Professional Accreditation

Registered Practitioner of the IOL (RPIOL)

What is RPIOL?  

RPIOL is IOL’s entry level accreditation; it’s for you if you have:

• consolidated experience of facilitating outdoor learning sessions
• are not necessarily working in “challenging environments”
• are working in any branch of outdoor learning (including traditional “outdoor pursuits” but also environmental studies etc)

RPIOL does not “retest” specialist skills.  It records and recognises the way you have used these skills in your work with groups and individuals.

There are 5 key areas in RPIOL: 

• the core skills of Facilitating Learning and Managing Risk
• backed up by Personal Philosophy of outdoor learning, Values and Ethics, and Reflection and Career Development. 

To check out whether you could be at the level to apply for RPIOL: Click here to see the RPIOL Benchmarks and Criteria.

The Accreditation Process

RPIOL is not a course; it is a Logbook where you record:

• Qualifications, achievements and experience
• Continuous Professional Development: development history and a development plan
• Evidence against the 5 key criteria, to show your competence at RPIOL level.

The stages of the accreditation process are:

• Complete Logbook with the help of RPIOL Internal Facilitator
• Meet with External RPIOL Facilitator for professional discussion about Logbook. 

Click here to see an overview of the RPIOL application/accreditation process.

Benefits of RPIOL for practitioners, employers and the outdoor sector

RPIOL provides:

• map of good practice showing path towards integrated professionalism
• framework which can be integrated with appraisals/staff development
• evidence of experience of session leadership
• an integrated stepping stone towards APIOL

RPIOL is applicable across all areas of outdoor learning; it increases flexibility and career options.

Quality Assurance

RPIOL is administered through local centres, each of which has a trained Internal Facilitator, who is an APIOL Mentor.  Quality is assured by a regional team of External Facilitators who interview participants, and moderated by the IOL Region/Home Nation Professional Development Officer.

Getting started with RPIOL

RPIOL is being piloted during the summer and autumn of 2008.

We aim to start rolling it out across the UK from January 2009, as we need time to finalise the process and set up and train the region and home nation teams who will support RPIOL.

However, you can start collecting information for your Logbook right now. 

• Use the Criteria and Benchmarks (link) to check that you have the experience required.

• Show the criteria and benchmarks to your line manager, and build them into your development plan.
• Look for opportunities to learn and practise the skills required for RPIOL (RPIOLs are proactive!)
• Keep a record of development activities you have done (courses attended etc), good sessions you have run, feedback from groups and colleagues.

Watch the website for details of when RPIOL is being rolled out in your Region/Home Nation.

Would you like to help out with RPIOL?

If you are a APIOL member and would like to be involved in the regional development of RPIOL, please email Heather Brown.