REPs can only accept official names

When registering someone for REPs we must use the name listed on their Qualification.

Should they want to change the name at all we must see a change of name document (ie marriage certificate or deed poll).

Note: Women can elect to use either their married name or maden name and when separated/devorced they can revert to their unmarried name  – Proof can be either the marriage certificate or dissolusion of marrage document). 

Nicknames / English Names 

When they indicate they go by another name we always list their legal name and then any aliases in brackets 

eg:   Charles (Charlie) Beagle

SHORT ANSWER: REPs requires that registered exercise professionals undertake 10 CPD points worth of ongoing education per year.

Re-registration

REPs Registered Exercise Professionals are required to complete education and upskilling to demonstrate that they continue to learn and develop throughout their careers, to keep their skills and knowledge up to date, and are able to work safely, and effectively.

This ongoing education and upskilling is called Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and is measured by a system of points, called CPD points.

Outline here at what rate CPD points are issued – i.e. per hour of course work in person, distance, assessed, etc. 

An exercise professional must earn 10 CPD points per registration year by completing courses provided by REPs Registered CPD Providers – outline here non-verified CPD also.

CPD Credit/Shortfall 

An exercise professional may carry forward a shortfall of up to 10 CPD points in any one year as long as they commit to undertaking those CPD points during the next registration year. When an exercise professional first registers, there is no requirement to earn any CPD Points until their first re-registration 

CPD points are valid for TWO re-registration periods, with any surplus of points carried over. So a person who has earned 20 CPD points during their current registration year (and didn’t have any shortfall in the prior registration year), will have earned sufficient CPD Points (10 points) for the next years re-registration.

Initial Application

If the initial application is older than 3 years when filling out an initial application, REPs would require that 10 CPD points of training is submitted with an additional 10 per year up to the value of 20. The ongoing training can not be older than 2 years old.

An initial qualification is worth 20 CPD points on the year of issue and worth 10 less each year thereafter.

Non-Verified CPD

We recognise education comes in various forms like mentoring and self-directed learning (books, videos etc). To choose this option, simply verify 10 hours of ongoing education anytime in the year. 

Things that count include:

• 1:1 mentoring, relevant workshops, lectures, conferences, and any structured self directed learning (books, videos etc) that have specific  education content relevant to your registration level(s).
• Group education sessions with other exercise professionals may count as long as the primary focus is education and up-skilling.

There is no requirement to have any of the up-skilling assessed (or verified), but the re-registering person is required to confirm that they have done training through the year, and list what it was.

This 3 question test will help you to identify if the professional development completed meets the non-verified CPD criteria:

1. Did the CPD help you to up-skill, what did you learn?
2. Is the CPD relevant to your registration level(s)?
3. Was dedicated time allocated for this that can be quantified?

This does not then recognise the course but rather that the person has been upskilling.

SHORT ANSWER: REPs must ascertain that you meet the National standards. This can be done by completing a recognised qualification (click here for a list), or via completing another pathway to registration, outlined below.

International Portability

International Portability from one register to another is mapped through the International Confederation of Registers for Exercise Professionals (ICREPs). NZ REPs is one of many countries that has an Exercise Professional register and ICREPs is the organisation that oversees the international partnership between registration bodies around the world. Refer to the ICREPs page for information on what is portable to and from each country (www.icreps.org)

Independent Verification

For those that wish to  register and have relevant industry knowledge, competency and skill, but don’t hold a qualification in this list, REPs has an Independent Verification Process (IVP) available. Successful completion of the IVP process will result in the holder being issued a letter which we recognise to full registration.

SHORT ANSWER: REPs Requires all Exercise professionals to hold a valid first aid certificate.  For those only working only from a Registered facility we only require CPR; for all others we require a Workplace First aid (covering Unit standards 6401 and 6402)

Exercise professionals & facilities must ensure that the level of First Aid/CPR is appropriate and relevant to the environment and conditions in which they deliver exercise – the specific First Aid/CPR needs of exercise professionals vary considerably depending on factors such as location, activities undertaken, and the number of clients under instruction.

For those Exercise Professionals operating only within the physical premises of a REPs Registered Facility they are required to hold a current Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certificate only.

Click here to view the guidelines

The New Zealand Resuscitation Council standard for CPR involves attending a course where the participants must be able to physically demonstrate CPR skills and knowledge on a mannequin, therefore a solely online CPR certificate does not meet the NZ Resuscitation Councils requirement. Courses must be completed in person to meet the standard.

REPs First Aid/CPR Requirements

For REPs Registered Exercise Professionals

• Exercise professionals operating only within the physical premises of a REPs Registered Exercise Facility, are required to hold a current Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certificate only.
• For all other exercise professionals, REPs requires that they hold a First Aid certificate which covers the equivalent of unit standards 6401 and 6402
• In addition we recommend that exercise professionals operating in an environment where they may be exposed to dealing with multiple injuries (ie more than one client injury at one time), or multiple injuries to an individual client, then they also undertake training that includes competencies covered in unit standard 6400.

