British Sub-Aqua Club

British Sub-Aqua Club

Abbreviation	BSAC
Formation	15 October 1953; 71 years ago (1953-10-15)
Type	NGO
Legal status	Limited Guarantee Company incorporated in England
Purpose	Recreational diving services, training and advocacy National governing body
Headquarters	United Kingdom
Location	Telford's Quay, South Pier Road, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire CH65 4FL
Region served	International
Membership	22,000 in 2022
President	The Prince of Wales
Chair	Edward Haynes[1]
CEO	Mary Tetley[2]
Main organ	BSAC Council
Affiliations	EUF
Staff	19
Website	www.bsac.com

The British Sub-Aqua Club or BSAC has been recognised since 1954 by UK Sport as the national governing body of recreational diving in the United Kingdom.^[3]

The club was founded in 1953 and at its peak in the mid-1990s had over 50,000 members declining to over 30,000 in 2009. It is a diver training organization that operates through its associated network of around 1,100 local, independent diving clubs and around 400 diving schools worldwide. The old logo featured the Roman god Neptune (Greek god Poseidon), god of the sea. The new logo, as of 2017, features a diver with the updated BSAC motto "Dive with us".

BSAC is unusual for a diver training agency in that most BSAC instructors are volunteers, giving up their spare time to train others, unlike many other agencies, in which instructors are paid employees, or self-employed.

Given that UK waters are relatively cold and have restricted visibility, BSAC training is regarded by its members as more comprehensive than some. Specifically it places emphasis on rescue training very early in the programme. BSAC also maintains links with other organisations, such as NACSAC.

Science writer and science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke was a famous member of BSAC.^{[4][full citation needed]}

The current President of BSAC is William, Prince of Wales. His father Charles III, and grandfather Philip also held that position and his brother Harry, Duke of Sussex also trained with BSAC.^[5]

• 1953, 15 October : BSAC was founded by Oscar Gugen, Peter Small, Mary Small, and Trevor Hampton.^[6]
• 1953: Jack Atkinson, an aero engineer, was appointed as the club's first national diving officer.^[7][6]
• 1954: First BSAC branch formed, in London.
• 1954: Members of Southsea Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC Branch No.9), invent underwater hockey (originally called "Octopush").
• 1955, March: BSAC is accepted by the Central Council of Physical Recreation.
• 1957, January: BSAC and 14 other national diving federations create Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS), the world governing body for sub-aqua.^[8]
• 1959, January: Jack Atkinson, produced the BSAC Diving Manual.^[6]
• 1988: Release of the BS-AC 88 dive table^[9]
• 1990: BSAC moved its offices to Ellesmere Port, North West England.^[6]
• 1995: BSAC allows Nitrox diving and introduced Nitrox training.^[6][10]
• 1997, 20 May: BSAC was expelled from the Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS)^[11]
• 2002: The introduction of a new Diver Training Scheme (2002 to 2023).^[6][12]
• 2007: BSAC is the first recreational diving agency to introduce Nitrox diving as part of core training.^[12]
• 2023: Revision of the 2002 training scheme with a complete overhall of the Dive Leader course.^[12]

BSAC is the National Governing Body (NGB) for sub-aqua within the United Kingdom, a role it has held since 1954.^[3][13] The body is recognised by Sport England as the NGB for sub-aqua in England,^[3][13] and by Sport Wales as the NGB for sub-aqua in Wales.^[14]

The Scottish Sub Aqua Club, formed in 1953 (the same year as BSAC) is recognised by sportscotland as the NGB for sub-aqua in Scotland.^[15]

The Northern Ireland Federation of Sub-Aqua Clubs is recognised by Sport Northern Ireland as the NGB for sub-aqua in Northern Ireland.^[16]

Sport Wales previously recognised the Welsh Association of Sub Aqua Clubs as the NGB for sub-aqua in Wales until January 2016.^[14]

While forms of sub-aqua, many competitive forms of sub-aqua are not governed by BSAC, as BSAC is not a member of the Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS) who is the global governing body for competitive sub-aqua.

Underwater hockey in Great Britain was governed directly by BSAC with the sport being invented by one of its branches in 1954. BSAC remain the NGB until 1977 when they recognised the British Octopush Association (BOA), who formed a year prior, as the new NGB. BSAC remained a governing body for a limited number clubs who didn't switch to BOA governance. In 2013 the BOA affiliated itself to BSAC to legitimaise its safeguarding procedure. The BOA is recognised by CMAS as the NGB for underwater hockey in Great Britain.^[17][18]

BSAC was the first body to govern underwater rugby in the United Kingdom, though only two clubs are affiliated to the body.^[19] The British Underwater Rugby Association (BURA) is the UK's governing body affiliated with CMAS.^[20]

BSAC currently has seven diver qualifications (five standard and two intermediary):^[21]

• Discovery Diver: Basic skills, supervised diving (depth limit 12 m).^[22][a]
• Ocean Diver: Basic skills, non-decompression diving (depth limit 20 m).^[23]
• Advanced Ocean Diver: Further Basic skills training, navigation, nitrox (up to Nitrox 36%), non-decompression diving (depth limit increased to 30 m with a series of 5 m progression dives).^[24][b]
• Sports Diver: Rescue, navigation, nitrox and decompression diving (depth limit increased to 40 m with a series of 5 m progression dives).^[26]
• Dive Leader: Dive leading, dive planning and management, and rescue management (depth limit increased to 50 m by completing a selection of experience dives).^[27]
• Advanced Diver: Fully trained diver capable of leading a group of divers in normal club activities.^[28]
• First Class Diver: Trained to lead a group of divers carrying out a project. This is nationally examined with a two-day practical test.^[29]

