What’s it about?
To meet a growing need in Outdoor Education, the Institute for Outdoor Learning is now providing a system of courses to equip those of you who are/aiming to use bushcraft skills as part of your programmes.
This full 3-day IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate training course has been created by the IOL Bushcraft Professional Practice Group using some of the most experienced trainers of bushcraft in the country. This is provided by individual training organisations; Jack Raven Bushcraft is proud to be one of them.
If you don’t have any previous bushcraft experience, get in touch before booking on.
What will I do on this IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate training course?
The syllabus meets the IOL Statement of Good Practice. On this intensive 3 day course you will cover:
- UK knife law and its relevance to bushcraft,
- Safe use of basic bushcraft tools such as knives, folding saws and bow saws,
- How to sharpen a bushcraft knife,
- Making simple carved implements such as a tent peg or feather stick,
- Safe shelter construction, including ‘A’ frame and ‘lean to’ debris shelters,
- Importance of insulating yourself from the ground in a debris shelter by creating an improvised bed,
- Establishing fires by: bow drill, fire steel, flint and steel, lenses, mirrors, chemicals, matches, fire pistons, lighters, batteries & wire wool,
- Constructing and using a tinder bundle to light a fire,
- Fire maintenance,
- Locating, filtering and purifying water,
- Tree identification and uses, including food sources available from trees,
- How to prepare and make natural cordage from a variety of sources,
- Natural navigation using shadow sticks, a watch, the moon and stars,
- And of course, ensuring that we leave no trace,
Throughout the course we will provide advice and guidance on tools and equipment and how to teach the skills covered to other people, whether that be individuals or groups, all based on our own years of experience.
To be added to the register of holders of the IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate, you will need to log 120 quality hours and attend a separate assessment, available through Jack Raven Bushcraft.
Take a look at our ‘IOL Hall of Fame‘ to see photos of the people that we know have successfully taken their assessment. and gained the IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate.
You can see our entire course schedule here.
More information about our IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate course
Location: Westwell, Kent
Duration: 3 days
Start: 9am Friday
End: 4pm Sunday
Course size: Maximum of 6 – to make sure that you get the best possible tuition on this busy course
Catering: We’ll provide tea & coffee, breakfast and dinner but you’ll need to bring a packed lunch
Note: There’s a short walk from the meeting point to the camp. We’ll transport your bags in our 4×4.
What happens next?
Once you’ve made your booking you’ll receive an automated booking confirmation from Ecwid, our e-commerce platform provider.
We’ll send you a comprehensive joining pack 6 to 8 weeks prior to the start of your IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate course.
This includes the location of the meeting point and what to bring.
Please read the joining pack when you receive it as it contains essential information about attending our IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate course!!
FAQs
If you have any questions, take a look at our Frequently Asked Questions page. If you still have a question, feel free to email us at info@jackravenbushcraft.co.uk
Please note that as we work predominantly in the woods, it’s not easy for us to be in contact 24/7. We can be contacted by phone at any time, although during teaching sessions it’s kept on silent. Email is checked as soon as we get back from the woods.
Our blog
There are loads of posts on our blog related to our IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate course, including tool use, bow drilling, fire lighting, shelter building, so feel free to take a look.
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This course is accredited by the Institute for Outdoor Learning. This means that it has been through a quality assurance process covering the experience and procedures of the organisation, the design of the course and the qualifications/experience of the trainers.
If you have any concerns about the quality of your IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate course, please talk initially to the course staff and organisation. If there are still problems, please contact the IOL office.
The Institute for Outdoor Learning encourages outdoor learning by developing quality, safety and opportunity to experience outdoor activity provision and by supporting the good practice of outdoor professionals. Member benefits include professional journals and workshops, discounts on equipment, national and regional conferences, etc.
For details of membership benefits and how to join, please visit the IOL website.
What our customers say about our IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate
We also have reviews on our Facebook page and our Google Business page so you can check out those as well.
Attended the IOL bushcraft certificate training. I cannot recommend Gary and his team enough what fabulous experience. Very knowlegable mixed with wonderful cooking and amazing location. Will be booking another course. I have just come back from a really great 3 Day Bushcraft Competency Course in beautiful Kent, Gary and the Team were amazing, we got so much more than we had expected from the course, their depth of their knowledge and practical skills are amazing. Just finished our weekend with Jack Raven Bushcraft, Gary’s knowledge is worth your time trust me. Thanks for having us in camp we had a great time. Learnt lots the food was delicious and Ho’s support and re assurance led to a lovely learning environment Just driving home from a 3 day Bushcraft Competency Certificate course and feeling so grateful. Gary was an excellent teacher, taking time to go into detail and answer questions. We had plenty of time over the weekend to practice and revisit skills, so that we left the weekend having the confidence to practice on our own. And last but not least, Nicola kept us well fed with delicious food which just topped off a fabulous weekend. Highly recommended. Best Bushcraft course I've ever been on. Gary is very knowledgeable and honest. Well organised and the food was great.
The location is stunning, weather was perfect too.
Part of the 3 Day course was how to select, make and use a Bow-drill, I have never used one as I always thought it too complicated and was something that I would fail in so many times. Gary and the Team were brilliant, clear instruction and patience with us all was evident and good knowledge of recourses and techniques were shared many times. Clear demos with a few more tips helped me achieve not only an ember but also an ember to a flame, AMAZING ACHIEVEMENT FOR ME.
I couldn't recommend Jack Raven enough and look forward to completing my log book and booking on my assessment very soon.
