a leading figure in sports coaching (specializing in futsal), physical education (PE), and higher education pedagogy, with 20+ years of experience spanning academia, elite sports coaching, and educational leadership. Based in Gloucester, UK, she currently serves as a Principal Lecturer (Sports Coaching/PE) and University Teaching Development Scheme Lead at Hartpury University (2011–present), where she drives innovation in teaching and coaching education.
A multilingual scholar (native Portuguese/English, limited Spanish/Italian) with a PhD in Sports Coaching (Cardiff Metropolitan University), PgCTHE, and MA in Education (Sports Coaching, University of Bath), Dr Silva’s expertise bridges practical coaching excellence and academic rigor. As a futsal coach, she has built award-winning programs: founding Hartpury University’s futsal team (2012) and leading it to 4 BUCS League Championships (2017–19, 2019–20, 2021–22) and 3 BUCS Cup titles, plus promotion to the BUCS Prem (top tier). She also held elite roles like England Deaf Women's Futsal Joint Head Coach (2017–2020), guiding the team to 2nd place in European qualifiers (Norway) and 4th in the European Championships (Finland), and was the only female head coach in the FA Men's National League (Gloucester City Futsal, 2013–2015).
In academia, Dr Silva leads teaching development at Hartpury, acts as an External Examiner for universities (e.g., University of South Wales, University of Northampton), and contributes to global coaching research as an Executive Board Member (International Officer) for the Cluster for Research into Coaching (CRiC). She also partners with organizations like UK Coaching (Associate Coach Developer) and The Football Association (National Futsal Course Coach Developer) to shape coach education standards nationwide.