Your Name on the Register: Why Every Pilates Instructor Must Be Ready
The next two years will reshape what it means to be a Pilates instructor in the United Kingdom. For the first time, every teacher, coach and instructor in sport and physical activity; including Pilates, will form part of a single national system that recognises professionalism, ensures safety and raises standards for everyone who teaches movement.
This is not another administrative exercise. It is the beginning of a new professional era.
The National Coaching Register
Led by Sport England and UK Sport, and supported by CIMSPA and EMD UK, the forthcoming National Coaching Register will become the official public record of who is qualified, compliant and authorised to teach or coach physical activity across all disciplines. Pilates instructors will, for the first time, be recognised alongside all other professionals in sport and exercise, with equal standing and shared responsibilities.
The Register is designed to make the system safer, more consistent and more trusted. It follows the findings of the Whyte Review, which exposed gaps in safeguarding and governance across the sporting sector. The principle is simple: participants deserve the assurance that everyone who teaches them is properly trained, vetted, insured and accountable.
What This Means for Pilates
For Pilates professionals, the changes are both a challenge and a remarkable opportunity. Whether you teach Matwork, Reformer, fitness or method-based Pilates, you will be expected to meet new standards of compliance. These will include up-to-date DBS checks, safeguarding and first-aid certification, appropriate insurance, ongoing CPD and qualifications that align with recognised scopes of practice.
The Register will be publicly searchable and will indicate whether each instructor is compliant. This visibility is intended to build trust among clients, studios and insurers, all of whom will soon expect to verify status before engaging an instructor.
Who Leads Pilates Governance
EMD UK has been confirmed by Sport England as the National Governing Body for Group Exercise, and that remit includes Pilates instruction. Whether you teach large group classes, small reformer sessions or one-to-one clients, EMD UK will offer registration pathways for you. Other NGBs may also provide routes for instructors working in specialist or cross-disciplinary settings, but EMD UK remains the natural home for Pilates professionals who value consistent standards and representation within a wider movement-teaching community.
Why It Matters
The Pilates world has long been fragmented, with differing training routes and inconsistent recognition. The Register brings clarity and parity. It will help ensure that your qualifications, experience and professionalism are visible and valued. Being compliant on the Register will soon become the foundation for insurance and employment, and instructors who do not appear may find it increasingly difficult to obtain cover or professional opportunities.
This is not about exclusion; it is about recognition. It is about giving Pilates teachers the same standing and accountability as their peers across the sport and physical-activity sector.
How Mbodies Will Support You
At Mbodies Training Academy we are developing a suite of bridging and CPD programmes to help every instructor, whether newly qualified or highly experienced, to meet the new deployment standards. We will guide you through aligning existing qualifications with the emerging Pilates Scopes of Practice, updating safeguarding and first-aid training, logging and evidencing CPD and gaining register-ready recognition through Mbodies-approved courses.
A Professional Turning Point
The National Register is not something being done to Pilates instructors; it is something being built for them. It represents a shared commitment to higher standards, greater visibility and stronger professional identity. At Mbodies, we are here to guide you through each step of that journey so that you can continue to do what you do best: help people move better, feel better and live better.
Chris Onslow
Pilates Business Consultant and Director, Mbodies Training Academy
Read our companion article “Lead the Change: How Studios and Training Providers Can Thrive in the New Pilates Era”
Download or read my full report,
Compliance Pre-Conclusion of Standards – Updated October 2025,
for a detailed overview of the reforms and how to prepare
Author: Chris Onslow - Pilates Consultant
Chris Onslow, has run Pilates focussed businesses since 1998. He and his team specialise in supporting Pilates entrepreneurs and business owners. With a rich history of owning and running successful Pilates studios in the UK, and supporting others in Europe and the Middle East, Chris has broad expertise in maximising profitability and optimising operational efficiency. His agency provides top-tier advice on selecting new, pre-owned, and hireable Pilates equipment from renowned brands such as Align-Pilates, Balanced Body or Stott-Pilates/Merrithew. As the founder of Mbodies Training Academy, Chris continues to revolutionise Pilates education, offering premier online and hybrid CPD and qualification courses for Pilates apparatus instruction and special population CPD.