Coaches are advised that, following a review, some important changes have been made to the Coach Licence scheme.
This follows discussions within the Table Tennis England coach focus group and the UKCC tutoring team and takes account of feedback from many of our coaches over the last couple of years.
The Coach Licence scheme is a way for Table Tennis England to continue to drive forward coaching standards and enable us to support coaches on their coaching journey. Table Tennis England does not make money through the scheme.
The changes are:
First Aid – becomes an advisory for all coaches and not a requirement for your coach licence to be active
Table Tennis England advise that all coaches working on their own should hold a First Aid certificate updated every three years and that there should also be a coach with a First Aid certification at every session undertaken.
However, every coach does not necessarily need to have a First Aid certification in place when they coach if other coaches at the session hold their First Aid certification. This will come into effect from 1st July 2016.
CPD requirement – change from a requirement for annual renewal to every two years
Table Tennis England recognise that some coaches prefer to complete their CPD with a practical table tennis workshop. However, with a busy season, dates in your area can always be missed and therefore we are extending the time period required for coaches to access CPD opportunities. There are of course many other CPD opportunities, from video analysis to Sports Coach UK workshops, available, which we will continue to promote to you.
The biennial CPD change will come into effect the next time you complete your CPD, when the period for which the CPD will last will be two years rather than one.
Coach Licence cost
There will be an increase in the Coach Licence cost to £29 from January 1st 2017 to ensure we can continue to offer all licensed coaches their own public liability insurance, as well as continuing to provide CPD activity free for all licensed coaches.
We have also provided three opportunities for existing coaches to lock in your coach licence at the current rate of £24, which will be available to do from 1st July 2016.
Extend your licence by two years: If your Coach Licence expires after January 1st 2017 you can click on the ‘extend your licence’ option in the coach portal and extend your licence for an extra two years at the current £24 per year rate.
Purchase a three-year licence: If your Coach Licence runs out before January 1st 2017 you can purchase a three-year licence at £24 per year.
Bulk buy discount: To promote clubs/leagues or counties supporting their coaches to gain their Coach Licence, we are also offering a bulk buy discount for these organisations. If they buy three or more licences through the club they will receive these at £24 cost per Coach Licence.
We believe the Coach Licence still offers excellent value for money with the inclusion of areas such as public liability insurance and free CPD, particularly in comparison to our racket sport neighbours whose coach licence fees remain in general at least 25% higher than Table Tennis England.
The Coach Licence costs have not changed for a number of years and the benefits of the licence will continue to include areas such as free CPD, insurance and the Winning Edge magazine.
CPD continues to be led by our regional staff. Sport England no longer funds coaching delivery activity but Table Tennis England is committed to providing opportunities for our coaches to develop and excel in their coaching and will continue to offer this free of charge for all licenced coaches.
To update your coach licence, please click here