UMPIRING & SCORING (ACO)

Courses are designed to give new umpires the key skills, knowledge and confidence to stand as an umpire in cricket. No prior experience of umpiring in cricket is required before attending the course.

Whether you plan to support Junior soft ball cricket through to adult cricket, this course will cover the following topics:

• Understanding the role of the umpire
• Gain a basic understanding of umpiring the game
• Answering appeals and the common methods of dismissal
• How to communicate effectively with all stakeholders in the game
• Judging whether or not it is safe to play

The course is split into classroom and practical learning, so we recommend learners to come dressed appropriately.

Learners will be asked to complete some e-learning prior to attending the course, which will take no more than 90 minutes to complete in total. Pre-learning can be completed via multiple visits or in one go.

Pre-requisites:
Learners must be 14 years of age at the time of the course.

Cost £70.00

Bursaries are available for the cost of the course if required, please complete The Mike Newcombe Umpiring Fund - Application Form if you would like to apply.

Remembering Mike Newcombe, this pot is available for those that are unable to fund their own places on the courses. Bursaries are open to any one taking an ECB Umpiring Course in 2026.

Next Courses

Chichester Umpires Course – 15 March 2026 
Book now

Robertsbridge Umpires Course – 22 March 2026 
Book now 

Hove Umpires Course – 18 April 2026
Book now

The first step on the Umpiring & Scoring Pathway, the brand new ECB online umpire and scoring courses are now available and are FREE! 

ECB Umpire Course

ECB Online Scoring Module

The scoring course – includes a free year of ECB ACO membership.

The aim of these introductory courses is to provide you with the basic skills and knowledge to record a cricket match. It won’t teach you everything you need to know, but it will give you the tools and confidence to get started.

Upcoming Courses:

No courses currently planned.

If you have any questions regarding scoring or require further knowledge/help about either electronic or paper scoring please do contact Rod Cole on cso.sussex@gmail.com

The aim of the SACO is to support, train and retain members encouraging them to continue umpiring and scoring within the game.

President: Martin Bodenham - martinbodenham2@gmail.com

Chairman: Alasdair Shaikh - alasdair.shaikh@me.com

Vice-Chair: Roger Garland - roger@machone.co.uk

Secretary: Matt French - cricketumpirefrench@hotmail.co.uk 

Education: Ian Morris - i.morris@rocketmail.com

Performance: Terry Burstow - terryburstow@ntlworld.com

Appointments; Ian Farrell - ass.secretary@brightonleague.co.uk

Scoring: Rod Cole - cso.sussex@gmail.com  

ECB Umpiring online courses do not currently exist, however the ECB are working on releasing these again on a new platform.

In the meantime for further information & to test your umpiring knowledge, please see the MCC Laws of the Game online here or you can view them via the MCC mobile App.

The MCC’S OFFICIAL LAWS OF CRICKET APP, AVAILABLE ON ANDROID AND IOS. THE APP INCLUDES:

- The complete Laws of the game of cricket.
- Detailed guides and examples.
- Animated Video guides for the most common Law queries
- Videos of all umpire signals.
- The Laws of Cricket quiz, with three levels of difficulty.

All 42 Laws are presented in an easy to understand manner with 15 of them given greater focus by means of animations, presented by cricket enthusiast Stephen Fry. Videos of the umpiring signals complete the picture to help you understand what’s happening on the field of play.

Download IOS

Download Android