What is excellence?
Excellence is defined as ‘the quality of being outstanding or extremely good’. It’s a quality that Verner Wheelock has strived to achieve and maintain during its 30-plus years of operation. It appears in our strapline: Verner Wheelock – Excellence in Food Industry Training and is outlined in our Mission Statement.
What is the examination pass rate?
Often the first thing that people ask a training provider is ‘What is the examination pass rate?’ Obviously this is very important. For the record, at Verner Wheelock we expect at least 75% of our delegates to pass first time. We regularly achieve a 90 to 100% pass rate. In fact our delegates are regular winners of the RSPH annual awards, achieving the highest marks in Level 4 HACCP and Level 4 Food Safety exams.
The best food industry trainers
We are firm believers that to understand something fully, you need to experience it. That’s why our trainers have all worked within the food industry for several years and our auditing trainers carry out audits regularly. It means that they can answer any questions from delegates with authority and make training relatable through industry examples.
ISO 9001 and excellence in customer service
Something else we pride ourselves on is excellent customer service. In 2018 we developed a Quality Management System (QMS) that was accredited to ISO 9001: 2018. This helps businesses to be more efficient and focus on customer satisfaction. At the heart of ISO 9001 is the concept of continuous improvement.
From the first enquiry all the way through to sending out exam certificates and beyond we try to make the process as smooth and enjoyable as possible for our customers. We elicit customer feedback to ensure we are staying on track and meeting our objectives. If anyone has any suggestions for improvement or concerns about any aspects of our courses we address them straight away.
We are proud to say that we have an extremely high rating for quality of training and customer service. In the 6 month period from July to December last year, 98% of delegates said they would recommend us. 98.5% also scored us at least 3 out of 5 (good) for any aspect of the training experience.
Excellence in classroom and live remote learning
Even before Covid, Verner Wheelock was ahead of the game. We had already started providing remote training for some customers with sites overseas. During lockdown all our courses were delivered via Zoom or Microsoft Teams and this option has continued.
Now delegates have the choice of attending courses face-to-face or through live remote delivery. The training room at our new premises in the heart of Skipton is equipped with the latest AV equipment. As a result, we are able to deliver ‘hybrid’ courses where we have delegates in the training room and remote attendees appear on a large screen, so there is interaction between the two.
Accredited by the Learning and Performance Institute (LPI)
Verner Wheelock is a Learning and Performance Institute Accredited Learning Provider. Our staff have undertaken training in the content and delivery of online and remote training through LPI.
This accreditation also shows that we are committed to continual improvement throughout the business.
To find out more about us, visit the About Us section of our main website.