Mountain Training Association Autumn Conference

Autumn Conference 13 - 15 November 2026 at Plas y Brenin

The Association's Biennial Autumn Conference returns to Plas y Brenin National Outdoor Centre in Capel Curig, North Wales - Friday 13 to Sunday 15 November 2026.

There will be the regular mix of workshops and sessions on a range of skills, knowledge, and qualification refreshers for people to attend over the weekend as well as updates on Mountain Training from the CEO of MTUKI and a local expert on a specialist subject on the outdoors.

Join us at Plas y Brenin, in the heart of Eryri for a weekend of practical learning, professional development and connection with the outdoor community. Across two full days, choose from a wide range of workshops designed to refresh technical skills, develop your leadership and teaching practice, build professional confidence and expand your knowledge, with sessions suitable for both aspiring and experienced outdoor leaders. With an evening talk, time to meet and share ideas with fellow professionals, and residential packages including meals and accommodation, it’s an ideal opportunity to invest in your skills while enjoying a great weekend at the National Outdoor Centre.

What is included in my ticket?

Two full days of fantastic workshops plus an evening talk. You can choose a residential option which includes meals or a non residential option.

Residential includes:

Dinner (Friday and Saturday night), breakfast (Saturday and Sunday), packed lunch (Saturday and Sunday) , tea/coffee + cake (Saturday and Sunday).

Room options:

Shared bunkroom, shared twin room with ensuite, single room with ensuite (subject to availability).

Workshops

Workshops are offered in both full-day and half-day formats, with morning and afternoon sessions available. Choose the options that suit you and mix and match sessions across the weekend.

Saturday Full day Workshops

Rock Climbing Instructor refresher 09:00 - 16:00

Personal scrambling 09:00 - 16:00

Navigation 09:00 - 16:00

Contour masterclass 09:00 - 16:00

Steep ground for ML’s 09:00 - 16:00

Flora and fauna/Environment 09:00 - 16:00

Geology/Environment 09:00 - 16:00

Mental skills for all walking Leaders 09:00 - 16:00

Saturday Half day Workshops

Safety Management 09:00 – 12:00 & 13:00 – 16:00

Making Your Courses Inclusive and Accessible 09:00 – 12:00 & 13:00 – 16:00

Neurodiverse participants 09:00 – 12:00 & 13:00 – 16:00

Sunday Full Day Workshops

Rock Climbing Instructor refresher 09:00 - 16:00

Personal scrambling 09:00 - 16:00

Navigation 09:00 - 16:00

Contour masterclass 09:00 - 16:00

Steep ground for ML’s 09:00 - 16:00

Flora and fauna 09:00 - 16:00

Geology & the environment 09:00 - 16:00

Nature connection 09:00 - 16:00

Sunday Half Day Workshops

Business and finance 09:00 – 12:00 & 13:00 – 16:00

Teaching and learning 09:00 – 12:00 & 13:00 – 16:00

Leadership 09:00 – 12:00 & 13:00 – 16:00

Workshop descriptions:

Bringing Nature Connection

Develop practical ways to create deeper and more meaningful connections with nature for the people you lead. This workshop combines evidence-based theory with practical activities that can be incorporated into your own outdoor practice.

The workshop will cover:

• Practical nature connection activities and techniques
• The Five Pathways to Nature Connection model
• Sensory immersion and grounding activities
• Ways to integrate nature connection into your own sessions
• Sharing ideas and experiences with other outdoor professionals

You’ll leave with practical resources including an activity guide, grounding scripts, sensory immersion prompts and supporting theory materials.

Making Your Courses Inclusive and Accessible

Explore practical ways to make your courses, activities and organisation more welcoming and accessible to people from underrepresented groups. This workshop will look at both the participant experience and how inclusion can be embedded within your marketing and communications.

The workshop will cover:

• Brand profile, values and behaviours
• Understanding what underrepresented groups want
• EDI in marketing
• Diversity and representation through storytelling and imagery
• Using inclusive language
• Accessible websites and information
• Community outreach and engagement
• Evaluation and feedback

Practical Mental Health Skills

Develop the practical skills and confidence to support people experiencing emotional distress, anxiety, fear or panic in outdoor environments. This workshop focuses on proactive management and effective communication in situations outdoor leaders may encounter while working with groups.

