Overview
The Mountain Leader scheme is designed for people who want to lead groups in the mountains, hills and moorlands of the UK and Ireland. If you love being out in the mountains and want to share your enthusiasm with others, become a Mountain Leader and you’ll never look back (unless you’re checking your group’s still there!). Mountain Leaders operate the length and breadth of the country with all sorts of groups of people; from scouts and schoolchildren to outdoor instructors and OAPs. The qualification is what you make it and there are countless opportunities for passionate Mountain Leaders.
Mountain Leader training courses are our chance to help you become the best leader you can. For us, the essence of good instructing is the ability to tailor the delivery to the appropriate level for each individual and to make the best use of the mountain conditions that are available. As such we’ll use our wealth of experience and extensive local knowledge to select the best venues and opportunities to introduce the principles of each skill in the syllabus. We’ll give you lots of opportunities to practice, in a progressive manner, so that you’ll finish the course confident in your ability to apply these skills in a variety of different scenarios.
This qualification complements and supports the other walking qualifications administered by Mountain Training (Lowland Leader, Hill and Moorland Leader – formerly Walking Group Leader). For further information on the qualifications that Mountain Training run, please see www.mountain-training.org and the infographic below:
Pre-requisites
Prior to attending the course you must have logged a minimum of 20 quality mountain days and have completed the registration process with www.mountain-training.org for the summer Mountain Leader qualification.
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If you do not have the prerequisite 20 quality mountain days logged in your log book, the course director is obliged by mountain training to either ask you to leave the course or will not record your attendance on the course. The pre-experience is important as it allows the training to start at a leadership level rather than a novice level.
Course Location
2024 & 2025 Courses: South Lake District, meeting on day one at Stickle Ghyll in Langdale.
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Our split training courses are run in the Peak District (Hathersage) for the first 3 days then two weeks later in Eryri (Ogwen) for 3 days.
FAQ
If you have any questions about the Mountain Leader Scheme, Quality Mountain days, Logbooks etc. then please take a look at the Mountain Leader FAQ's page on the Mountain Training Website:
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https://www.mountain-training.org/qualifications/walking/mountain-leader/mountain-leader-faqs
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If you have any questions about our courses then please don't hesitate to contact us.
Access to Courses
Mountain Training is committed to ensuring that everyone has equal opportunity to attend its courses, as are we. If you have a particular need that requires extra assistance, please discuss it with Mountain Training or alternatively, you can contact us.
To find out more please visit: https://www.mountain-training.org/help/resources/support-for-people-with-additional-needs
On this course, we will choose the content of each day to make the best use of the prevailing conditions, as well as the aspirations and ability of the team. As such it isn’t possible to provide a definitive programme, however, please view our sample itinerary below and use it as a rough guide:
Day 1, Intro’s, Mountain Leader Scheme Pathway, & Fundamental Navigation Skills
At the start of the course, there will be a short classroom-based session where your Course Director will go through the Mountain Leader scheme structure and the format for your course as well as answering any questions you may have. Afterward, you’ll head out onto the hill for the rest of the day where we’ll look at developing your navigation skills and environmental knowledge.
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Day 2, Mountain Journey
Today is all about leading a quality day out in the mountains, we’ll look at macro nav, route selection, party management, and coaching walking skills. We’ll also look at managing steep ground: route choice, risk assessment, briefings, and mitigating falls.
Day 3, Security on Steep Ground
This day will be spent introducing you to the various skills required of a mountain leader when operating on steep ground, including various emergency rope-work techniques.
Day 4, Mountain Hazards & Expedition Prep
Today will be a combination of presentations and practicals. We will look at emergency procedures: prevention, mountain rescue, managing incidents, searches, river crossings, and moving casualties. We will also look at expedition equipment, packing, and planning.
Day 5- 6, Mountain Expedition
For the final two days of the course, you’ll take part in a two-day mountain expedition, with one night spent wild camping. During this, you’ll get plenty of opportunities to develop your leadership and navigation skills, including a night navigation session. In addition to this, we’ll also look to develop your general mountain knowledge on topics such as; geology, flora & fauna, local history and folklore, and mountaineering history. At the end of your course, you’ll sit down with the course director and be given feedback on how you got on and what to do next, including an action plan of how to prepare for your assessment.
