Background

The national Mountain Training organisations, collectively referred to as Mountain Training, are working hard to plan for a return to course and MTA workshop delivery in a climate of uncertainty and evolving guidance which currently varies across the UK and Ireland.

To help steer us through this challenging time we have developed a set of principles and outlined the approach which will determine our path towards reactivation, which has been agreed by all five Mountain Training organisations. We will use this framework to support our decision making as we continue to work with our partners in the sector and with the various governments involved in policy making.

As we have done throughout this crisis, we welcome your suggestions and comments. We also ask for your patience as we endeavour to react to developments outside our control with the level of coordinated consideration you would expect from Mountain Training.

Our principles

These are the principles by which we will make our decisions:

Safe	Course provision will be informed and guided by a public health assessment of risk.
Lawful	We will respect government guidance and legal restrictions.
Evidence-based	We will use the best available activity-specific evidence and analysis to guide our decision making.
Socially responsible	We recognise that there must be a balance between economic growth and the welfare of local communities, society and the environment. Candidates, providers and their staff are accountable for fulfilling their civic duty; the actions of an individual must benefit the whole of society.
Clear	We will provide clarity to our candidates, our scheme providers and their staff to enable compliance, engagement, and accountability.
Realistic	We will consider the viability and effectiveness of course delivery options through discussions with our scheme providers.
Collective	We will work with our partners and stakeholders, including the mountaineering councils, professional associations and UK government, devolved governments and Irish government, ensuring that wherever possible, the procedures for providers and tutors will be harmonised; however slight differences may be required to accommodate differences in restrictions imposed by devolved or national governments.

Our approach

We will act in accordance with our Mountain Training ethos.

We recognise that we cannot simply return to how things were prior to the arrival of the coronavirus Covid-19, nor can we stay in complete lockdown indefinitely because we know that this brings damaging consequences of its own. So the provision of Mountain Training schemes and MTA workshops, along with the rest of society, must adapt to a new reality. We need to find a way to live with this virus for the time being and minimise its harm while supporting everyone that wants to return to the great outdoors.

Prior to lockdown, our leaders, instructors, coaches and guides supported public participation (both voluntarily and professionally) in walking, climbing and mountaineering in so many ways across the UK and Ireland. They will again play an important part in getting the nation active and supporting improved health and wellbeing as government restrictions are eased and advice evolves. This means we need to ensure, as far as we can, that our scheme providers can once more run Mountain Training courses and our candidates can continue their personal development, essential to completing the process of becoming qualified.

Our key objective is to enable our leaders and Mountain Training provider network to support the safe enjoyment of walking, climbing and mountaineering as soon as is practicably possible, in line with the principles listed above.

Our considerations

We identify three streams of activity:

• Participation – initiatives to support the safe and responsible enjoyment of mountain-related activities.
• Led activity – consideration of what is possible within tight restrictions and low ratios.
• Mountain Training course delivery – enabling our skills and qualification courses to be accessed by candidates.

The timing of the reactivation of these three streams may overlap and may vary across the UK and Ireland, depending on relevant legislation and guidance.

Key considerations related to Mountain Training course delivery (beyond established risk assessment for the activity)

• Travel – are people allowed to travel to course delivery destinations?
• Overnight/longer term stays – are these allowed? Do they encourage visits to vulnerable communities (rural with significant older populations etc)?
• Health and hygiene – managing use of personal and shared, activity-specific and disease control, PPE e.g. ropes, harnesses, group shelter, face coverings, gloves etc.
• Social distancing and social contact limitations – is it possible to deliver a course effectively for all participants whilst social distancing/contact limitation measures are in place?
• Safe workspace – what does a safe workspace look like in each of our course delivery environments?
• Candidate health status – are there any new prerequisites for course attendance relating to the known or believed health of the participant(s)?
• Safety and Rescue – in dealing with emergencies, what’s the availability of MR teams? New first aid protocols for course staff?
• Liability – is it clear what implications exist for course providers and participants if people become infected during a course?

This list of considerations is not definitive and will evolve as the situation develops, for example if ‘Test and Trace’ is implemented as a suppression tactic.

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This is our decision making framework. The executive officer of each national Mountain Training organisation will communicate with their providers regarding any changes to the course delivery situation.