The workshop will cover:

• Recognising and monitoring signs of emotional distress
• Preventing situations from escalating
• Effective communication and de-escalation
• Supporting people experiencing anxiety, fear or panic
• Evidence-based approaches to managing panic attacks
• Practical application in dynamic outdoor environments

The workshop complements Mental Health First Aid by focusing specifically on practical crisis management. Participants will receive supporting course materials, a professional signposting guide and a Certificate of Completion.

Understanding Leadership Styles and Developing Your Own Practice

Explore what effective leadership looks like and develop a greater understanding of your own leadership style. This workshop will help you broaden your leadership toolbox and consider how different approaches can be applied to different people, groups and environments.

The workshop will cover:

• Different leadership styles and approaches
• Effective leadership behaviours
• Adapting leadership to different client needs and environments
• Understanding your own preferences and default leadership style
• Developing greater awareness of your behaviour and its impact
• Applying leadership principles to your outdoor practice

Personal Scrambling

Develop your personal scrambling skills and build confidence moving through easy scrambling terrain. This workshop is ideal for Mountain Leaders, Rock Climbing Instructors and those looking to gain further scrambling experience as they progress towards higher qualifications.

The workshop will cover:

• Route selection
• Route finding
• Movement skills
• Scrambling confidently with another person
• Simple rope work to protect a scramble
• Developing useful personal experience for your logbook

Equipment: Bring your usual hill kit, dextrous gloves suitable for rope handling and a helmet-compatible warm hat. Walking boots are recommended, although suitable approach shoes may be appropriate depending on conditions. Helmets, harnesses and other PPE can be borrowed from Plas y Brenin.

Please note: this workshop is designed to develop personal scrambling skills and is not intended to teach participants how to operate as an MCI.

RCI Refresher

Refresh and update your Rock Climbing Instructor skills with plenty of opportunity for practical application. This workshop is suitable for those preparing for RCI assessment as well as qualified instructors who would like to revisit and practise their skills.

The workshop will cover:

• Bottom and top rope systems
• Common problems and solutions
• Group management
• Setting up abseils
• Practical opportunities to refresh and develop your existing skills

Content will be adapted where possible to meet the needs and experience of the participants.

Equipment: Please bring your usual crag equipment, including climbing shoes, harness, helmet and belay device, together with any trad equipment you have such as nuts, slings and karabiners.

Navigation Workshop

Develop, refresh and consolidate your navigation skills in terrain suitable for Mountain Leader and Hill and Moorland Leader practice. Whether you are preparing for assessment or are already qualified, the workshop will help simplify your navigation and improve your ability to select the right technique for the situation.

The workshop will cover:

• Contour interpretation
• Using different map scales
• Planning and executing navigation strategies
• Breaking a journey into manageable stages
• Choosing the appropriate navigation technique
• Techniques for navigating in poor visibility

The workshop will run directly from Plas y Brenin and will be delivered by an experienced Mountain Training course director.

Equipment: Bring your normal personal hill kit and an OS 1:25,000 OL17 map. If available, also bring OS Landranger 115 and/or the Harvey/BMC Snowdonia North 1:40,000 map.

Contour Masterclass

Sharpen your navigation by learning to read and use the shape of the landscape more effectively. Using contour-only maps, this practical workshop will help you develop a stronger relationship between what you see on the map and what you see on the ground.

The workshop will cover:

• Recognising basic contour shapes
• Relating the map to the landscape
• Identifying features and your position
• Navigating using contours
• Relocation techniques
• Developing route strategies using the shape of the ground

This workshop is ideal for those working towards their Mountain Leader qualification as well as qualified leaders looking to refresh or enhance their navigation skills.

Equipment: Bring your normal mountain day kit, compass, watch and a map case. A map case is essential as the contour-only maps used during the workshop are not waterproof.

Safety Management

Develop your understanding of good practice in safety and risk management for outdoor activities. This workshop is particularly relevant to sole traders, small businesses and anyone responsible for an organisation’s operating procedures, risk assessments or safety management systems.

