Sport England funds instructor boost
BSAC IS SET TO CREATE AN EXTRA 196 Open Water Instructors , thanks to its Sport England-funded instructor training and mentoring scheme .
Launched back in December , backed by a £ 10,000 Sport England grant , the scheme created an opportunity for existing Assistant Diving Instructors to be financially supported with their Open Water Instructor ( OWI ) qualification .
All the training places on offer have been subsidised by Sport England ( 30 %) and BSAC ( 20 %), saving participants half their course fees .
The initiative was initially designed to support more women and younger members into club instructing , although the scheme was open to all . A total of 49 women and 52 members under the age of 30 are on the final participant list .
With applications now closed , all 196 successful candidates will be shortly starting on the scheme , with those still needing to achieve their Dive Leader grade to commence a mentoring programme coordinated by project volunteer David Ashmore . Meanwhile , existing Dive Leaders will start the Open Water Instructor Course as soon as the Covid lockdown allows .
BSAC Coaching Co-ordinator Mark Paisey - who is working with BSAC Diving Support Advisor Geoff Bacon to manage the scheme - said the intention was for all candidates to complete their OWI training by the end of the year , subject to lifting of restrictions .
“ The original plan was to train 60 OWIs , but BSAC has decided to extend the scheme so everyone who applied and was eligible for the scheme is supported and no one is left behind ,” Mark said .
Mark also welcomed the opportunity to help increase diversity in BSAC ’ s instructor network and support clubs in their training and development .
“ BSAC recognises the importance
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of diversity , equality and inclusivity ,” he explained . “ It ’ s important that our instructor base reflects the wider community . Slewing the scheme to prioritise women and younger people will help rebalance our instructor profile .
“ Providing 196 new OWIs to the clubs will also provide a welcome boost to training capacity at a time when branches are resource challenged .”
BSAC received a total of 311 applications for the scheme , but not all met the criteria . Mark said BSAC was now working to offer an alternative scheme to those who didn ’ t qualify as they were not Assistant Diving Instructors , once they have completed their IFC .
“ With the scheme extension and plans to offer an alternative scheme , BSAC has underwritten a major membership benefit ,” Mark added .
Inclusivity and the importance of language
BSAC ’ S NEW STRATEGIC PLAN FOR 2021- 2023 is striving to build a community of divers and snorkellers as well as welcoming and encouraging a more diverse membership .
Over the last few weeks , BSAC has created a language awareness course to support members and branches to ensure their club is inclusive and welcoming to all .
As part of its refreshed Equality , Diversity and Inclusion Policy , the free language awareness course is available online for all members to complete . The eLearning course covers the use of appropriate language for a supportive club environment , and takes around 30 minutes to complete .
While all members can access the free course , BSAC is particularly encouraging Branch Officers and Instructors to complete the course as soon as possible .
BSAC Eastern Regional Coach , Lisa Shafe , who worked on developing the language awareness course said : “ Equality means making sure everyone has an equal opportunity . Diversity is about celebrating the difference in individuals and inclusion is about making sure no one feels left out .
“ It is up to us , as BSAC members and volunteers , to lead by example and understand what language we should be using to refer to people , and how to avoid exclusionary terms . So , with the new eLearning course , we want to raise awareness of language so that we are not inadvertently making someone feel uncomfortable or excluded .”
The language awareness eLearning course is now part of BSAC ’ s updated Equality , Diversity and Inclusion ( EDI ) Policy and is in line with the Equality Act 2010 . BSAC is also asking all Instructors and Branch Officers to familiarise themselves with the new EDI Policy .
Members can access the language awareness course at to bsac . com / edicourse The new EDI Policy can be downloaded from bsac . com / edi
If you have any questions or feedback about EDI , the new policy or the language awareness course , please email edandi @ bsac . com
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