumping and throwing in every session.
We are a community club – delivered by the community for the community. All our coaches, officials and backroom teams are volunteers. We are a community club that does athletics.
The quality of opportunities we offer depends on parents coming forward to help at training, with competitions and with the general running of the club. We actively encourage and support parents to volunteer and that makes it all possible. Please take a look at our “I would like to help when I can” form.
In the Junior Academy, “run, jump, throw” sessions are delivered for young athletes to improve movement skills and physical conditioning, with the goal of developing physical capacities and coordination using a variety of athletics events and challenges. Parents/carers/guardians of children of primary school age are expected to stay on site at all times.
Whilst we do seek to improve how fast a young athlete runs and how far they jump and throw, more important is our work on the technical skills (‘how’ to run, jump and throw) required for each individual to develop their own potential as they grow. In addition, we aim to support an athlete’s mental and emotional development, as well as their lifestyle and social development.
Being a club with amazing outdoor facilities but limited indoor facility, we occasionally have to adapt plans to accommodate the weather. Moorways Stadium is one of the most-used in the country for athletics competitions (local, county, regional, national, international). The club encourages and supports events that maintain the prestige and profile of our stadium. On occasions we make greater use of the stadium surrounds to accommodate these competitions and on rare occasions we cancel sessions for safety reasons.