Mapping is the one of the most rewarding and enjoyable roles. Not only does it improve your navigation skills, but it can also provide you with a different and new type of orienteering challenge.  

The British Orienteering E-Learning Mapping Courses, Introduction to updating Forest Mapping and Introduction to Sprint and Urban Mapping , developed with the expertise of David Olivant (Nottinghamshire Orienteering Club) and the educational robustness  of Pauline Olivant (Nottinghamshire Orienteering Club) .

Both courses are based around learners having access to either of the two most widely used mapping programs, Open Orienteering Mapper and OCAD.

We strongly advise that you seek an experienced mapper as a mentor to support you through your journey towards being a competent mapper.

Both courses are based on updating an existing map and rather than creating a new map from a previously unmapped area.

Course objectives

• To provide an introduction and basic understanding of the processes involved in how to update and amend an existing Orienteering map.

The course content is designed to only address the course objective rather than attempting to cover the full scope of Mapping. As we recognise that Mapping is a skill that takes much time and practice to hone.

The course should only take around 45- 60 mins to complete and for the whole of May is only £6.00

To access the course and find out more information about our other E-Learning courses, please visit the E-Learning homepage.

Interested in learning about our other E-Learning courses on offer? Visit the E-Learning homepage and access information on all the other resources we provide.

AIRE and CLARO look forward to seeing you all at the British Middle Championships this coming weekend. 

You have entered in greater numbers than we anticipated, but we have adapted to cater for you all as best we can.  Both Danefield and Kilnsey Moor is a lovely places in the Spring sunshine and we really hope the weather is kind so that you can enjoy it at its best.  The technical woodland of Danefield is in sharp contrast to the fast open areas of Kilnsey.  You should enjoy some great orienteering on both days.  Str8 compasses is sponsoring a lot of prizes for the Northern Championships and the British Middles so run well and good luck.

Start times and final details are published, maps are printed and lots of equipment is ready to move.  No controls are out yet, but we have been busy at Kilnsey as you may be able to see from a picture.  There are a variety of crossing points on Kilnsey Moor – many of you will only encounter this one.  There are no stiles to cross at Danefield you’ll be relieved to know.

We will be able to accommodate you all in the parking areas for both events, but as always, it would help if you car shared as much as possible.  The Danefield field has remained in good condition throughout the winter, but as some rain has been forecast over the coming days we will have some tracking available.  Kilnsey has the delight of hard standing in the quarry.  We can’t promise that you will keep your feet dry, but at least cars should not get stuck in the mud as might have happened at some recent events.  We’re hoping that’s true for Danefield.  Definitely true for Kilnsey!

Anyone wanting to carry a club tent to Danefield, could reduce the distance to carry the tent by 800m by using the drop off point suggested in the event details.  It would need to be a rapid drop-off as there are often no parking bays available. They are all quite uneven, and the road is very narrow.  To get back to the parking field it is best to not attempt a 5 point turn but to drive in an anti-clockwise route with LH turns for 2.5k to get back to the parking field.  This should take no morfme than 5 minutes.

Have a great weekend.

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Full details on the British Middle Championships are available via this link. Visit the CLARO website for more details regarding the Northern Championships. Good luck to everyone taking part!

As agreed at the AGM 2023, from 1 May 2024 British Orienteering would like to offer an exclusive part-year Membership to new members.

New members are individuals who have not been members of British Orienteering in any of the previous four calendar years.

Part year membership fees 2024

Seniors – £10

Young adults – £7.50

Juniors – £3.00

Families – £25.00 (all members must be new members and not on the database to take up this offer).

No memberships will be merged with existing memberships.

Please note from 1 January 2025, any “new” members will need to renew their membership for 2025.

Find out more about how to join online today. 

Thank you for your support as we navigate these uncertain times.

All of us have had to adapt our daily lives to ensure we work and live within the government restrictions. I wanted to outline how British Orienteering is responding to the situation.

Advice and Guidance on COVID-19

With the rapidly evolving nature of the COVID-19 outbreak, information and advice from the government can change quickly. For the latest information on COVID-19 in your area, please visit the relevant government website: UK Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government, nidirect, and Isle of Man Government.

