Reaching Full Judge is the completion of your group-level training — the top of the judge training pathway. As a Full Judge you are qualified to judge the breed classes catered for by your Judge Progression Group (JPG) and to award certificates for the breeds and classes for which you are qualified. Congratulations — but it needn’t be the end of your journey.
What being a Full Judge means
As a Full Judge you judge the full breed classes within your group, and award Challenge Certificates (CCs) and Premier Certificates (PCs), along with the higher awards — Grand, Imperial and Olympian — for the breeds and classes for which you are qualified. You continue to uphold GCCF judging standards and the Code of Conduct at all times.
Supporting the next generation
One of the most valuable things a Full Judge does is help bring on the next generation of judges. You can act as a Tutor Judge — giving Teaching & Learning tutorials and offering support, advice and guidance to trainee judges — and as an Assessor for their Final Assessments. In fact, Full Judges from a JPG’s preferred list are required to conduct trainee judges’ Final Assessments. Offering constructive, encouraging feedback is how the fancy keeps its judging standards high — and it’s how you once learned, too.
Continuing your development
Judging is a craft you keep developing. Full Judges are expected to attend seminars, stay up to date with the Standards of Points and rule changes, and continue building their knowledge across the breeds they judge.
Judging a new group or more breeds
Your judging need not stop at one group. As a Full Judge you can:
- Apply to train in a new breed group — you enter the new group at Junior Judge level and work through that group’s training. You may train in more than one group, but preferably no more than two at a time.
- Apply for appointment to further Imperial/Grand lists within groups you already judge.
How to apply for a new group
All applications go, in the first instance, to the GCCF Office with the relevant (non-refundable) fee. The Office forwards your application to the JPG Secretary once payment has been recorded. A separate application form is needed for each JPG you apply to.
Forms you need
Frequently asked questions
Can I judge more than one group?
Yes. You can add further groups — entering each new group at Junior Judge level — and apply for further Imperial/Grand lists within groups you already judge. Preferably train in no more than two groups at any one time.
Can I tutor and assess trainee judges?
Yes. Full Judges give Teaching & Learning tutorials and provide support and advice to trainee judges, and — when on a JPG’s preferred list — conduct their Final Assessments. It’s one of the most important ways experienced judges support the fancy.
Your judge training journey — where you are:
