Job search
Job Search
Latest news
More news: (showing 1 - 20 of 13726)           
UK only International

STA launches all-inclusive pool lifeguarding qualification

By Tom Walker    02 May 2019
The award has been designed to streamline the ongoing training needs of lifeguards

The Swimming Teachers' Association (STA) has introduced a new lifeguard qualification, which it says is the first to align lifeguard and first aid at work revalidations.

Launched following a long consultation with industry groups, the Level 2 Pool Lifeguard award includes a new 3-year revalidation process – designed to consolidate and simplify the revalidation of lifeguards in the future.

It is hoped that the new qualification will also streamline the ongoing training needs of lifeguards in line with the latest health and safety recommendations.

Currently, as per the previous recommendations, additional lifeguard training is generally organised monthly, which – in an industry that employs a mix of part-time, full-time and seasonal personnel – has been notoriously difficult to organise.

Pool operators have voiced concerns that the monthly requirement often leads to a situation where lifeguards who cannot attend a training update have to miss shifts (and income) until the next session.

In turn, it also creates staffing issues for the employer.

STA is breaking with the tradition in order to help employers and lifeguards create a more flexible ongoing training programme.

Instead of monthly training sessions, STA has now stipulated that the 24 hours of required training for revalidation can be pre-planned in advance and organised at times that suit the needs of the leisure facility – opening up the possibility for bi-monthly or even quarterly training over the three-year period.

Kaylë Brightwell, head of qualifications at Safety Training Awards, STA’s awarding organisation said: “In developing this new qualification, we have torn up the rule book and listened to what employers really want.

"Yes, the qualification covers all the aspects of lifeguard and first aid training you would expect, but we’ve gone one step further to create an all-inclusive qualification – one that reflects the real role of a pool lifeguard.”

“By changing and simplifying the revalidation process and aligning it with First Aid at Work, will also significantly help operators – it will make the process far simpler.

"More significantly for employers will be the way we’ve re-structured the on-going training needs for lifeguards – from experience of working in a leisure facility, I know that operationally it will make the process so much easier to plan and administer.”

Swimming Teachers' Association  STA  lifeguard  first aid 
Sign up for FREE ezines
Related news

Company profile

Company profile: Everyone Active
Everyone Active's aim is to get communities active, engaged and entertained through our wide-ranging activities and services that include, sports, coaching, culture, events, health and happiness. We manage a vast range of indoor and outdoor facilities including swimming pools, spas, sports halls, squash courts, studios, fitness suites, climbing walls, cafes, golf courses, athletics stadia and sports pitches.
View full profile >
More company profiles

Featured Supplier

Elevate registrations soar: a record-breaking start to Elevate 2024
Elevate, the premier event in the physical activity, fitness, sports therapy and performance sector, is thrilled to announce that registrations for its 2024 conference are now live – and the response has been nothing short of exceptional.
View full details >
More featured suppliers

Property & Tenders

Location: Loughton, IG10
Company: Knight Frank
Location: Grantham, Leicestershire
Company: Belvoir Castle
Location: Verwood, Dorset
Company: AVISON YOUNG
Location: Hall Place House, Bexley, DA5 1PQ
Company: London Borough of Bexley
Location: 15 Concessions across the nation's forests
Company: Forestry England
More properties & tenders

Diary dates

11-14 Apr 2024
Exhibition Centre , Cologne, Germany
22-24 Apr 2024
Galgorm Resort, York
10-12 May 2024
China Import & Export Fair Complex, Guangzhou, China
23-24 May 2024
Large Hall of the Chamber of Commerce (Erbprinzenpalais), Wiesbaden, Germany
More diary dates