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 5 Star Leader - Sea

Successful performance at this level indicates that you have a high level of performance and knowledge, involving a high level of personal skill and leadership in advanced situations. This is a leadership award and the appropriate test for paddlers who wish to lead groups of other paddlers in appropriate locations in advanced tidal waters and in dynamic weather conditions typified by the Climate of the British Isles. The five star leader has the skills and judgement to select appropriate trips for a range of ability levels, however it is not a coaching award and not suitable for introducing beginners to the sport.

This award is intended for paddlers who journey on the sea in areas where tidal races, headlands, open crossings, swell and challenging coastlines will be encountered. It is intended that this award is accessible to all those people who journey on the sea on a regular basis and should not be seen as the preserve of a few elite performers. It is envisaged that a committed club paddler, sea kayaking regularly in a suitable range of situations, sea areas and conditions should be able to obtain this award within a period of three years.

In order to obtain the 5 Star Leader award, you will have to attend a training course which will last a minimum of 2 days and an assessment course which also lasts 2 days. Prior to assessment, you will be expect to have a gained sufficient experience, as well as have attended relevant safety training (see below for details).

5 Star Sea Leader - Syllabus Overview

What do I need to do before the training course?

You should hold either:
  • BCU 4 Star Sea Leader
  • 'old scheme' BCU Level 3 Sea

If you do not hold either of these awards, with sufficient evidence of equivalent experience / training, you may still be able to access the course using the APL process.

What will the training course involve?

The coach will cover personal paddling skills such as launching and landing, boat control, rolling in rough water and navigation. Leadership methods and tactics for such advanced sea environments will also be covered in detail, including group control, risk management, CLAP and decision-making. Looking at these factors will also lead to some coverage of safety and rescue considerations and incident management.

Training courses will vary in their exact content and delivery, depending on the experience and previous knowledge of those on the course. You should expect to leave the course with a clear idea of what you need to do in order to progress to assessment.

Please see the 5 Star Leader Sea Guidance Notes for more information.

What do I need to do before the assessment?

  • You must provide documented logged evidence of a minimum of 24 varied, quality, advanced sea kayak days in 3 different sea areas. This should include at least one multi-day trip.
  • You should be able to provide evidence of 3 days (2 days and 2 nights) logged experience of training in leadership and personal skills, safety and rescue, and must include an overnight camp. Such experience may be gained on a scheduled course or by informal training endorsed by an active level 5 coach. It is also strongly recommended that further endorsed training be undertaken based on the candidates action plan in different sea areas and a variety of environmental conditions.
  • Recognised First aid award (minimum 16 hrs training including CPR) within the last 3 years
  • Relevant Leadership Training, which can be either:
    • 5 Star Leader Sea training within the last 3 years
    • old style 5 Star Sea Training within the last 3 years.
  • Relevant Safety Training, which can be either:
    • BCU Open Water Navigation & Tidal Planning Training
    • 2 days specific training on open water navigation tidal planning from a registered BCU 5 Star Leader Sea Provider
  • Aged 18 years or above.

If you meet all of these requirements, you must then complete the Canoe Wales Leader Registration (LR Form), at least 2 weeks prior to your assessment. Leader registration is valid for 12 months, so it is worth doing it as early as possible to avoid worrying about it as your assessment approaches.

All that is left to do is to book on to a course! Check out up-coming courses registered with us using the online date list.

What is involved in the assessment?

To get an idea of what the assessors will be looking for, please check out the Guidance Notes.

Following successful assessment 5 Star Leaders must have comprehensive membership (in order to have 3rd party liability cover), knowledge of Child Protection guidelines and must remain current.