Skills Development Course Proposal

Proposal for a BSAC Meteorology Skills Development Course

from

Tony Wisson

OWI with Tiverton BSAC 527

This is a proposal which aims to encourage the creation of a new British Sub Aqua Club (BSAC) Skills Development Course (SDC) in meteorology.

Business Case

The weather forecast is one of, if not the most, important element of dive planning. It is vital that divers understand and respect the effects that rapidly changing weather situation can bring. Not only is interpretation of weather forecasts important for planning dive trips, it is critical for diver safety especially when diving in the open ocean.

BSAC offer a brief element of meteorological training in Advanced Diver theory lesson 1 (AT1). Relatively few divers will ever reach Advanced Diver level, but dive planning, boat handling and dive managing can be done by Ocean Divers, Sports Divers and Dive Leaders – all of whom will have not had any meteorological training (aside from anecdotes from experienced members). This demonstrates a significant gap in knowledge, one which could have direct safety implications.

One example of this is the advection of sea fog on an otherwise calm summer’s day. It is not shown on a standard pressure chart, and may not be picked up by ‘mobile phone weather widgets’ that are of growing popularity in planning. Unexpected arrival of this thick sea fog will cause a club boat to potentially lose bearings indefinitely at the same time divers may be in the water whilst the currents pick up.

On a more positive note the ability to interpret forecast charts and understand what weather occurs in certain situations can lead to an enhancement of dive trips, for example a plume of thunderstorms moving in from the near continent may render dive sites along the Kent and Sussex coasts un-diveable, but analysis of the forecast may show Hampshire and Dorset to be favourable, so dive plans can be easily adjusted in the appropriate timescale. This would save members money and improving the overall experience as well as keeping everyone safe.

The British Sub Aqua Club (BSAC) run Skills Development Courses (SDCs), such as chart fixing, boat handling, rescue courses etc which are aimed at expanding practical knowledge of a subject only touched on in basic theory lessons. Meteorology is more than suitable to be run as an SDC, as it can be taught at all diver qualification levels.

The UK Met Office is a world renowned leader in weather forecasting, and the Met Office College is designed not only to instruct its own employees, but have the capability to provide courses for businesses and the public, these can be run at HQ in Exeter or there is also an option for trainers to detach out to customers. There is a wonderful opportunity for BSAC to run a SDC in Meteorology through the Met Office College – indeed an exciting prospect to gain meteorological knowledge and insight directly from the professionals!

Proposed Approach

There are two broad options:

• Option 1, as already suggested is to run the SDC through BSAC, giving the qualification a lot of weight. However, if the costs and logistics show this to be unfeasible then
• Option 2, SDCs can be run at club or regional level by BSAC instructors without any Met Office involvement (unfortunately there is currently no structure for Met Office to remotely ‘endorse’ such courses).

For option 1, BSAC would be the organising body and the Met Office the facilitators. BSAC would arrange dates, for instance twice yearly (to keep members interested and maintain good course overturn), for courses to be run by trainers either at BSAC HQ in Exeter or at a regional BSAC centre. BSAC would take the bookings and supply the course information. Classrooms have a capacity for about 30 people. Members visiting HQ will converge in reception prior to the course and be given visitors passes and escorted to the college classrooms. It would be easier to base most of the course on a structured theory lesson to keep trainer costs to BSAC members down, although practical elements would be required at the end of the day to consolidate information. The entire content of the course is tailored to requirement, so it is no problem for them to make a presentation just for us! Met Office has an in-house restaurant where midday meals can be purchased. As with all SDCs accommodation would be for to members to arrange and pay for. At the end of the course members would feed back to the trainer positive aspects and suggest content that can be expanded upon or had been omitted. This feedback process is a standard procedure.

Alternatively the trainer can physically travel to any regional centre where the SDC could also run from, bringing all materials necessary for the course. This would minimise travel for members but may be more expensive. This requires discussion between BSAC and the Met Office. There are also teleconferencing facilities at Exeter HQ; this option could be explored as well.

The Met Office College have stated that they would appreciate direct contact from BSAC branch council regarding initial discussion, subsequent negotiation and finally agreement. The initial contact can be made via phone, with following correspondence either by phone or email. Contact details are available in Appendix 1.

For option 2, the Met Office is not involved at any stage. BSAC could gather theory materials similar to or further to the meteorological theory in AT1, and this can be run by a theory instructor (or above) at club level. The advantages of this are the relative simplicity of organisation, it will be informal at the same time as being informative and costs to members will be lower. However, the SDC will not carry as much professional weight, an opportunity which would be a shame to miss – but it’s a more realistic option. Endorsement could be sought from the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) for example, which have lower overheads.

In either case, the course would last either one or two days. Suggested content and timetables are included in Appendix 2.

Pricing

For option 1: BSAC SDCs cost in the region of £20-40, and unfortunately the Met Office College does not publicly disclose pricing information – so cannot be directly considered in this proposal. The pricing is competitive, and it certainly would be feasible to run a course at the Met Office so that members would not have to pay much more than a normal SDC, but this is heavily dependant on maximum attendance. The less people on the course, the more expensive per head as costs are worked out per individual trainer.

