We have had a few members asking about the stage the FSA is at regarding the trainer endorsement process, recognition of practitioners and the offer of free membership to trainees.  Here is clarification of where the FSA is up to regarding these matters.

Over the past few months the FSA, as the FS professional body, has been considering the criteria that should be adopted for endorsing Forest School training providers. We have been, and are in the process of consulting with the GB Trainers Network in this regard. These criteria will determine the minimum requirements expected of FSA endorsed trainers. As such, they are very important to get right and cannot be rushed.  For information, those FSA directors who are Forest School trainers will not vote in this regard as they have a conflict of interest.  Our anticipation is this procedural information will be available in 2014 after much continuing consultation throughout the Forest School training community.  While we are developing the criteria and until the endorsement process is implemented we suggest that prospective trainees visit the FSA website for general advice about choosing a FS trainer. https://forestschoolassociation.org/how-to-choose-a-fs-trainer/.

We’d like to be very clear that the FSA will recognise ALL Forest School qualifications awarded by legitimate awarding bodies, that have equivalence to those offered by trainers and training organisations on the GB trainers network, be they with OCN or other awarding bodies.  These will relate eventually to the National Occupational Standards, which the FSA will be developing.  This is the case for past and current qualifications, regardless of who the training was done with. We are currently working up all the criteria required to become a registered practitioner with the FSA, which we will be consulting with the membership on, before the final criteria are decided upon.

All current trainee Forest School students are offered one year free concessionary membership of the FSA, without voting rights, which can be accessed through their training provider, as long as that training provider has an individual membership of the FSA.  Many training providers have already chosen to support the FSA by becoming individual members – if your training provider is one of those individual members, they can organise a free one year Forest School trainee membership for you.  Please contact them directly