Craig Talbot of Cardiff Council's Parks Department has recently completed the Level 6 Professional Certificate in Turf Surface Consulting, the Grounds Management Association’s (GMA) highest-level qualification.
After leaving Aberystwyth University, Craig was employed as a seasonal gardener by Cardiff Council's Parks Department and, within 12 months, he became a full-time employee responsible for maintaining the bowling greens and other sports pitch markings within the parks of Cardiff.
Eventually climbing to a working supervisor within the parks department, and after the area manager's retirement, Craig began to focus on improving sports playing surfaces.
In 2023, Craig was seen as the perfect fit to head up a team of seven responsible for maintaining just under 100 winter sports pitches along with summer sports including softball, American baseball, touch rugby, British baseball, running tracks, Gaelic football, and 11 cricket tables with around 600 games in a 19-week season.
“This has been a great career journey of 24 years and still counting,” said Craig. “I saw this course as a vital part of my development in my role to keep increasing the standards for all participants using park pitches.
“This course also allowed me to understand the whole process of creating documentation to complement any future improvement plans for individual parks, sports, or individual sports teams looking for pitch improvements.”
In January 2024, the GMA was once again accredited to the matrix Standard, a Department for Education-owned international standard for services delivering high-quality information, advice, and guidance.
The accreditation further enhances the GMA’s reputation as a leading provider of education and development within the grounds management industry, one of the main reasons that Craig chose the GMA as the learning provider.
“The GMA is the leading industry body for the sports turf and grounds care sector in the country,” said Craig. “They have a fantastic network of experts for guidance and learning resources that are readily available.”
Craig has also completed a number of foundation, level one, and level two courses in bowling greens, cricket pitches, and football grounds maintenance, but still wanted to gain more experience in the field.
“I wanted to do this for myself to gain more experience. Cardiff Council recognises the importance of managing and maintaining facilities to the highest standards possible and this comes through grounded training and sound knowledge.”
As the GMA’s Chief Operating Officer Jason Booth recently alluded to in an interview with the FC Business magazine, “The changing climate, with more extreme weather and trickier conditions to manage, is here to stay.”
And with the ever-changing climate, Craig can use his recently obtained Level 6 Professional Certificate in Turf Surface Consulting qualification to understand how things will change and what it’ll mean for turf.
He said: “This qualification will help me to evaluate issues which need assessing, with a detailed understanding of a way forward. It will help to inform and give assurances to facility users and senior management on solutions and to support potential identification for funding investment opportunities.”
Craig’s educational journey is still ongoing. With over 20 qualifications available through the GMA, along with many training opportunities such as online resources and toolkits, Craig is committed to continually updating and expanding his knowledge.
“I plan to carry on using the GMA training courses and qualifications to keep and maintain natural playing surfaces for everyone to use and enjoy whatever they use Cardiff parks for,” he said. “If you love looking after pitches, squares, diamonds, or whatever playing field it is you will not get better assistance than the GMA.”
The GMA is leading the way in professional development, qualifications, and training. Discover how our courses could help your career and playing surface by visiting www.thegma.org.uk/learning.