BACKGROUND AND WORK TO DATE

At 20 years old S&C is still a relatively young profession, however, it has gained widespread recognition for the level of skills, knowledge and professionalism of our members, and UKSCA is now looking to move the profession forwards and achieve Chartered status for our members. There are two options:

1. Partner with an existing body that already holds a Royal Charter
2. Apply directly to the Privy Council to gain our own Royal Charter

We are pursuing Option 1 in partnership with CIMSPA – the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity. CIMSPA’s Royal Charter enables them to award Chartered Status to professionals who meet an occupational standard and demonstrate significant experience and impact in the sector.

Together with CIMSPA, from 2018-2020 we developed the ‘professional standard’ documents based on our Accredited S&C Coach and S&C Trainer assessments, fulfilling the required occupational standard requirement. We then began working together on the Chartering process.

UKSCA'S NON-NEGOTIABLES

We understand that progress toward Chartered Status may seem slow to members, taking years rather than months. Changes of staff, Covid and changing organisational priorities have all been faced, however, we have also had to navigate some ‘non-negotiables’ for both CIMSPA and UKSCA.

UKSCA’s non-negotiables have been:

• Chartered Status for S&C Coaches should only be accessible through UKSCA and exclusively for Accredited members
• Members should not incur significant or unnecessary costs, either in time or money, to demonstrate their standards of knowledge, skills and expertise, if already demonstrated through UKSCA accreditation and CPD processes.

Despite the challenges of developing a partnership that satisfies the requirements of both organisations, CIMSPA and UKSCA have maintained respect and honesty, while working through obstacles together. Partnerships are rarely easy, but we remain committed to achieving Chartered Status for our members in partnership with CIMSPA.

THE 2024 PILOT

In the summer of 2024, 10 UKSCA assessors went through a pilot of a 3-step S&C Chartering process.

2024 PILOT FEEDBACK

The results of the pilot can be summarised in four points:

1. Coverage of Criteria

Most, if not all, of the criteria for Chartered Status are already integrated, or can be easily incorporated, into UKSCA's current processes:

•   Initial Accredited S&C Coach assessment processes
•   CPD/re-accreditation process.

2. Pilot Group Insights

The assessors in our pilot group are already operating well above the required level for Chartered Status. The pilot reinforced the strength and credibility of our current systems and the S&C profession.

3. Trust in the Process

CIMSPA trusts the robustness of our processes and sees the value in embedding Chartered Status into them.

4. Member Concerns

CIMPSA recognise there is a clear desire for Chartered Status among our members, but also cost remains a significant barrier—both the initial and ongoing costs of becoming and staying Chartered.

NEXT STEPS

The UKSCA/CIMSPA project team have agreed some key principles to enable CIMSPA to award Chartered status to UKSCA members. These principles are aimed at streamlining the Chartered process for S&C, but still require approval from both CIMSPA's Senior Leadership Team and the UKSCA Board:

• Chartered Status will require ASCC + 3 CPD cycles (minimum 6 years after ASCC accreditation), within which, agreed criteria must be met by individuals
• This is a practitioner recognition – ie the UKSCA member is being recognised for their coaching
• Chartered Status can be awarded without an extra application or interview, just a fee
• We will strive to keep costs minimal for all members
• By March 2025, all current 689 ASCC members who have completed 3 CPD cycles (and met the criteria) will have the opportunity to become Chartered.
• We will title members as Chartered S&C Coaches (not Chartered members of CIMSPA).

In the coming weeks, after consideration by CIMSPA and UKSCA, we will be updating members and seeking your support for the finalised process, roll-out plan and fees.