In the good old days before Covid-19, we at Verner Wheelock offered just two types of course. ‘Open’ or ‘In-house.’
Open courses
Open courses are so-called because they are open to anyone. Delegates from several different companies all attend the same course. So, you might have a Technical Manager from one company on the same course as a Quality Manager from another. It’s a great opportunity to share experience and ideas and relate the course content to different processes at the same time as learning.
Open course dates are scheduled for specific dates and appear on our Training Calendar and on the Verner Wheelock website. The fees are paid for each individual attending a course.
In-house courses
In-house courses are attended only by people from the same company and normally take place ‘in-house’ i.e. at the company’s own premises. They are most cost-effective if you have five or more staff to train. These are charged on a ‘per course’ basis and there are two pricing tiers: up to seven delegates; and up to fifteen delegates (or twelve if it’s an advanced level course.)
Unlike open courses, you choose the dates that are convenient for the training to take place, and we organise it all at your chosen venue.
Remote training
With social distancing and travel restrictions due to Covid-19, we have adapted our offering so that courses can be delivered remotely via Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Delegates booked on to remote courses click on a link that is sent to them and they attend a live instructor-led training session with one of our trainers. They can join the training from wherever they happen to be – at work or at home – so long as they have a computer, laptop or tablet with internet connection and audio.
All the content of a classroom-based course is included in a remote training course, to ensure the usual syllabus is covered
Dual delivery open courses
We are able to provide dual delivery of our open courses, so you can choose to attend either in person at our training centre, or remotely.
Due to social distancing restrictions, we can only accept up to six people at Skipton, so places are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Please be assured that we have carried out a Covid-19 risk assessment and taken the necessary precautions to make your visit as safe as possible.
In-house courses can be delivered remotely too
When you book an in-house course with us, we will ask whether you want the training to take place on site, or remotely. If you opt for remote training, your staff do not need to be in the same room. If they are working from home, they can log in from there. Otherwise, if they are at work, they can log in from their desk or any other room.
Course materials
Everyone attending one of our courses will receive a course folder and handouts (plus a text book for Level 3 and Level 4 Food Safety courses) sent to their home or place of work.
Open courses – If you are attending an open course in Skipton these will be ready and waiting for you when you arrive. If you are attending an open course remotely, you will be sent the course materials via courier a few days before the course begins.
In-house courses – For face-to-face in-house courses, we will deliver all course materials to site. However, if the course is being delivered remotely, there is also the option to have the course materials delivered to home addresses. Our Training Support Team will organise this for you.
Examinations
We can arrange for exams to be taken with remote invigilation to avoid unnecessary travel.
We hope that this article has helped to clarify the different training options. You can find more information about our open and in-house training on the main website.
The team look forward to seeing you on one of our HACCP, Food Safety, Auditing or Specialist courses very soon.