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Climb better with the help of a Development Coach Gear News

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Mountain Training - Development Coach  © UKClimbing
We all want to be able to climb better. Climbing better allows us to achieve more and with improved style which enhances that feel-good factor. Imagine how many more routes would be opened up to you if you improved your slab climbing, or how it would revolutionise your weekends if you were a more confident leader. Being better is a no-brainer!

So how do you 'climb better'?

Firstly, you've got to want to climb better. That sounds obvious enough, but improvement comes with a degree of challenge and you'll be in a much better place to tackle those challenges if you're fully committed.

Secondly, set some goals and make a plan.

Thirdly, execute the plan.

In reality, many people fall off the road to improvement when it comes to making a plan. They have great ideas about where they want to be, but no idea how to get there. That's where a Development Coach comes in. Furthermore, we often get so focussed on the bits of the plan we like, that it helps to have someone hold us to account, and review what's working (and what's not)!

What is a Development Coach?

A Development Coach is a committed climber who has been trained and assessed to help you improve your climbing, achieve your goals, and support you along the way. This short film outlines the key attributes of a Development Coach and the role they will play in your training, which is ultimately about facilitating your development as a climber.

Once you progress as a climber beyond the basic fundamental skills of climbing, from a novice to a more experienced climber, coaching becomes more complex. As well as technical input on your climbing movement, Development Coaches can help improve your tactical approach to climbing, introduce a physical training plan and analyse any psychological barriers that might be holding you back. Hence, the Development Coach qualification is all about learning how to structure and recognise the importance of:

  • Progression – both in the content of sessions, as well as the style of delivery to match the climber's skill acquisition
  • Adaptation – to identify and optimise both the progression and delivery to suit each and every climber's needs, at just the right level – and evolve as their skills (and needs) develop
  • Individualisation – to be able to work with more than one climber at a time and multi task accordingly

How do you become a Development Coach?

The scheme is designed for people who already coach climbing and is the second step on the coaching pathway developed by Mountain Training, the national awarding organisation for climbing qualifications. The first level is Foundation Coach and the majority of people complete this element before moving on to Development Coach training and assessment.

For experienced and active climbing coaches currently working at a high level, there is a process for accrediting your prior learning (APL) which may enable you to dive straight in to the Development Coach scheme without completing the Foundation Coach scheme.

The prerequisites for entering the Development Coach scheme involve the same three elements that make up the Foundation Coach level: what to coach, how to coach and safe supervision.


For more information Mountain Training



18 Jul, 2017
A good place to start would be Jon Garside at the BMC office - if he doesnt know, he would certainly be able to point you in the right direction. I dont think the number will be too spectacularly high; the qualification itself hasnt been around that long, and requires prior Foundation Coach level, which itself hasnt been around too long. But the number will be increasing constantly as more and more staff from walls in the UK (and those operating independent of walls) become qualified to this level.
21 Jul, 2017
Currently, there are 68 people that have passed the Development Coach assessment. With over 300 having done the training.


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