About us
Pete James, Ace founder!
Skills for the hills! See hill walking for course details.
Winter outdoor activities - see winter skills courses.
Mountain instruction - National Navigation Awards.
Experienced leaders!
Pete James is the founder and Senior Instructor at Ace Outdoors. He holds a number of outdoor Mountain Leadership qualifications which means he is able to work throughout the summer and winter.
Pete is a qualified secondary school teacher, Accredited Practitioner of the Institute of Outdoor Learning (APIOL), holder of the Certificate in Off-Site Safety Management, EVC trained and a qualified Ski Course Organiser. Pete is also an Outdoor Learning Card Course Director and accredited DofE Assessor. This means he is able to deliver a wide range of outdoor education and curriculum enrichment activities for schools and colleges.
Pete is a fully qualified International Mountain Leader so is able to lead trekking groups overseas with clients. Pete is also working towards the Mountaineering Instructors Award (MIA). He is a member of both BAIML and AMI, the professional bodies that represent both these professional outdoor qualifications.
Our leaders
All our other leaders are well qualified and experienced for the activities of which they are in charge. Training and assessment is through the MLTUK recognised schemes of Walking Group Leader, Summer Mountain Leader, Winter Mountain Leader and International Mountain Leader. All our walking leaders hold one or more of these nationally recognised qualifications.
These qualifications provide training and assessment in the technical and group management skills required by those who wish to lead groups in the British mountains, hills and moorland. They integrate experience, training and assessment in a variety of testing conditions in mountainous country. The ML is recognised by the Health and Safety Executive and the Adventure Activity Licensing Authority as being an appropriate award for 'trekking' in summer conditions.
Any of our leaders operating in winter conditions hold at the very least the Winter Mountain Leader Award. Likewise, instructors on your climbing and scrambling courses will possess at least an MIA, which is for instructors working in summer conditions and covers multi-pitch rock climbing, scrambling and other mountaineering skills. Your winter climbing course will be lead by someone who possesses a Mountain Instructor Certificate, known as the MIC, which covers the additional skills required for winter mountaineering and winter climbing.
In addition, we hold regular staff training days and weekends to keep ourselves up to date on personal leadership skills, safety management, first aid, environmental and access issues.
Accreditations
Ace Outdoors holds a licence from the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority (R1835) to provide all the activities in our programme for unaccompanied young people, who are under 18 years of age.
Ace Outdoors is also a member of the Institute for Outdoor Learning.
The Institute for Outdoor Learning encourages learning outside the classroom by developing safe and quality outcomes for all to experience outdoor activity provision and by supporting and sharing the good practice of those who work in the outdoors.
Our insurers
Perkins Slade Limited is one of the UK’s largest independent brokers who specialise in activity adventure insurance. Ace Outdoors holds a range of insurance to cover all the activities we provide as a company.
Perkins Slade provides insurance and risk management services to 60,000 voluntary sports clubs, more than 100,000 coaches and instructors and over 3 million individual participants in the UK.
Your safety
All Ace Outdoor activities do have an inherent element of risk involved. All we ask is that all participants enter into these activities well informed, in good health and ready to accept the sometimes challenging and demanding nature of our courses. We would ask that you read all accompanying notes, and tell us about any medical or other issues so that we can work with you. If you are in doubt about any aspects of your course your course leader will be happy to discuss them with you.
The BMC Participation Statement says that:
The BMC recognises that climbing and mountaineering are activities with a danger of personal injury or death. Participants in these activities should be aware of and accept these risks and be responsible for their own actions.
