Health and safety schools - how to determine their quality

Health and safety schools these days, can be found in almost all major cities. Health and safety is gaining momentum and many aspiring health and safety consultants do understand the need for proper training. The question is; what training is required to obtain sufficient knowledge in the field of health and safety?

Health and safety schools are popping up virtually every day. One can almost claim that, with each major incident reported in the news, a new course or educational programme is introduced once a week. Having a choice is, often, good as long as one is assured that the quality is guaranteed. The latter seems to be more difficult as the governmental departments tasked with assessing these institutions, the Sector Education Training Authority (SETA), are struggling to cope with the volume of registrations of new institutions.

One can safely assume that, if a health and safety school is registered with the Health and Welfare SETA, the quality of their training is of good standards. The HW SETA mandate is to safeguard the quality of education. HW SETA is doing so by:

• Assessing the quality of the training material
• Assessing the quality and experience of the lecturers
• Assessing the set-up in which training is provided
• Assessing the administrative procedures and database maintenance of the institution that provides the training

Training never ends

Health and safety education is something that can never be considered as 'sufficient'. What can be the norm today, can be considered as being out-dated tomorrow. Occupational health and safety management requires that one acquaints oneself with new technologies and philosophies every day. The law has even made this compulsory for certain aspects of the health and safety training field, by validating courses or certificates for a period of one year maximum. Once this period has expired, training material has to be re-assessed again while learners have to come in to do additional training and to prove that they still have all the knowledge.

Good quality training institutions distinguish themselves by their flexibility and ability to meet requests made by learners. As life is getting increasingly hectic and expensive, it can no longer be expected that learners will have the funds and flexibility to travel far or attend classes regularly. To answer these challenges, some courses are now being offered online. Established training institutions can also provide training on-site. For many employers and employees this is a convenient way as it allows them to train within a comfortable and familiar environment without the stress of having to take leave or spending much time away from home.

Health and safety in the workplace starts with the quality of the education. If one wants to be sure that a health and safety audit will not highlight unwanted surprises, one should make sure that the correct educational institution is selected. The list of institutions accredited by the HW SETA will be a good list to start with.

Understanding the need for quality, all training and courses MAKROSAFE provides have been assessed and validated by HWSETA. Contact us today if you want to find out how we can assist you, or what we have to offer.