In all cases, the actual unit standard(s) are not required as long as the training and assessment covers the equivalent competencies.

Other Health and Safety Considerations

In addition to first aid, there may be additional health and safety training and/or practices that an exercise professional needs to undertake if they operate in a specific or unique environment. Examples of this include operating from a location far from any other medical support, clients with unique and special medical needs, or undertaking specific activities that may have unique risks. In all cases the exercise professional must ensure they review all risks, and undertake all steps to ensure they are eliminated or managed.

Factors to consider include location, activities undertaken, and number of clients under instruction, as well as if you are in a workplace, what support the workplace may be able to offer you and your clients as a part of its health and safety procedures and practices.

For REPs Registered Exercise Facilities

All workplaces must ensure they provide adequate first aid cover for their staff and customers/visitors.  This can be managed in a number of different ways, including using exercise professionals and/or admin/management staff.  The number of on duty first aid holders will vary based on the size and type of the facility/business, but could range from one person; one person per floor/room/group; all the way up to several people per space/activity/premises.

Further information on best practice for first aid are available from WorkSafe New Zealand in a guide called First Aid for Workplaces – a Good Practice Guide.

You can also check the WorkSafe New Zealand General Risk and Workplace Management Interpretive Guidelines at this link

SHORT ANSWER: REPs follows a robust complaints process. Those complaining have two options to choosechose from when informing us of the complaint.

‘Let us know’ Complaint

The ‘Let us know’ Complaint – where someone wants us to know about the behaviour or other aspects of a registered trainer that they think is unreasonable.

The ‘Let us know’ complaint can be made by any communication method (email, phone etc.) and we will note it, and take the appropriate action. However, there will be no feedback to the complainant about either the process followed nor the outcome.

Formal Complaint

The Formal Complaint process would be the normal choice for a more serious complaint (harassment, unprofessional behaviour etc).

All formal complaints are to be communicated to REPs by either post of email, and must include the section of the REPs Code of Conduct which you believe has been breached, and what outcome/s you would prefer:

Post: Posted to REPs, P O Box 22374, Christchurch 8140.

or emailed to  info@reps.org.nz

We will follow the principles of natural justice, except where it would compromise your safety. The full details of your complaint, including your name, will be passed onto the organisation/registered trainer for them to respond to.

The process is as follows:

1. To ensure there is a fair and transparent process, when a complaint is received, after checking that REPs has jurisdiction (ie. they must be registered with REPs) then an investigation is started. As a part of this investigation details of the complaint, including the name of the complainant are disclosed. Complaints may be made anonymously; in such cases the complaint will be investigated, but the outcome will not be communicated to the complainant.

2. Where full details have been disclosed (permission will be obtained first), each party will then be given a right of reply to the other party’s information. This means you will see what the facility/person replied, and the facility/person will see the full complaint.

3. If the complaint related to an alleged breach of the law and there is a statutory body that deals with this, the we will refer the complainant to this body for determination first.  Should that body uphold the complaint, then this will be used as a part of the investigation as evidence. eg a person alleges a trainer breached their privacy. This would be referred to the Privacy Commissioner’s Office. Should this complaint be upheld by the Privacy Commissioner then this would be used as evidence as a part of the complaint to REPs.

4. REPs does not deal with matters of customer service, except where these lead to a specific breach of a relevant code. Where someone thinks they have received bad service, contact the manager of the facility, or in the case of individuals, the individual concerned and communicate your dissatisfaction. State which part of the code they feel has been breached (they can find the code here.)

5. In most cases, where there is a complaint about a facility or person, we require they to first contact the facility/person concerned to outline their concern, and what they would like done about it (there are a few exceptions to this, where such a complaint would be unwise or unsafe). This contact, and the response from the facility/person should be included in any complaint.

6. Be clear about what they want as an outcome of any complaint. Please outline this clearly what outcome they are desiring

7. Where the matter they wish to complain about is of a serious criminal nature, we recommend they contact the police directly.

SHORT ANSWER: REPs does not offer refunds on registrations

Registration Fees

All payments for registration are for 12 months, and refunds are not given for change of mind, unsuccessful registration, or failure to meet registration standards.

As the registration years runs from 1I October to 30 September, applications received part way through this period still pay for a full year, and receive a credit equal to the unused months which is applied on 1 October. (e.g. a person registering on 1 March 2024 pays for a full 12 months, and first re-registers on 1 October 2024, with a 5 month credit. There are no refunds if the credit is not used at the first re-registration).

Other Purchases

Refunds are generally not given, unless the item purchased is faulty.