Officials and Coaches

Surf Sports Officials

Officials play an important part within Surf Sports and are integral to the ongoing delivery of our sport. Without officials, our sport just simply would not function for our participants.

Local carnivals along with the Branch and State Championships require clubs wishing to participate in competition to fulfill a quota of officials in order to compete at the carnival.

Official Accreditation

SLSA Surf Sport Officials training  sits under the umbrella of the National Officiating Accreditation Scheme (NOAS), which covers over 80 different sports throughout Australia and is managed by the Australian Sports Commission (ASC).

There are four levels for officials to obtain under the NOAS pathway: Core Official, Technical Official, Senior Official and Performance Official

How to Become an Official

SLS Members wishing to become an accredited official can undertake an online course accessible via the SLSA members portal, followed by some practical sessions on the beach and an assessment. 

For more information and details of the available courses including how to enrol, visit the SLSNSW Officials resource page – https://www.surflifesaving.com.au/resources/officials

Note there are upfront costs associated with these online courses.  Please discuss with your club whether they will reimburse you for the cost of the course.

To discuss further please contact your club or Sydney Branch Officials Coordinator Peter Carney (via Branch Office).

Officials Reaccreditation

Officials accredited prior to the introduction of the NOAS framework (Sept 2017) were classified into levels: Junior, Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3. Officials re-licencing will be transferred to the new framework. Please refer to SLSNSW for more information: https://www.surflifesaving.com.au/resources/officials

Applicants should complete the Surf Official Reaccreditation Form and submit along with a completed Surf Sports Officials Log Book to: Peter Carney, Sydney Branch Officials Coordinator sydofficials@surflifesavingsydney.com.au The log book needs to show a minimum of 100 points accrued over the last four years. If you have lost your log book please notify Peter.

Official Carnival Nominations

Officials can nominate for SLSS 2023-2024 carnivals using the online form here SLSS Officials Nominations

Coaching Accreditation

SLSA Surf Sport Coach training sits under the umbrella of the National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS), which covers over 70 different sports throughout Australia and is managed by the Australian Sports Commission (ASC).  SLSNSW coaching courses are accessible to members at any time through the SLSA Members Portal.

Coaching Awards

SLSA has a 5-tiered Coaching Pathway :
Age Manager (not part of NCAS)
Foundation Coach – targeting parents of nippers/new club members and people with an interest in coaching.
Development Coach – targeting parents of nippers, parents of young athletes, current/ex surf competitors,  lifesaving trainers, other sporting code coaches wishing to coach surf athletes.
Performance Coach – for ex-surf competitors, NSW accredited coaches wishing to coach surf sports athletes at the performance level.
High Performance Coach – this award is reserved for selected coaches who have been identified as leaders within their chosen field and is offered and run by SLSA, not the State Centres.

Recognised Prior Learning (RPL)

Candidate that already have the required competencies in any of the courses can apply to have these skills recognised to acquire their coaching accreditation without completing the theory components. This requires SLSNSW approval.  For more information on coaching pathways, enrolling for courses, and award reaccreditation, visit the SLSNSW Coaching website here

Insurance

SLSA’s public liability and errors omissions policy extends to include coaching of surf lifesaving activities ONLY and is subject to the following conditions:
“Activities” are defined as:  
-those, which are part of a structured training program encompassing elements directly developing skills required for lifesaving competition;
-those managed by an appropriately “accredited” coach/trainer;
-those approved by Surf Life Saving Australia as competition activities.
“Accredited” coach/trainer means:
– holding a current SLSA Surf Coach Accreditation;
– having satisfied SLSA’s member protection policy particularly the screening requirements (managed by states);
– having satisfied any other requirements required by law i.e. “accreditation – working with children”.
The policy covers the coaching of registered, financial and proficient members in the following categories: Junior (Nippers), Active (Junior and Senior), Active Reserve, Long Service, Award, Life.

Volunteer coaches do not need to be contracted to a club, but the club must approve their activity. It may be that you have circumstances/activities that fall outside the activities listed above and therefore you may need to obtain additional insurance.

If you are employed as a coach : 
– you will need to take out extra insurance;
– you must be under a written contract with a club.
All coaches are encouraged to analyse their coaching activities and develop a risk minimisation plan.

If you require any further information, please contact George Benhayon,  Sydney Branch  Coaching  Coordinator: surfswimsquad@outlook.com