Endorsement for higher education SkillsActive News

Tom Bell, Endorsement Manager, SkillsActive

For a number of years, SkillsActive has had a higher education institution (HEI) endorsement scheme in place designed to enhance the employability skills of students studying towards a career in the fitness sector.

SkillsActive HEI endorsement is a skills solution which allows HEIs to demonstrate that their foundation/degree courses meet employer needs and industry standards. Endorsement ascertains that HEIs have

followed the criteria to ensure that programmes leading to qualifications are fit for practice. It

brings clarity for parents and students when choosing HE programmes, as well as to employers when recruiting graduates.

The scheme is based around embedding employability and vocational skills into a programme. Many universities from across the UK have engaged with the scheme and, given the current economic climate, many more are recognising the need to demonstrate that their courses produce graduates

with the skills employers want.

Endorsement also includes REPs recognition, meaning students undertaking a SkillsActive approved course can gain acceptance onto the Register upon completing certain modules. Students therefore gain a fit-for-purpose qualification, as well as one that meets the requirements of the fitness industry’s regulatory body. This is all part of ensuring that members of the public who use the services of registered exercise professionals are guaranteed a

high quality service.

Many universities’ foundation/degree courses tend to cover several categories of registration on REPs, for example, level 2 Gym, level 3 Personal Trainer and one or more of the new level 4 standards in a specific medical condition. SkillsActive encourages all existing REPs members, and those not on the Register, planning to go to university to look for courses that are SkillsActive-approved and therefore REPs recognised. This will ensure that you are an attractive candidate in a competitive market.

EREPS news

l With national registers now launched in Hungary and the Netherlands, a Swiss register due to go-live in the next few months and development work underway in Ireland, the number of EREPs members is continuing to grow.

EREPs covers 28 different European countries and each of their national registers – including REPs – all work to the same agreed European standards that define the qualifications for exercise professionals as well as being part of EREPs.

New standards (at the equivalency of UK levels 2 and 3) were agreed recently and work is now underway on new areas of competencies. These will define the qualifications for exercise professionals all across Europe in the future and will help build towards a better career framework for the European industry. These standards will not affect the recent review of standards and qualifications in the UK.

The work is being driven by technical experts from a great number of different countries to develop agreed standards that will help training companies to deliver

The first 20 members of the Hungrarian national register receive their certificates of registration at a special ceremony in Budapest attended by Director of EREPS Cliff Collins and IWI Director László Zopcsák.

the right programmes to support exercise professionals in developing their technical skills.

EREPS and these technical groups are all part of the European Health and Fitness Association which is the representative body of the European health and fitness

industry. It has expanded its membership and now represents over 9,000 fitness centers, and covers 23 different countries.

European Register of Exercise Professionals

ereps 08 The REPs Journal 2010;17(June):8-10