LETTER OF THE WEEK
Page 15
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Support for withdrawal of trainer
AS A RESPONSIBLE provider of quality training to the logistics industry, and a company that is pushing to improve the standards throughout the sector as a whole, we back the Driving Standards Agency’s (DSA) moves to investigate and withdraw training approval from companies that don’t toe the line (CM 8 December).
There is a lot of negativity around Driver CPC at the moment and these sub-standard providers are helping to fuel it and make the situation even worse. The growing concern around organisations delivering low-quality training at suspiciously low prices, in this case £20 to include lunch, is real and we welcome moves to withdraw or suspend approval.
But the onus must also be on operators. Drivers and companies that sign up for these types of courses must surely be aware the quality is not up to scratch. We know everyone is trying to cut costs at the moment but in situations like this, the drivers are just throwing their money away.
It makes more sense to take advantage of high-quality training that actually helps to save money by improving eficiencies and fuel economy. Driver CPC needs to be viewed as an investment, it’s not just about doing the hours and ticking the box, it’s about how the training can work for you and help make improvements.
The truth of the matter is that, although recent reports suggest a lower than expected take-up of CPC training for a number of reasons, those companies that have embraced the initiative are actually beneiting from it. Members of our consortium are already seeing signiicant savings through reduced accident damage, better compliance and increased fuel economy.
Chris Bowden Sales and marketing director System Training