MWF Training takes off in style
A handful of training modules cover the core of workplace health and safety: manual handling, first aid, working at height, and asbestos awareness. Of these, asbestos awareness stands out. An asbestos survey is the first thing to sort before any project begins, and the training remains relevant throughout. It's often the only certificate a Principal Contractor specifically asks for, beyond the H&S requirements covered by a skills card.
Unsurprisingly, plenty of organisations offer quick, cheap training. The certificates are often plain and unprofessional, a sign that little thought went into the course, and trainees are often left a bit deflated if they expected to fully understand a topic.
In a crowded market, courses carrying a RoSPA or CPD logo tend to be both better and cheaper, around £15 for a RoSPA asbestos awareness course versus £25 elsewhere. But a gap has opened up for awareness level courses that sit between toolbox talks and proper professional training, and that gap has been filled by a tier of off the shelf qualifications that are often little more than a PDF download.
It's a familiar pattern to ignore trends, just like web designers ignored mobile users until February 2023, when mobile phones became over 60% of all internet traffic. A whole industry sprang up to capture that market, likewise it is with off-the-peg certificates legitimised with SSIP and CPD logos, yet involve little more than clicking the download button. It has become a repeat revenue stream, while the current situation lasts.
Asbestos training by itself has no expiry date under HSE rules. It is the Asbestos ACOP that suggests knowledge should be refreshed periodically, which these training providers conveniently interpret to mean annual refresher courses.
The result as implied, are courses that can be completed within fifteen minutes, and the corresponding certificate downloaded instantly. some of these courses look as though they were written by those having no site experience in construction. It's not just happening in the UK; US popup organisations produce and certify First Aid training despite OSHA's position that online training alone doesn't meet their requirements.
One asbestos awareness course seen, was considerably poor, with typos, twenty slides of a presentation in all, each slide roughly being a quarter of a page. At the end there were five simple questions which was the pass test.
The point of asbestos awareness is for operatives to learn to recognise it and react appropriately. It is the first tier in building a genuinely safe working environment in construction, rooted in the risk philosophy of Eliminate and Reduce. Inadequate training does little to protect workers from asbestos related disease, and arguably takes more effort than it's worth. The benefit is solely for the course provider.
This is the gap MWF Training aims to bridge. Instead of seeking for evidence from dubious learning programmes, a dedicated in-house facility offers more in-depth material, up-to-date information and sets a higher pass mark of 80%. Operatives can of course present external certification if they have it, but we would prefer this be done in-house with much of the basic construction site awareness, because we know the level of study our courses have involved to attain a pass. The quality of training provided and the effort made by the student, determines the level of investment on both sides of the equation.
Enrolling for the asbestos awareness course
