On Monday 17th February we have 2 members of the Basketball England Northwest refereeing qualifications team visiting our club to support between 8 and 12 club members to get qualified.

How?

The qualification takes place in 3 parts:
1. 1-1.5 hour online learning module
2. 1 hour in person knowledge session followed by 2 hour in person refereeing practical
3. Sign off and accreditation requirements

The first part of the qualification is an online learning module that should take between an hour and an hour and a half. This will help candidates to understand the basics of refereeing, hand signals, positioning and give a good overview of the role. Ideally this will be completed before the in-person event.

The second part is in person learning where all candidates will have an hour to run through the online learning and practice signals with a chance to ask questions. This will take place in the foyer of Cardinal Newman college at 5pm on Monday 17th February. This will then follow with refereeing some live fixtures which will be played by our U16 players who will be split into 3 teams with the teams playing a mini tournament. Each candidate will get the chance to officiate and have their performance observed and supported with key learnings by the BE staff.

Following completion of the training, the BE refereeing coach will sign off the qualification at which point candidates will be able to complete the accreditation requirements. These are predominantly an enhanced DBS check for all candidates over 16 years of age. Candidates over the age of 18 are required to complete a BE safeguarding course in addition. Anyone under 16 will be required to provide the DBS when they turn 16.

Getting refereeing

As part of the partnership with BE NW we have already allocated several fixtures to the end of this season where newly qualified referees will be paired with experienced referee coaches to help cement the information learnt and to put it into practice immediately.
Refereeing will initially be for local league standard fixtures and for the younger age groups (U11, U12, U14) as an introduction. For these fixtures, referees will earn £22/game plus 45p per mile expenses, capped at £35. This is a great way to earn some money while enjoying the sport.

What does it cost?

The course itself costs £45, which covers the cost of the tutors, the online material and the facilities. The club is however offering an incentive to get more local referees involved. When a candidate is successfully qualified, they will be given the details to join WhosTheRef which is the portal BE use to allocate referees. When the referee has completed the BE qualification requirements and joined the portal, they will be allocated a game to officiate. For PBC Club Members, on completion of the first 3 games, in addition to the match fee as stated above, Preston Basketball will return £15 of the match fee each time. So ultimately the course is completely free after officiating just 3 games.

What does each candidate need to bring?

Each candidate will need a whistle. The most recommended whistle is the Fox 40 Classic which are available online with Decathlon stocking them here.

Referees typically need to wear a grey t-shirt, black trousers and black trainers, however normally training gear with a grey t-shirt will be fine for the in-person session. Official BE top details will be made available at the course and will cost approx. £20-30.

In addition, please bring some water as you would for training. Candidates won’t be physically playing even when not refereeing as they will be observing other referees and trying to learn from them.

How do I sign up?

The link to sign up is on our Club Shop here. When purchasing for your child please select who it is for and enter the email address the course log on should be sent to. Places are strictly limited to 12 on a first come, first served basis.