For option 2: Costs could be considerably less, at the same time there is an opportunity for the club to profit from each SDC as courses would be run by members for members, in the same vein as any club theory lesson. Content would be easy to gather, the only real costs involved would be transport to their meeting place and the cost of tea and biscuits!

Next Steps

1. BSAC Branch Council to vote on carrying forward the proposal
2. Assuming positive vote, an appropriate delegate from BSAC branch council will need to contact Met Office College directly to estimate viability of BSAC training through the Met Office.
3. If the Met Office route is found to be an ineffective or too costly, investigate methods of implementing BSAC run SDCs.

  

Supporting Statements

These statements have been collated from the eponymous topic on the BSAC forum on LinkedIn.com – this is the link http://tinyurl.com/on7gold

“I've often thought about the importance of being able to read the weather and adjusting dive plans on the day. I remember a time when it was the most glorious clear day, and we decided to head out on the ribs to a more remote dive site than we originally planned, and then all of a sudden, practically out of nowhere, we were in the thickest fog, and couldn't see where we were or where we were going. It was a worrying period of time while we waited for the fog to clear in the middle of the vast sea”

–      Eszter Horvath-Papp, April 2013

“I have just started preparing for First Class Diver and I think there are probably a number of FCD candidates who would welcome a course such as this. It seems to be a common thread that weather is something that few of us understand really well.”
            - Neil Barker, April 2013

“Personally I think Met should be part of both the BSAC and PADI core instructor courses - not for teaching but for safety and information so instructors (like myself) know how to address conditions on Open Water with novice Student Classes... At present one has to rely on experience and that can bring unexpected surprises!”

- Simon Stickley, April 2013

“I would love to do the course, but traveling from the Netherlands, booking a B&B and also a course would be a bit expencive. If the course would take place on the continent, I'm the first to sign up”.

- Nico Alken, April 2013

“For a good-quality course, I'd be prepared to travel from Manchester, although if there were a potential of a closer session, that would be much preferred!”

-          Adam Rhodes, April 2013

“I've been saying that there was a distinct lack of Weather info on the Advanced Diver course for a number of years and fully support this initiative. Indeed, when it came to my own Advanced Diver lectures, the mantle was passed to me to deliver said lecture as I hold the RYA Yachtmaster certificate and this covers weather forecasting to a decent degree. It's an invaluable skill to have, to be able to predict the weather, especially for those out of the way expeditions an Advanced Diver would be carrying out. It also serves us very well in our boat trip planning too”

- Darryl Mayer, April 2013

General Equiries

moc.enquiries@metoffice.gov.uk

Tel. 01392 885680

Met Office College

Website: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/training/industry/marine

College Prospectus: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/media/pdf/q/2/College-prospectus-print.pdf

Overview of the MOC: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/media/pdf/5/9/training-at-the-met-office.pdf

Address: Met Office College, Met Office, FitzRoy Road, Exeter, Devon. EX1 3PB.

  

Sample 1 Day Course:

0900-1030: Theory: UK Climatology – Looking at air masses and fronts, how to tell the weather regime by looking at the clouds (bread-and-butter met)

1030-1045: Break

1045-1230: Theory: Winds and waves – and a look at the charts and the “Inshore Waters Forecast”

1230-1330: Lunch

1330-1500: Theory: Weather hazards for diver cox’ns – what, when, where… how to avoid? Covering: Strong winds, thunderstorms (lightning and water spouts!), sea fog, sunburn (based on personal experience of divers getting heatstroke!)

1500-1515: Break

1515-1700 Practical: Chart interpretation (dummy dive planning using standard Met Office surface pressure charts).

Sample 2 Day Course (more comprehensive)

Day 1

0900-1030: Theory: UK Climatology – Looking at airmasses and fronts, how to tell the weather regime by looking at the clouds (bread-and-butter met)

1030-1045: Break

1045-1230: Theory: Winds and waves – and a look at the charts and the “Inshore Waters Forecast”

1230-1330: Lunch

1330-1500: Theory: Microclimates, how dive sites differ in the same weather patterns. Looking at sheltered bays, wind funneling, sea breezes.

1500-1515: Break

1515-1700: Workshop/Theory: Weather hazards for diver cox’ns – what, when, where… how to avoid? Covering: Strong winds, thunderstorms (lightning and water spouts!), sea fog, sunburn (based on personal experience of divers getting heatstroke!)

Day 2

0900-1030: Theory/discussion Sources of forecast information – what to use and how to use it (probability forecasts, deterministic forecasts etc)

1030-1045: Break

1045-1230: Theory: Mediterranean and Red Sea Meteorology – applying what we know to our favourite overseas destinations

1230-1330: Lunch

1330-1500: Practical: Chart interpretation (dummy dive planning using standard Met Office surface pressure charts). 

1500-1515: Break

1515-1700 Practical continued, with a group discussion at the end.

Ideally these would be run  by the Met Office, but given relevant materials club instructors would be more than capable to deliver these to their home clubs.