Umpire Courses & Pathway

Currently there are no Umpire courses or CPD events taking place in Kent, however there will be several run over the second half of 2024 please register your interest using the form below and we will be in touch when the next course is arranged.

To search for available courses outside of the county, please click here.

Following changes within the ECB ACO Officiating Department it has been announced there will be a number of changes to the current Accreditation process. 

The proposed changes, precise details to be confirmed, will provide the consistency and criteria that will be used to help develop and support umpires across the game, at both recreational and professional levels.
The key areas of umpire performance to be measured in the future are as follows: 

• Decision Making 
• Match Management 
• People Management 
• Presentation & Image 
• Teamwork

Full details will be made available when they have been finalised by the ECB and the ECB ACO.

A grading system for umpires was introduced several years ago to enable umpires to know what level of cricket they were currently officiating at and, for those with ambitions to progress, to advise them what the next step up would be on the progression pyramid. 

It is acknowledged that some umpires may not be particularly ambitious, content in the knowledge that their participation helps players to enjoy the sport.  For others, the level at which they officiate is very important.  It is for the latter group that grading is, and will increasingly become, more relevant.  Appointments at a senior level will become ever-more competence-based and how an umpire is graded will form an integral part of their ability to progress on the officials’ pathway. 

Hitherto, Kent ACO graded its umpire members according to agreed national standards and this was based on the level of cricket they had officiated in the previous season. From 2023 however, this is no longer the case. 

Following consultation with the ECB ACO and its members across 2022, new umpiring pathways have been introduced. 

 The diagram below shows the two new pathways – one for the men’s game and one for the women’s game. 

It was clear from the consultation that members wanted clarity and transparency in how to progress from umpiring lower levels of club cricket to standing in the highest levels of the recreational game and beyond.  

The key skills, knowledge and attributes required at each level have now been defined and this has enabled a transition of umpires from their previous grade to their new level(s) for the 2023 season. 

Going forward, grading will not only take into account the level of cricket officiated in the previous season, but also key areas such as Decision Making, Match Management, People Management, Presentation & Image and Teamwork.
Future progression will be dealt with via an ‘Application for Promotion’.  

The table below shows what that means for the men’s game: 

2022 Grade	2023 Level	Within Kent
Professional Umpires   Team	Level 1	N/A
National Panel Umpire	Level 2	N/A
C1	Level 3	Kent League Premier Division (Panel Umpire)
C2	Level 4	Kent League Championship & Division 1 (Panel Umpire)
C3
C4	Level 5	Remaining Kent League
C5
C6		All other levels of umpiring e.g. Kent Village League
C7	Level 6	Junior Cricket Newly trained umpires not yet standing Individuals no longer actively umpiring

Those umpires who undertook appointments through Who’s the Umpire (WTU) in the women’s game during 2022 automatically became a Level 3 umpire in the women’s game pathway. 

Any umpire member who has any questions about the grading process, or who wishes to verify their  grade for the current year, is invited to contact the County Performance Officer using the Kent ACO email button on the right-hand side of this page (on mobile devices the button may be at the bottom of the page). 

The Kent ACO is here to help all officials within the county – from those just starting out to others who have a significant experience – get the most from the sport.

If you are new to officiating, we can introduce you to a local club, should you not have any connections in the area.

Perhaps more importantly, we can help you diversify your experience, by offering you appointments across a spectrum of game formats, including youth and aged cricket, plus local tour matches.

Should this be of interest to you, please contact the Kent ACO using the form at the bottom of this page.

All umpires are expected to hold and maintain their Disclosure and Barring Service Check, as they are in a position of trust and the majority of cricket matches will involve players under the age of 18.

Applying for a DBS

All DBSs are now carried out online, but still require face-to-face ID verification. The majority of Club Safeguarding Officers are set up to initiate a DBS application, therefore asking your own Club Safeguarding Officer to do this is often the simplest method.

If you are a volunteer, the DBS process is free of charge. If you receive payment then it incurs a cost which you can pay by card when you complete the online form.

Click here to view the full step-by-step process of obtaining a DBS, along with information on the update service.