BSAC has eight instructor grades:^[30]

• Assistant Diving Instructor: Trained but unqualified. Must be supervised when instructing.
• Theory Instructor: Qualified to instruct unsupervised in the classroom.
• Assistant Open Water Instructor: Qualified to teach open water under supervision.
• Practical Instructor: Qualified to instruct unsupervised in open water.
• Open Water Instructor: Qualified to supervise other instructors in classroom and open water training.
• Advanced Instructor: Trained to teach advanced skills, such as boat based skills and group diving techniques.
• Instructor Trainer: Qualified to staff Instructor events.
• National Instructor: Leads Instructor Training courses and BSAC National exams.

The following grades which are no longer awarded may still be encountered:

• Novice I: A diver who has completed the extensive sheltered-water (i.e. pool) training of the BSAC syllabus of the time, but has not yet dived in open water.
• Novice II: A Novice I diver who has completed two open-water assessment dives.

The distinction between Novice I and Novice II was mostly for practical reasons to do with the difference between hiring a pool and travelling to the coast. A Novice I diver would normally complete the two open-water dives as soon as possible, but if this were not possible straight away (perhaps over winter) they would at least have a specific grade within the club. The lengthy and club-oriented Novice syllabus was replaced with the Club Diver and Ocean Diver syllabuses in the late 1990s. (However, some argue the Novice description was usefully accurate and aided diver safety because nobody with such a qualification would attempt dives beyond their capabilities).

• Club Diver: This is more or less the same as Ocean Diver; originally the two were operated in parallel with Ocean Diver awarded at schools and Club Diver at clubs.
• Club Instructor: An instructor grade junior to Open Water Instructor, but allowing the holder to instruct practical and theory lessons without supervision.
• Third Class Diver: This was the entry-level grade prior to the splitting of its syllabus during the mid-1980s to create the Novice and Sports Diver grades. Divers who held this grade at the time were awarded the Sports Diver grade.^[31]
• Second Class Diver: This was the immediate grade prior to the splitting of its syllabus during the mid-1980s to create the Dive Leader and Advanced Diver grades. Divers who held this grade at the time were awarded the Advanced Diver grade.^[32]

The following CMAS equivalencies have been agreed with the Sub-Aqua Association.^[33][34]

BSAC obtained CEN certification from the EUF certification body in 2007 and re-certified in 2012 and 2019 for the following recreational diver grades:^[35][36][37]

• Discovery Diver – ISO 24801-1
• Ocean Diver – EN 14153-2/ISO 24801-2 – 'Autonomous Diver'
• Dive Leader – EN 14153-3/ISO 24801-3 – 'Dive Leader'
• Open Water Instructor – EN 14413-2/ISO 24802-2 – 'Instructor Level 2'
• Sports Diver – ISO 11107 – 'Nitrox diving'
• Nitrox Gas Blender – ISO 13293 – 'Level 1 Gas Blender'
• Mixed Gas Blender – ISO 13293 – 'Level 2 Gas Blender'
• Snorkelling Guide – ISO 13970 – 'Snorkelling Guide'

BSAC has four snorkeller grades:^[38]

• Dolphin Snorkeller: swimmingpool based course designed for children.^[c]
• Snorkel Diver: training for pool or sheltered water activity.
• Advanced Snorkeller: training for open water activity.
• Snorkel Dive Manager: training to plan, organise and lead snorkelling activities, in addition to snorkelling first aid.
• Snorkel Guide: furthering skills learned on Snorkel Diver Manager.

BSAC three snorkel instructor grades:^[39]

• Snorkel Instructor: club instructing, qualified to teach Snorkel Diver and Advanced Snorkeler (provided these qualifications are held by the instructor)
• Advanced Snorkel Instructor: qualified to teach Snorkel Diver Manager and Snorkel Guide
• Snorkel Instructor Trainer: qualified to train instructors.

BSAC scuba instructors can also teach all or parts of the Snorkeller Training Programme subject to meeting pre-requisites including additional training.

BSAC offer range of specialist diving courses known as Skill Development Courses (SDCs). While mainly for scuba divers, a number of courses can be taken as snorkeller, and some without any dive qualifications:^[40]

Courses in brackets () indicate pre-requisites for the SDC

BSAC offer a number of technical diving courses:^[41]

• British Octopush Association – National body for underwater hockey in the United Kingdom
• List of diver certification organizations – Agencies which issue certification for competence in diving skills
• Nautical Archaeology Society – British organisation to further research in nautical archaeology for the public benefit
• Underwater Explorers Club – British diving club, now defunct

• David Bellamy – English professor, botanist, author, broadcaster and environmental campaigner
• Mensun Bound – British marine archaeologist
• William Paul Fife – US Air Force officer and hyperbaric medicine researcher
• Richard Larn – British shipwreck historian
• John Rawlins (Royal Navy officer) – Royal Navy officer and pioneer in the field of diving medicine
• Margaret Rule – British archaeologist who led the Mary Rose project
• Peter Scoones – Underwater cameraman
• Sir John Wedgwood, 2nd Baronet – British politician and industrialist

• Mary Rose – English Tudor warship (1511–1545)

• British Sub-Aqua Club - BSAC website
• BSAC Japan
• BSAC Korea
• BSAC Thailand