NRA RSO course

[phaedra1106]

Just had the chairman of my outdoor full bore club on the phone blasting off about the latest money maker from the NRA

https://nra.org.uk/courses-and-training ... y-officer/

He's not happy and has told the NRA in no uncertain terms that our club won't be paying out the members money for something that's not needed or required, we already have properly qualified RCO's. There's no need to add this expensive course to provide a "qualification" that's of no use on an MOD range or even required on private club ranges.

Any thoughts?

[daman]

I wish I'd taken my RCO course last year. Will be moving to Scotland at some point so I'll need the full MOD qualification.

I'll be contacting the NRA to make sure I can still do the RCO course without having to jump through these new RSO hoops as a prerequsite.

While I can see that some people will never use a MOD range, and tailoring training to them is appropriate, I can't agree that they should suddenly be able to double the time and cost required for a RCO ticket at a whim.

-daman

[fenix]

The NRA is offering a course, but not forcing people to do it, whats the problem? Somebody has obviously asked about this type of course or they wouldn't have gone to the expense to provide it.

[Yalan]

Unless I' mistaken, before Christmas we could have done a weekend course to get an RCO qual.
Now we have to do a weekend to become an RSO.... And then another weekend to upgrade to an RCO qual.

If I'd known about this in advance I'd have jumped in before Christmas... Wish they'd made this change a bit clearer on their website when I was looking for course dates at the end of last year.

[daman]

The NRA is offering a course, but not forcing people to do it, whats the problem? Somebody has obviously asked about this type of course or they wouldn't have gone to the expense to provide it.

There is absolutely no problem if the two qualifications are separate. In fact, as I said, that's probably a good thing.

But, if the new course is suddenly made a prerequisite to the old one, then there is a problem. Those how just want the old qualification have their time and money requirements doubled, for no obvious benefit.

[Alpha1]

The way I understood it is they are two separate courses the RSO(Range Supervising officer) course is aimed at clubs that have indoor ranges for example and the club is not likely to shoot on MOD (Ministry of Defence) ranges.
The RCO(Range conducting officer) is aimed at clubs that will be using MOD ranges.

[Alpha1]

Introduction
The NRA Range Safety Officer’s Course is intended for club shooters of all levels of experience, who may not have had any formal training in the practical aspects of running ranges. The primary aim of the course is to enhance range safety by providing practical and relevant training and guidance. The NRA RSO qualification is also promoted as “best practice” for all clubs that shoot at Bisley.

The course is not specific to any particular shooting discipline or type of range, and is designed to give as much opportunity as possible for the students to practice running a safe range. In the regions the course will be tailored to the needs of individual clubs whilst ensuring that the training remains relevant to the operation of any range.

The RSO course consists of written and oral tests and on-range practical assessments. Other essential topics, such as the law, range regulations, and guest days are covered. The RSO will command the same status as an RCO on all civilian ranges.

The following criteria will apply to all candidates:
The applicant must be 18 years of age and must be a member of a Home Office Approved Club.

[daman]

The way I understood it is they are two separate courses the RSO(Range Supervising officer) course is aimed at clubs that have indoor ranges for example and the club is not likely to shoot on MOD (Ministry of Defence) ranges.
The RCO(Range conducting officer) is aimed at clubs that will be using MOD ranges.

That is what I understood, and thought it a good thing. But then I read on page 53 of the current NRA Journal:

"From 1st January the process to become an RCO eligible to run shooting on MOD ranges will change. Applicants must first pass the RSO course before joining the RCO course. This will provide new RCOs with a minmum training pipeline of four days."


That is what infuriates me, it will now take me twice as long and twice the price to get my ticket as it would have done last month!

[phaedra1106]

Which is exactly what my chairman wasn't happy about, we put prospective RCO's through our own training to prepare them for the proper RCO course, cost to the club £0.

[dromia]

Obviously Bisley is costing more and all MoD range using clubs, most of whose members never shoot at Bisley are going to have to pay for it.

That is what the "national" means in the NRA title, the whole country has to pay for the Bisley shooting club.