BCU Aquatic First Aid

BCU (British Canoe Union) First Aid course requirements are delivered by First Aid Academy. All active Coaches have a responsibility to maintain a current first aid award, to ensure they can look after paddlers in their care. BCU Coaches sign a declaration upon registration for our Coaching qualifications accepting this responsibility. Holding a valid first aid award is also part of the BCU Coach Update Scheme; Coaches who meet these requirements are recognized by the BCU as being active and up-to-date.  

In order to meet these requirements all BCU Coaches (except BCU UKCC Level 1) need a recognised first aid certificate recorded on their Home Nation Association membership record.

First Aid Academy delivers ITC First Aid courses and works under HSE Centre Number 1690/96 hence is a recognised provider. 

Which First Aid Award do I require?

BCU produces the following table on their website which state the minimum first aid requirements for coaches at various levels.
The minimum requirements for course length are listed below*

* From 1st January 2010 this will be training contact time, NOT course length (Table correct as of February 2010)

First Aid Academy's OUTDOOR FIRST AID course is delivered as two Units; Unit 1 Emergency Action 8 hours and Unit 2 Incident Management 8 hours (16 in total). To meet your coach requirements for Level 1-4 you can attend Unit 1 (day1) of the outdoor course for Level 5 both Units (2 days) of the course. We would always recommend however that coaches attend the full course to gain the full value of the learning.

REC Outdoor First Aid courses

Cory Jones, First Aid Academy Director is a qualified REC First Aid trainer. 

You can cross over from REC first aid trainer status to ITC First Aid status by coming on the ITC Provider Induction course. 

REC Level 2 outdoor first aid courses are the equivalent of the ITC Outdoor First Aid Course. 

Wilderness First Aid courses from REC are the equivalent of the ITC Outdoor First Aid course.

From December 2-20th 2009 the expedition team (Cory Jones, Martin Akhurst, John Shipton), crossed the southern Patagonian ice cap.  They used the original route from the first crossing 50 years earlier by the famous explorer Eric Shipton (John's dad). After tent damage the team made an emergency descent via the Marconi Pass 60km short of their intended end point. However they successfully completed a rare unsupported north-south traverse of the third largest ice cap in the world.

Weather conditions were unseasonally snowy which slowed the progress of the group with daily distances ranging from 4-24km.

The group provisioned the whole expedition in country.

For more information about the crossing contact Cory Jones or to see pictures from Cory and Martin go to  FLICKER

First Aid Academy is proud to be members of the Scottish First Aid Association.

The Scottish First Aid Association aims to promote the highest standards in First Aid training throughout Scotland. 

Members are drawn from those who run first aid training courses in Scotland and deliver to the highest quality criteria. They must train in accordance to Resuscitation Council (UK) guidelines.

Formed in 2009, the Scottish First Aid Association is a collective body representing First Aid trainers and First Aid training providers in Scotland.