The workshop will cover:

• Risk management and operating procedures
• Lone working
• Emergency action plans and late-return procedures
• Risk assessments
• Equipment inspection and recording
• Insurance, contracts and relevant legislation
• Seeking technical advice and support
• The Adventuremark scheme

Practical examples will be used throughout, with guidance on developing the systems and documentation needed to operate professionally and effectively.

Flora and Fauna

Develop your knowledge of the natural environment and learn how to bring environmental interpretation into your work as an outdoor leader. Following an introductory classroom session, much of the workshop will take place in the upland environment surrounding Plas y Brenin.

The workshop will cover:

• The role of environmental interpretation in outdoor leadership
• Communicating environmental information effectively
• Seasonal approaches to environmental interpretation
• Understanding upland habitats and ecology
• Identifying characteristic upland plants and animals
• Ecological adaptations, cultural links and folklore
• Practical ways to incorporate environmental interest into your sessions

Much of the day will be spent exploring upland habitats away from established paths, so participants should come suitably equipped for a mountain day.

Teaching and Learning

Explore the fundamentals of effective teaching and develop new ideas for helping people learn in outdoor environments. This practical workshop provides an opportunity to reflect on your current approach, add new techniques to your teaching toolbox and adapt your sessions to meet the needs of different learners.

The workshop will cover:

• Creating positive learning environments
• Effective communication with individuals and groups
• Adapting and individualising your teaching style
• Identifying and setting appropriate tasks and goals
• Skill acquisition and development
• Sensory preferences and different ways of presenting information
• Generating effective feedback
• Evaluative and reflective practice

The workshop is suitable for Mountain Training qualification holders looking to develop their teaching practice and align their skills with the increased emphasis on teaching and learning within current syllabi.

Steep Ground for Mountain Leaders

Refresh and develop your steep-ground and emergency rope-work skills within the context of the Mountain Leader qualification. This workshop is particularly useful for those preparing for assessment as well as qualified leaders wanting an opportunity to revisit and practise these skills.

The workshop will cover:

• Route selection on steep ground
• Safeguarding a group during ascent and descent
• Managing groups with and without a rope
• Confidence roping
• Rope-work systems
• Anchor selection
• Using the rope appropriately in context
• Personal descent techniques

Equipment: Bring your normal hill kit and, if you have them, suitable rope-handling gloves, a 30m confidence rope, rope bag and helmet. Ropes and helmets will also be available to borrow from Plas y Brenin.

Geology for Walking Leaders

Discover the geological story behind the mountains and landscapes of Eryri. Designed for walking leaders who would like to better understand and interpret the landscape around them, this workshop will explore the processes that created some of North Wales’ most distinctive mountain scenery.

The workshop will cover:

• The basic principles of modern geology
• Plate tectonics
• Volcanoes and mountain building
• Glaciation
• How geological processes have shaped the landscape
• Recognising and interpreting different landforms

The workshop will help you build knowledge that can add another dimension to the journeys and experiences you provide for the people you lead.

Neurodiversity

Develop the confidence and practical skills to create more neuro-inclusive environments for participants. This interactive workshop will explore how outdoor and community sport activities can be adapted so that neurodivergent participants feel welcomed, supported and able to fully participate.

The workshop will cover:

• Creating welcoming and neuro-inclusive environments
• Understanding and responding to different participant needs
• Delivering proactively inclusive activities
• Practical approaches to improving accessibility and participation
• Insights and experiences shared by participants
• Applying learning within your own sessions and organisation

The session will be interactive and learner-led, combining discussion, shared experience and practical application.

Small Business Finances

Whether you already run a small business or are considering setting one up, this workshop will help develop the financial knowledge needed to operate effectively, remain resilient and plan for future growth.

The workshop will cover:

• Obtaining finance
• Budgeting and cash-flow forecasting
• Managing costs and pricing services
• Maintaining sufficient working capital
• Accounting records and annual accounts
• Corporation Tax, VAT and National Insurance
• Using accounting software for bookkeeping, payroll and invoicing
• Understanding profit margins, liquidity, return on investment and cash flow

The workshop will provide a practical introduction to the financial management and reporting activities that can support better decision-making and the long-term sustainability of your business.

What happens if I can no longer attend the event?

Terms and Conditions apply, please see our website for further details: https://pyb.co.uk/terms-conditions