BSAC relies on volunteers to deliver the highest quality dive and snorkel training. As BSAC’s Head of Diving and Training Dom Robinson explains, the time and effort volunteers put in delivers great benefits for members.
BSAC provides training through our clubs nationwide, so members can become qualified and progress their skills thanks to volunteer instructors within their community. In addition to in-club training opportunities, members can book onto the nationally scheduled programme of Instructor Training Scheme (ITS) courses and regional Skill Development Courses (SDC)s that run year-round.
We have a busy programme of both SDCs and ITS events, and we can only do this thanks to our volunteer regional teams. Every scheduled event requires someone to plan it, book the venue, organise attendees, and ensure the training is delivered to BSAC standards.
March of the instructors
When you start training with us, Instructors are the visible face of BSAC, and now we have more of them! You may have read that BSAC’s Instructor Training Scheme (ITS) has seen a recent uplift in members undergoing training, with new instructor qualifications bouncing back to pre-Covid levels. Demand for BSAC instructor training remains high, with an amazing 159 new Open Water Instructor (OWI) Q-cards issued in the first six months of 2022.
The successful return of BSAC’s Instructor Training Scheme in 2022 has been a significant team effort that we’re hoping to continue. You may have seen that events for 2023 are available to book now!
Instructor Trainers
Behind the scenes, each instructor event - whether that’s an Instructor Foundation Course (IFC), Open Water Instructor Course (OWIC), or the Practical Instructor Exam (PIE) requires a team of Instructor Trainers lead by a National Instructor. We are incredibly grateful for all the members of the Instructor Training Scheme (ITS) who give up their time and provide the expertise to make this happen.
BSAC is currently organising staff for the 2023 events and has sent out an availability form to all Instructor Trainers. If that’s you and you haven’t returned it then please do so asap!
Becoming an Instructor Trainer
Each year, usually in late January, BSAC holds an Instructor Training Development Course (ITDC) to create a fresh intake of Instructor Trainers. It’s an immensely rewarding path to take, so I would encourage any Advanced Instructors looking for a new teaching challenge to contact the ITS team for more information about attending the ITDC and becoming an Instructor Trainer. It’s a high-status qualification but, more importantly, will help achieve our ambition to deliver more training and create more highly qualified BSAC divers and instructors than ever before.
Thinking of volunteering?
The generosity of our volunteers is what makes the BSAC community so special. Get in touch if you’d like to discuss volunteering with our scheduled ITS or SDC training programmes. You could email us or call on 0151 350 6203.
Thank you to all who’ve helped us deliver for members so far in 2022.
BSAC’s programme of scheduled events is listed at bsac.com/events
