Fit for purpose – how a blended approach to training is helping the Metropolitan Police Federation

Introduction

The Metropolitan Police Federation is the staff association to which every constable, sergeant, inspector and chief inspector in the Metropolitan Police Service belongs – a total of more than 30,000 officers. Kersten Peters, training manager at the Metropolitan Police Federation, tells us how International Workplace helped tick all the boxes as a training supplier.

Health and safety training with an industry leading training provider

"The National Police Federation has used International Workplace’s services for some time now and recommendation is always the best set of circumstances. International Workplace are industry leaders, so it just made complete sense. Prior to COVID-19 hitting, I was looking for a face-to-face teaching capability. But this obviously had to change due to the pandemic. We started with the IOSH Working Safely package, which to date has gone out to 176 reps. We have more than 300 reps so that will be a continuous process, to train them all up. I am now looking at building on this basic training so the Reps can continue to learn and develop in this vitally important area."

Online training - a flexible way to train our reps

"eLearning has worked really well because it allows the reps to plug in when they want to, and then come back to it when they can. However, it's not a replacement. It's a blended approach now, and serves as an opportunity to open up more training opportunities to more Fed Reps who need more flexibility. Previously, if someone had childcare issues or needed to travel to a training site, that might take three or four hours. The online capability just makes life easier.

"The nice thing about doing training online is that it helps seal in the learning because you've got that breathing space to really understand what you're actually learning as opposed to doing it all in one really time-intensive block.

"When looking for a supplier I needed them to understand what the Metropolitan Police Federation wanted and more importantly, to deliver what is required. I needed a bespoke arrangement for our Reps because of the job they do. Dealing with International Workplace has been a pleasure. The service I have received has been first class. I would like to personally thank Dale Wardill and his team, and I look forward to continuing to use International Workplace for our Health and Safety Federation training in the future."