Around 3 minutes to read · Updated 10 September 2026
Published by Serious Sports Training Academy
At a glance
- Count taught time, independent work and travel separately, without double-counting.
- Use your actual availability after existing commitments.
- Ask the course team to confirm requirements; this planner cannot predict readiness or completion.
Start with the week you can actually make available
Choose one specific week and look at work, caring responsibilities, sleep and other fixed commitments first. The time left is your planning allowance, not every hour that is technically outside work. Include space for ordinary life and changes to your schedule.
Ask the provider for the current timetable, attendance expectations, work between sessions and assessment arrangements. If an answer is not confirmed, mark it as a question in your notes. Do not turn an unknown requirement into zero merely to make the calculation fit.
Count every commitment once
Add teaching and attendance, independent study, additional practice, travel and additional assessment. Practical teaching already counted in attendance should not appear again under additional practice. An assessment held within a taught session should not also be counted as a separate assessment block.
For example, a fictional learner has 12 available hours. They allow four hours for attendance, three for study, two for extra practice, two for travel and one for a separate assessment task. Planned time is 12 hours, leaving no buffer. These are invented planning figures, not SSTA course requirements.
Understand a surplus or shortfall
The calculation is: planned hours = attendance + study + additional practice + travel + additional assessment. Hours remaining = available hours minus planned hours. A negative result shows the size of the shortfall. A zero result means every available hour has been allocated.
A positive balance does not prove the course is manageable. Consider whether the available time occurs when teaching, travel or practice must actually happen. Four scattered quarter-hours cannot replace a required uninterrupted practical session.
Compare an ordinary week and a demanding week
Run the calculation for a typical teaching week and again for a week containing a deadline, longer journey or assessment. Print the results or copy them into your own diary before clearing the fields. The calculator does not save a history.
If the plan fails, identify the commitment causing the problem. Ask about confirmed alternatives, support and attendance rules before assuming a session can move or be missed. You may need a different intake rather than more determined time management.
- Write the specific dates and locations beside each attendance block.
- Check return travel, parking and the time needed before a session starts.
- Agree practice arrangements with the provider instead of assuming any practice will count.
- Keep unanswered timetable and support questions together for one useful enquiry.
Bring a concrete plan to your course enquiry
Send the course team your availability and the questions you need answered. You do not need to send a detailed personal diary. Ask what is mandatory, what can be scheduled independently and how to request support.
Use the printed page as a discussion worksheet. It is not an attendance agreement, assessment log or substitute for current course documentation.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Does this tell me the required weekly study time?
No. Enter the requirements supplied for your actual qualification and intake. The examples explain the calculation only.
Are my hours saved or sent to SSTA?
No. The figures stay in the page and clear when you leave or reload it. You can print a copy for your own use.
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