Category Archives: News

Urban Cheer Course – Belfast



Last year UKCA brought you our brand new discipline, Urban Cheer, a slight update from Street Cheer.

Since its introduction, Urban Cheer has featured at all of UKCA’s major competitions and we have held a host of courses throughout the country. This August our Urban Cheer Foundation Skills course comes to Belfast.

The course is an introduction to Urban Cheer, covering ground bound Urban Cheer skills. The predominantly practical course is supported by theoretical understanding and incorporates:

• Coaching Skills
• Lesson Planning & Session Structure
• Health & Safety
• Warm Up, Stretch & Cool Down Activities
• Urban Vocal Skills
• Foundation Dance Styles
• Cheer Arm Motions
• Jump Technique
• Choreography

Successful participants demonstrating an active understanding of the course content will receive a Foundation Urban Cheer Skills Certificate of Qualification.

The course will be held on Sunday 25th August at Spectrum Centre between 10am and 4pm. Make the most of your summer break and gain the qualifications you need, book on the course today:

About Urban Cheer

Urban Cheer is a discipline that blends Urban Dance with Cheerleading Skills. It has 2 new additions to Street Cheer: Cheer Arm Motions and Age Divisions inline with Cheerleading.

To find out more in the video below:

A Special Offer From Our Partner



UKCA partner, Insure4Sport, are offering 10% off their insurance cover for UKCA Members.

Why do I need insurance?

Cheerleaders, along with gymnasts, have one of the highest injury rates of any athlete. Muscle tears, whiplash and neck injuries are common, which is why it’s essential to have a specialist insurance policy in place to protect you if an accident happens. In addition to athletes, Cheerleading coaches who advise and guide the team on a regular basis should seek a policy that covers all Cheerleading disciplines including acrobatics. If someone injures themselves following your advice or instruction and decides to take legal action, it could set you back thousands.

In such a high-flying, twisting and turning world, Cheerleading insurance is a must have for everyone who wants to maximise their enjoyment of the sport.

Take advantage of Insure4Sport‘s 10% discount for UKCA Members:

JULY 2019 NEWSLETTER



The latest from the UKCA Newsletter including 2020 competition dates, upcoming courses and special offers from our partners.

Dates for 2020

Need to gain a qualification during the summer?

Reward your VolunCheers

Why not reward your Voluncheers over the Summer Holidays with a certification for their time spent helping others?

Special Offers From Our Partners

UKCA 2020 Competition Dates Announced



With just one major competition left of 2019, the UKCA Winter Cheerleading Championships in December, we are pleased to announce the championship schedule for 2020 has been confirmed.

After a successful 2019, our four major competitions in Manchester will once again feature across 2 venues next season. The National Championships on March 14th & 15th and the Winter Championships on December 5th & 6th will take place at Belle Vue Sports Village with the Spring Championships on May 16th & 17th and the National Schools Championships on June 27th & 28th taking place at the iconic National Cycling Centre. The location of our 5th major competition in Northern Ireland remains unchanged at the Antrim Forum. It promises to be another exciting year of Cheerleading with UKCA.

Entries for the competitions will be handled via our online system and full timings and running orders will be released close to the event date.

We hope you all enjoy your summer breaks and we’ll see you at Belle Vue Sports Village on 7th & 8th December for this year’s Winter Championships 2019.

Hartlepool Hawks’ European Success Gains Recognition



After their fantastic success at this month’s European Cheerleading Championships in Germany, Hartlepool Hawks have been featured by their local news outlet the Hartlepool Mail.

Along with a host of other talented Cheer teams from across the UK, Hartlepool Hawks Cheerleading Academy’s 52 athletes made their mark in this year’s competition gaining an amazing 7 Gold medals. Team’s representing the UK won an incredible 31 medals – 10 Gold, 12 Silver and 9 Bronze. We know how much hard work and dedication goes into performing at such a high level and gaining success so it’s fantastic to see the recognition Hawks athletes have received in their local media.

“The cheerleaders, who train at their base on Moreland Street, made the grade to take part in the European Championships following their success at the UKCA National Cheerleading Championships

Athletes from as young as seven to those in their 30s showed off their skills in a number of cheer and dance divisions to take home seven gold medals.

And head coach Beccii Taylor, said she was so proud of her athletes for taking part.”

You can read the full feature by Hartlepool Mail here.

We’d like to once again say a huge well done to all of the teams who represented the UK at the ECA European Cheerleading Championships 2019! We are proud of you!

ECC 2019 – Well Done UK Teams



Last weekend saw the ECA European Cheerleading Championships 2019 take place in Heidelberg, Germany.

