Canoe Wales is the national governing body for paddle sport in Wales. We:

  • Manage the National White Water Centre which is located on the river Tryweryn in Bala, North Wales
  • Represent the interests of our club and individual members
  • Advocate on behalf of the interests of the sport in Wales
  • Provide coaching and development programmes from local to international level
  • Stage national and international competitions.

BCU 3 Star - Touring

The touring award shows a competent intermediate standard of paddling in either a canoe or kayak in a variety of environments; including open water with wind up to force 2-3 and moving water / rivers with green flow but doesn't include rapids of any grade. Topics covered will include: forward and backward paddling, stopping, moving the boat sideways, supporting and dealing with environmental factors. For the full course syllabus, please see below.

The PDF documents below give more information on what is involved in the award.

3 Star Touring Syllabus

3 Star Touring Trainer and Assessors' Notes

On successful completion of the 3 star award, you will receive a certificate from the BCU by post. Certificate fees charged by the BCU will be collected from successful candidates by the coach at the end of the assessment (£5 for BCU / CW members or £10 for non-members). Please note that it may take several weeks for your certificate to arrive.

Find a course

Volunteer coaches or club members wishing to work towards some coaching awards can access the 3 star award in any discipline at a heavily discounted price through the Community Coach scheme. To see dates and contact details for all of the 3 Star Touring courses that have been registered with us, check out the course dates list or find a provider.

Providing BCU 3 Star Touring

Coaches who are old scheme BCU Level 3 coach or higher with the 4 star award (old or new) in both canoe and kayak, or a Placid Water Level 3 coach, can provide the BCU 3 star touring award - all you have to do is register with us using the star award assessor registration form.

All 3 star assessments should be registered with us prior to the course taking place. We will then give you a Course Authorisation Number and can send you a 3 star course schedule if you do not yet have one.