As a result of the current restrictions, all orienteering events and activities in the UK and Isle of Man continue to be suspended. The Board is committed to keeping the situation under review and will continue to work closely with the national and regional associations.

Event Postponements and Cancellations

Our sincere thanks go to all the volunteers involved in the competitions and events that have had to be postponed or cancelled. We particularly want to thank those involved in the various British Championships and in the JK, and we are grateful for their timely response to a rapidly evolving situation. We are all very disappointed about the lost events, but recognise the public health imperative.

National Office Response

In common with many of your workplaces, we have now closed the British Orienteering national office and implemented remote working in order to protect our staff. We remain contactable by email or phone as normal. We have also suspended all business travel, and wherever possible our teams are using technology to replace face-to-face meetings.

Financial Situation

There is now clearly significant uncertainty over British Orienteering’s income for 2020. The Board has reviewed income and expenditure for 2020 under several scenarios, considering the impact of a likely reduction in income from levies, major events and membership fees. 

Helpfully, Sport England has relaxed the rules on how we can use the financial support that they provide. Two Sport England-funded members of staff, Tim Herod and Phil Conway, are retiring, and we will not be seeking to replace them. We understand from our partners in Scotland that they are in regular contact with sportscotland and there has also been some discussion regarding flexibility in their annual investment to support them at this time.

We have paused the recruitment for the new Access & Environmental Officer role, and will re-advertise this position when the situation becomes clearer.

Fortunately, British Orienteering has managed our finances to ensure that we can cope with eventualities such as this. While we will undoubtedly need to make significant changes to our plans for 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 restrictions, we do not currently expect that we will be forced to make any changes for financial reasons, even if orienteering is suspended for a very significant period (i.e. more than six months).

Support for Clubs

Over the next two weeks, British Orienteering staff will be in contact with all clubs to discuss ways in which we can support you through this difficult period.

We are looking to use this time to develop an online training package on event safety. We also hope to collate a range of orienteering games and exercises that members can participate in from the safety of their homes, which will be published on our website.

Competitions

We have held an initial meeting with the Events & Competitions Committee and the Events Scheduling Group to look at the future programme, and to explore possible options for rescheduling competitions when restrictions are lifted.

Once the current government restrictions are lifted, we want to ensure that clubs and associations are given the flexibility to restart grassroots orienteering as soon as is safely possible, and to get people out into the forest and streets again and enjoying the sport.

Ranking List

The ranking list has been frozen as of 20^th March 2020, so that old scores will no longer age off while orienteering is suspended. We are exploring options for how to handle the calculation of new scores once orienteering resumes.

AGM

Due to the cancellation of the JK and the ban on non-essential travel, the AGM of British Orienteering Federation Limited will no longer take place on Friday 10^th April 2020 in Stockton-on-Tees.

Given that there were no significant proposals on the agenda, this decision will not have any material impact on the running of British Orienteering in the short term. We have therefore decided that postponing the AGM is the most sensible course of action given the current situation. However, it remains important that we go ahead with the AGM when we can, not least to allow you to vote for your new elected directors.

We are required to give 70 days’ notice of any rearranged AGM, and will do so electronically as soon as new arrangements are confirmed. We are currently considering whether it would be better to wait until later in the year in the hope that we can have an in-person AGM, or whether it would be better to proceed with an earlier online AGM.

Both the 2019 Annual Report and the 2019 Financial Accounts, which would normally have been presented at the AGM, were substantially complete before the COVID-19 restrictions arose. To provide you with an update on British Orienteering’s activities and financial position over the past year, these will be published on the website shortly.

Ongoing Projects

We are determined to make the most of this period, and are also aware that some of you may have more spare time than usual. We intend to continue as best we can with some of our major projects, and are exploring options for virtual consultation on the Strategic Refresh and the review of the membership system.

In Closing

This extraordinary situation is likely to be with us for some time, and I am most grateful for the professionalism, resilience and support both of our employees and of you, the members.

We remain available to support you in any way we can, and I ask that you reach out to us through your normal contacts if we can assist you, or if you have any ideas that you think we could develop during this period.

With my very best wishes to you and your families.

Peter Hart
Chief Executive Officer
British Orienteering