Over 2 days, over 1600 Cheerleaders from across the continent tested themselves against their fellow europeans in what was expected to be a record breaking European Cheerleading Championships in terms of competitors. The largest number of participants this year were from the host country Germany, followed by Great Britain and then Ukraine. As always it was an amazing spectacle to see so many talented Cheer athletes come together and compete at the highest level.

Overall teams from the UK collected an impressive 31 medals – 10 Gold, 12 Silver and 9 Bronze. Amazing!

A full list of results can be found here.

Check out the social media highlights of some of our UK Teams competing on the official UKCA Instagram channel

We’d like to say a huge well done to all of the teams involved you represented the UK fantastically!

If you were one of the superb UK contingent in Germany, don’t forget to share your selfies and pictures with us usng #UKCA!

ECC 2019 – Good Luck



The 2019 European Cheerleading Championships take place in Heidelberg, Germany this weekend. Over two days teams from across the continent will compete to be crowned European Champions in their chosen category.

We’re sure it will be an amazing weekend. Best of luck to all our teams competing, go smash it! We are proud of you!

Send the teams representing the UK a good luck message below!

UKCA National Schools’ Cheerleading Championships – Review



This weekend the National Cycling Centre in Manchester played host to UKCA’s penultimate competition of 2019, the UKCA National Schools’ Cheerleading Championships.

HIGHLIGHTS VIDEO:

The annual showcase of School Cheerleading Squads took place across two days and lived up to all the expectation. Schools from around the UK competed against their fellow squads across various Key Stages and Cheer categories, testing themselves at a national level.

Over the weekend we saw teams compete in Cheerleading, Disability Cheerleading, Pom Dance and Urban Cheer categories from KS1 up to KS5 as well as 2 customary Mascot Showdowns. As we’ve come to expect at our championships the standard of performances was incredibly high as each squad gave it their all to show the judges and the crowd what they can do. In addition to the trophies on offer to our Cheer athletes for their routines, there was also the Gateley Plc Spirit Award & Insure4Sport Spirit Award up for grab for teams showing exceptional Cheer Spirit.

All of the results from the UKCA National Schools’ Cheerleading Championships 2019 are live on our website.

Schools’ Championships 2019 – Saturday

Schools’ Championships 2019 – Sunday

The Gateley Plc Spirit Award for Saturday went to OPJS Otters.

Sunday’s Insure4Sport Spirit Award went to Castell Alun.

We’d like to say a huge thank you to everybody who made it such a special weekend! We hope to see you all again in December for our Winter Championships!

Here are some of the highlights from social media:

We can’t wait to see you all in December for the UKCA Winter Cheerleading Championships on the 7th & 8th December.

UKCA National Schools’ Championships 2019 – One Week To Go



The UKCA National Schools’ Championships 2019 are now just a week away!

The annual showcase of School Cheerleading Squads takes place at the National Cycling Centre in Manchester across two days and promises to be another fantastic occasion. Schools from all over the United Kingdom will compete against their peers across various Key Stages and Cheer categories. It’s their chance to show our judges and spectators what they’ve been working on and test themselves at a national level. The competition will begin at 9am on Saturday and Sunday. A full running order has been sent to all coaches.

In addition to the sporting competition, our Gateley Spirit Award and Insure4Sport Spirit Award will also be up for grabs for the Cheer squads who demonstrate exceptional Cheer Spirit throughout each day, so bring your smiles and Cheer loud and proud!

We can’t wait to welcome you all to another UKCA competition.

Get yourself in the mood for this year’s championships with the highlights from the UKCA National Schools’ Championships 2018:

Make sure you’re there to witness all the action next weekend, grab your tickets today:

Squad Feature: Bryn Gwalia Sharks



A school in Mold, Flintshire’s Cheerleading team were recently featured by their local newspaper LeaderLive following success in a local competition.

After Bryn Gwalia Sharks’ Year 5 and 6 Cheerleading teams won their Pom Dance category at Buckley Cheerleading Club’s Cheerfest event at Deeside Leisure Centre, they are now preparing for the UKCA National Schools’ Championships 2019.

Maria Kennedy their Cheer Coach said: “Cheerleading promotes good sportsmanship and encouragement of other teams and it is great for building confidence.

“Next, they’re entering the UK Cheerleading Association National Schools’ Championships at the the Manchester Velodrome on June 22 so they’re all practicing.”

We’d like to say a huge well done to Bryn Gwalia Sharks on their fantastic performance at Buckley Cheerleading Club’s Cheerfest event. We are proud of you!

Read the full article about Bryn Gwalia Sharks’ achievement here.

Bryn Gwalia Sharks will be competing along with teams from all over the UK at the UKCA National Schools’ Championships 2019. You can catch all of the action LIVE from the stands: