OurNews - Archive

Since joining CPL Natalie has played an important role within the company and was rewarded for her efforts by winning the Rising Star award at the annual CPL Training Awards.

It has been two years since Natalie Shearer moved to the north west in search of work, and what a two years it has been . Originally from Birmingham, Natalie moved to the Wirral with her Mum when she was 16. Finding a job hard to come by she met CPLs Contract Manager, Sue Mayers, who organised interviews at a number of Liverpool businesses.

After a couple of interviews Sue wondered why Natalie wasn't successful in getting the role and what some thought was a shyness, Sue knew was just nerves. Unable to believe that such a gifted young person was not getting the chance they deserved Sue decided to take Natalie on at CPL in the Work Based Learning division and encouraged her to take a Business & Admin Apprenticeship.

After completing her Level 2 Business & Administration, Customer Service and ITQ Apprenticeships, 2012 will see Natalie moving onto her Level 3 Business & Administration Advanced Apprenticeship. In just two years Natalie has gained several qualifications, an exciting career and recently a Rising Star award.

Every year at CPL Training's Christmas ball awards, across several categories, are handed out. 2011 saw Natalie receive the Rising Star Award for her commitment to learning, her unyielding enthusiasm and the fantastic career she has in front of her.

Natalie's story is a great support for young people nationwide, showing them what they can achieve if they really want it!

Discover the Apprenticeships available to you by visiting our Apprenticeships page or speak to one of our friendly advisors on 0151 690 6916.

Monday sees the start of Apprenticeship Week across England and Wales. Each year the Apprenticeships website aims to raise the profile of Apprenticeships to employers, teachers, pupils, parents, individuals and the media through specially hosted events.

The events this year include Apprentices visiting schools to talk about their experience, presentations to show employers the potential that apprentices bring to their business and much, much more.

Individuals and businesses can get involved themselves through initiatives like shadowing; the boss shadows the apprentice for the day!

At CPL we are passionate about finding people the right Apprenticeship for them. Our experienced assessors help learners every step of the way ensuring they are prepared for work and have the skills and qualification to hit the ground running.

Over the last few years we have developed our own Apprenticeship programme and have been able to take on several apprentices, two of which are still with us and are considering their Advanced Apprenticeships in Business and Admin and Customer Service.

Natalie Shearer and Lee Hyatt have been with us since 2010 and since then have completed five Apprenticeships between them. They have been offered permanent contracts with CPL as they have shown great potential and a passion for the work they do.

During the next week we will be displaying our own stories on Natalie and Lee’s Apprenticeship journey, but until then you can read more about them on the Apprenticeships website.

Please feel free to comment via Twitter and if you're interested in either starting your own Apprenticeship programme or an Apprenticeship itself then contact one of our friendly advisors on 0151 650 6916.

Alternatively visit our Apprenticeships page

www.apprenticeships.org.uk

Staying in has become the new going out and as a result on-trade operators need to come up with new ways of adding value to the customer's experience.

Luckily you don't have to think too hard as we have come up with an interesting solution. We are now offering a one-day Foundation Certificate in Wine, courtesy of the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET). Not only will you have the opportunity to learn about the main styles of wine, which goes far beyond white, red and rosé, but you'll develop an understanding of how to match wine to food, how to serve it, the characteristics of grape varieties and, of course, you'll get to participate in some very important wine tasting!

Throughout 2012 we have open, scheduled courses available at 15 locations nationwide. Can you imagine the difference these skills could make to the customer experience in your venue?

You and your employees will be able to offer sound advice to your customers regarding what wine will complement their food and persuade customers to trade up to a new wine by describing it in depth and enthusiastically.

Enhance your bottom line for a mouth watering £140 + VAT by investing in your wine training today!

http://www.cpltraining.co.uk/training/wset/wset.aspx

Courses are available in the following locations:

Figures released by Ofqual, the qualifications regulator, for the third quarter of 2011, show that CPL Training now trains 1 in 4 of those who take the personal licence training course – the APLH. This qualification is a legal requirement for anyone applying for a personal licence to authorise alcohol sales from licensed premises.

Paul Chase, CPL's Director & Head of UK Compliance, commented: "This is our highest ever market share for this all-important licensing qualification. Gaining a 25% share represents a growth in like-for-like sales of 31% as compared with the same quarter in 2010."

This increase in market share reflects CPL's growing presence in the licensed hospitality sector. Paul Chase commented: "CPL's growth reflects the quality of our offering and is a tribute to the hard work of all our staff."

Most of you will have already seen, and probably laughed at, the British Heart Foundation's latest ad campaign concerning CPR. Not at the subject of CPR of course, but at their unusual, but brilliant, injection of humour, which comes in the hard man form of Vinnie Jones.

Known for his tough guy behaviour on the pitch and more recently in his big screen roles, Jones brings the attitude reminiscent of his characters in Guy Ritchie's Snatch and Lock Stock, to demonstrate the 'hard and fast' approach to hands only CPR. This approach, as it suggests, only involves chest compressions and ignores "kissing" as this method is more effective.

However, the most important thing to take from the advert is the rhythm you need to keep to deliver 100-120 chest compressions per minute, which is easily remembered by singing the popular Bee Gees tune, aptly named "Staying Alive", which plays in the background.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) became increasingly concerned by the growing number of people who admitted they would not help someone if they collapsed because of a lack of understanding and fear of causing further injury. Although first aid courses must be taken by those wishing to take on the role of First Aider or Appointed Person in their workplace, many people, who do not wish to take on such roles, will not think of taking a first aid course.

It is for this reason that the BHF have created the adverts – to help give the public confidence to provide CPR, which is vital when waiting for emergency services. Although, if you really want to gain the skills to potentially save a life a First Aid course is the best way forward.

So, maybe it's time we get our trainers to practice what they preach and sing out loud the famous Bee Gees song the next time they are teaching CPR!

We have nationwide First Aid and Emergency First Aid in the Workplace scheduled courses running throughout 2012. Book onto a course near you today and gain the skills and confidence which could help you save someone's life.

Paul Charity, former Group Editor of The Publican's Morning Advertiser, has established his own PR agency, Propel, and we are proud to be one of his clients.

We have built up a strong relationship with Paul over the years and are excited by his new venture. Paul will now be the CPL Group's Public Relations Advisor and will be helping us to raise even more awareness of our organisation, focussing on new industries including the casual dining arena.

With Paul's experience and expertise in media publications he will help us create external newsletters, strengthen our national PR and expand into new industries.

You will also now be able to read Paul's opinions on news affecting the licensed retail sector on his CPL blog.

To read his first blog 'Change needed if Mitchells & Butlers to be great' visit

http://www.cpltraining.co.uk/paulcharity/post/CPL-Training's-public-relations-advisor-Paul-Charity-former-editor-of-the-Publican's-Morning-Advertiser-takes-a-look-at-how-managed-company-Mitchells-Butlers-is-faring-under-new-executive-chairman-Bob-Ivell.aspx

CPL Training has backed a winning team in their latest sponsorship.

The Milton Keynes District Development League kicked off over two months ago and so far the Harrold & Carlton Eagles U7 team remain unbeaten.

With a winning mentality, ambition and team spirit the boys have taken on some of the best in the league and have run rings around the competition. Their last match saw them beat their opponents in an impressive 5-0 whitewash!

As well as their outstanding track record two team mates have also been selected to attend the Leicester City Football Club feeder academy.

The Harrold & Carlton Eagles U7s are definitely made of the right stuff and we’ll no doubt be hearing of their successes in the near future.

Until then we wish them the best of luck!

Anyone remember this debate between our own Paul Chase, Director and Head of UK Compliance, and Keith Vaz MP, Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9otA1bAKKqA

Yes/No? Well, four years on we thought it would be a good idea to see what, if anything, has changed in almost half a decade.

The debate between Paul and Keith was sparked by the tragic killing of Gary Newlove from Warrington, who was kicked to death by a gang of drunken youths after remonstrating with them for creating a nuisance outside his home. Inevitably the then Chief Constable of Cheshire, Peter Fahy, blamed bad parents and cheap booze for youth disorder. Exploiting a tragedy that is an untypical outcome of alcohol use, and holding it up as if it was entirely typical, is of course a well-used tactic of those who seek to emotionalise a debate or jump on a bandwagon.

It has to be said that the spectacular return of alcohol as a social problem is now a matter of record. The Licensing Act 2003, which came into force at the end of 2005, was meant to liberalise the regime that controlled the sale of alcohol. Since then legislative repentance has kicked-in with a vengeance! There have been no less than four major reforms to the 2003 Act that have dealt with persistent selling to children, creating alcohol disorder zones (never used), drinking banning orders, summary review of premises licences, increasing police powers to confiscate alcohol, making objecting to licence applications easier, banning irresponsible alcohol promotions – the list is detailed and almost endless!

And yet the perception that is peddled to the public by tabloid television and the press is still one of 'binge Britain' or 'booze Britain' resulting from "24-hour drinking." Let's just get the facts straight:

Here are five of the more common myths:

Myth: Alcohol is cheaper than ever before.

Fact: Despite examples of cheap alcohol in supermarkets, the price of alcohol overall has increased by 20% since 1980 in real terms, when measured against the Retail Price Index. But average earnings have doubled since 1980, so alcohol is now more affordable, not cheaper.

Myth: Medical campaigners claim that in the five years to 2008/09 there has been a 65% increase in the number of people being admitted to hospital for 'alcohol-related reasons'. They also claim that there were 825 more alcohol-related admissions a day than five years ago.

Fact: Nobody knows how many hospital admissions are actually alcohol-related! No one actually records alcohol-related hospital admissions, the figures are all estimated by using a modelling technique developed by the World Health Organisation in 2003. This technique produces an estimate, known as the 'Alcohol Attributable Fraction', of the proportion of hospital admissions attributable to alcohol.

Myth: Britain has one of the worst rates of liver disease in the world.

Fact: We're not even one of the worst in Europe. England is below the European average and sixteen out of twenty seven countries have worse rates of liver disease than us.

Myth: Underage and teenage drinking is getting worse.

Fact: The proportion of 11-15 year olds who have never drank alcohol has increased in recent years from 39% in 2003 to 48% now. (Source: Statistics on Alcohol England 2010, NHS).

Myth: We're drinking more and more each year!

Fact: We've been drinking less and less each year since 2004 and our alcohol consumption is falling at the fastest rate for more than 60 years. Alcohol consumption has fallen by 9% in the past six years.

CPL Chief Executive and dedicated ALMR Council member, Daniel Davies, has teamed up with the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers to promote their membership.

Davies can see the impact the ALMR has made to operators over the years and understands the importance of supporting an organisation that can provide a united front when dealing with crucial issues affecting the industry.

The teaming up of the two organisations is a way to raise awareness of the ALMR and the support it can provide operators with. CPL Training is therefore matching the first year's cost of ALMR membership with FREE training.

Conducted through face-to-face training, e-learning or both, CPL is happy to assess the individual needs of every new member to ensure they get the most from their training.

Since the announcement of CPL's offer ALMR have received four new northwest members; Baa Bar, Central Bars, Ice Bar and Pax Leisure with many more to come.

CPL Training is delighted with the results so far and Daniel Davies hopes many more operators will realise the potential and benefits of joining forces with the ALMR:

"The ALMR is committed to licensed multiple retailers and will support operators through issues surrounding their business as well as those concerning the entire industry. They are a great organisation to have supporting you and we hope to see their profile and awareness of what they do raised significantly by this offer."

For more information about joining the ALMR and receiving free training please visit http://www.almr.org.uk

Complete with avatar ‘character’ for guided learning, 3D animations, graphics, voice-overs and Microsoft Silverlight our Bribery Act Awareness course is interactive, easy to use and the quickest way to ensure staff are aware of the law under the new Act.

Working closely with awarding bodies we have developed this latest addition to our online portfolio as it became clear to us that many businesses are still not aware of the new Act despite its introduction in July.

The Bribery Act Awareness course is in place to prepare and protect businesses from bribery. It contains the facts and information learners need to recognise and prevent potential bribes from taking place, with minimal downtime needed for training.

Protect your business from bribery by implementing an anti-bribery policy and risk assessment.

Visit http://www.cple-learning.co.uk/courses/briberyawareness.aspx

With our latest e-learning course you will do!

CPL Training and CPL Online have worked together with industry experts to produce an online Bribery Act Awareness course to help organisations protect themselves against falling foul of the law quickly.

The Bribery Act 2010 (BA2010) came into effect on 1st July 2011 and introduced four new offences relating to receiving and paying bribes, the bribing of a foreign public official and the failure of a commercial organisation to prevent bribery.

Bribery has always been illegal, but the line between hospitality and bribery has just got that bit finer. Although hospitality and promotional expenditure is still perfectly legal, businesses must ensure any expenditure of this kind is reasonable and proportional to avoid committing any offence under the new Act.

Although the Act was introduced in July many businesses are still either unaware of the Bill, not taking much notice of it and some even think it does not apply to them.

The policies and procedures covered in the e-learning course are part of effective anti-bribery training. It outlines anti-bribery policy and risk assessment; how to create and implement them to show your business' due diligence.

To protect you business against bribery visit:

http://www.cple-learning.co.uk/courses/briberyawareness.aspx

We recently joined Everton FC and Hilton Hotels in sponsoring Liverpool boxer, and British Light Heavyweight Champion, Tony Bellew in his attempt to wrest the WBO World Light Heavyweight title from holder Nathan Cleverley, who hails from South Wales.

Taking place in Liverpool’s Echo Arena, before a packed crowd of some 10,000 boisterous fans, the fight was a real pot boiler from the beginning because there was some needle between the two contestants. But as the fight went on a genuine respect grew up between the two men, as often happens when the pre-fight hype ends and the action begins!

Watching the fight was our very own Daniel Davies, who believes Tony has a champion attitude and was proud to sponsor him. Tony had this to say:

“I’d like to personally thank CPL Training for the generous support of their sponsorship, which is invaluable to me as a professional athlete. I’m delighted and privileged to have such a well-respected corporate brand sponsor me and get behind me for the biggest fight of my career to date, the WBO World Light-Heavyweight title fight. I’m proud to be associated with CPL Training and cannot thank them enough for their backing and for believing in me.”

Although Tony lost on points, it was a close fight in which both men distinguished themselves with a display of skill and courage. Hopefully a rematch will be on the cards sooner rather than later!

Image courtesy of Stephen Speed

150 cleaning staff at Halton Borough Council have completed their Cleaning &Support Services Apprenticeship Level 2 with us.

Cleaning staff took part in the 9 month long work based learning programme and all passed in June this year. As a result of their hard work and commitment to their training, Halton Borough Council in association with ourselves are hosting an Awards Ceremony on Tuesday 30th August.

The event will be attended by council members themselves, CPL Training, the learners, of course, and representatives from EDI (Education Development International) who are the awarding body who approved the Apprenticeship.

With their new qualification staff have helped to boost their careers as well as benefiting Halton Borough Council themselves. Not only are Apprenticeships a great way to gain a qualification whilst working and earning, but they help to increase confidence by reaffirming knowledge as well as up skilling learners.

As for the council themselves, they will benefit from a more motivated and up skilled workforce and didn’t suffer any disruptions whilst staff were completing their training.

CPLe-learning, the online arm of national training specialist, CPL Training, has expanded its programme portfolio with the launch of a series of new courses.

The company’s move to offer more opportunities to learn on line comes in response to increasing customer demand. By almost doubling the number of courses available, CPLe-learning is able to offer both new and existing customers’ choice in terms of the way they want to deliver training.

Available now online are Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) and Customer Service Skills. During the next month, the company is also set to launch Time Management, Cellar Management, Appraisal Skills, Conflict Management and HACCP.

David Dasher, Head of CPLe-learning said: “At CPL, our aim is to deliver the most effective method of training and for some customers that may be online whilst for others it’s face-to-face. We want ultimately to be able to mirror all face-to-face training programmes and offer an online version, allowing customers to make a considered choice.

“At the moment, we are focusing our training efforts on the hospitality industry. However, we are looking to expand our online learning programmes across a number of other sectors including care and retail. Already we are being seen to lead the way nationally, in terms of our online approach, and the interaction, graphics and animation used are fairly unique to us.”

He concluded: “Other exciting developments are currently in the pipeline and we look forward to making further announcements in the coming months.”

The e-learning arm of CPL Training has announced plans to launch a new Academy this Summer, providing young people in the creative and digital sectors with experience, training and employment opportunities.

Launched just over a year ago, CPLe-learning employs a range of creative specialists including computer programmers, designers and animators, most of whom are under the age of 25, several are graduates whilst others have little experience but bags of skills.

A high demand for the e-learning product and services has allowed the team to grow quickly and the business has already identified the need to double its e-learning workforce in the next 12 months.

David Dasher, Group IT Director and head of CPLe-learning said: “We’ve had quite a recruitment drive over the past year and we have been fortunate enough to have met and taken on some exceptionally talented individuals. Journeying through this process, we wanted to be able to offer more to those we couldn’t take on, and now, as the business continues to grow, we are fortunate to have more resources in place to support some of these youngsters.”

Work is now underway to launch the academy at CPL’s Wirral-based headquarters and additional space in the existing office has been secured to facilitate the launch.

David added: “We aim to work closely with local colleges and schools to help us realise student’s needs and look at how we can best help them. Some of the experience we offer can hopefully form part of coursework whilst also giving them a taste of being involved in a real working project.

“We recognise the challenges that many young people leaving education can face and we hope that by launching the academy we can support them by improving their skills and giving them that vital hands on experience that ultimately enhances their employability.“

It was a case of “You’ve really got a hold of me” for trainees at the Hard Day’s Night Hotel recently as they practised their resuscitation technique during their three-day First Aid course with CPL Training recently.

Day one saw the group of ten in training from all hotel disciplines – from house-keeping to events and food and beverage - learning how to deal effectively with unconsciousness, airway and breathing problems and circulation problems using First Aid dummies.

Later, the group learned how to deal with a variety of medical emergencies from burns and scalds through to injuries of bones and muscles and other serious conditions. The main aim for the group, however, was to understand First Aid priorities and health and safety issues.

The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 require employers to provide adequate and appropriate equipment, facilities and personnel to enable first aid to be given to employees if they are injured or become ill at work. These Regulations apply to all workplaces including those with five or fewer employees and to the self-employed.

The trainer for CPL Training, Dave Thomas, commented: “This qualification is suitable for anyone responsible for assessing and dealing with accidents or emergencies within the workplace, but it also equips you with invaluable training for you or any member of your family in the event of an emergency.”

CPL Training offers this face-to-face training course over three days; a one-day Emergency First Aid course and a one-day refresher course.

Night Manager, Leon Kuru and Marta Bielska from housekeeping are demonstrating the art of mouth to mouth resuscitation whilst the rest of the group looks on.

The e-learning arm of online training specialist CPL Training is celebrating growth in new sectors following a series of national contract wins.

The rapidly expanding Wirral-based business will be working closely with one of the UK’s largest private mail distribution firms, Secured Mail, food retail entrepreneurs, Musgrave Retail Partners and restaurant and bar group, Living Ventures. CPLe-learning will be developing a bespoke online training platform for each organisation in areas such as health and safety, drugs awareness, first aid, food safety and manual handling.

CPL’s project managers will work closely with its new customers to develop a training solution appropriate to each business and the sector in which they operate. The use of animation, graphics, illustration and games, steers delegates away from the monotony of many online training programmes and encourages interaction, stimulation and engagement.

The e-learning team are also tasked with providing varying levels of information regarding all round performance. The software delivers a vast range of information from what stage each delegate is at in terms of their own training programme to time spent on specific questions. This can then be measured across the board and trends established, helping identify areas where additional training and support is needed.

A move into both retail and distribution marks a continued growth for the wider company. Today CPL Training is becoming increasingly well recognised as a provider of both face to face training and e-learning to none sector specific businesses and organisations.

Dave Dasher, head of CPLe-learning said: “Our ability to offer a training programme that fits our client’s exact needs is taking us way beyond our traditional sector focus. Those who recognise the benefits of online training have been impressed by the level of interaction, animation and usability of our programmes. As with all new and existing e-learning customers, we are able to introduce features, characters and objects familiar to the delegates, which again enhances the experience and impacts on the final result.

“We’re thrilled to be working with our new customers and look forward to delivering a training platform for each that we can continue to build on in the future.”

David Dasher, Group IT Director (left) and Daniel Davies, CPL Training Chief Executive (right)

“In today’s busy business world, pubs need to train their staff fast, and online learning offers them an effective and flexible way to do it.”

This is the message David Dasher sent out to pubs during the Publican Awards last week. In his presentation David highlighted the benefits of using online learning to train staff as well as how CPLe-learning differs from its competitors.

With customised packages, we can offer customers a host of business-focussed benefits including the Results and Stats tool, which shows the statistics on staff performance, where they’re up to on a course as well as a message update to remind them and employers to complete a section of the course.

The accessibility of our online platform enables fast, flexible learning solutions so staff can complete their courses on their breaks or between split shifts. It’s a revolutionary training platform that over the past year, has made huge reductions in training costs, with course prices averaging £30, and delivered an accommodating alternative to traditional face-to-face training methods.

JW Lees is a prime example of reaping the benefits of online learning. Since setting up their e-learning platform a year ago over 1,700 courses have been completed, 500 in the first two months! Staff have completed various modules from health and safety to manual handling.

We designed games, puzzles and more to ensure staff members were involved throughout their learning to help them retain information as this form of training requires a lot of personal responsibility from classroom based learning.

So, after a valuable lesson in embracing technology to secure a brighter business future, David certainly left them with something to think about.

To see a list of all our e-learning courses, including our latest additions; Money Laundering, Disability Awareness and Equality & Diversity, please visit www.cple-learning.co.uk

Pleisure adopting a ‘wait and see’ attitude on Deloitte’s plan to re-introduce variety in drink lists.

After Retail & Licensed Properties (R & LP) went into administration earlier this year, the future for tenants of the company seemed daunting. However, Deloitte, the administrator for R & LP, soon came to the rescue of said tenants by agreeing a new supply deal to expand the drinks list the tenanted pubs could offer.

Or so it would seem...

Licensees have criticised the variety, or lack of, brands on offer, of which there has been a steady decline over recent years. So, the introduction of new brands that could become readily available in the coming months should have licensees in a state of excitement.

Not quite. Nick Griffin, MD of Pleisure Pub Company and a committed client of our e-learning platform is adopting a ‘wait and see’ attitude and his reservations are not unwarranted. One of Nick’s pubs, the Charles Dickens in Worthing, has noticed the damaging effects of a limited drinks list, specifically its cask ale offerings, to his business.

Over the years the Charles Dickens has become renowned for its interesting assortment of cask ale on offer. This sadly dwindled under the previous drinks list and Nick is unsure as to how the new list will affect his pub.

Unfortunately only time will tell, but hopefully with an expansive drinks list back on the cards the custom and reputation will improve and the drinks (a variety of them) will flow!

Marston’s picked up the award for Tenanted & Leased Pub Company of the Year last night at The Publican Awards and CPL’s Daniel Davies was there to present them with their award.

The venue was grandeur in itself, the guests from near and far and the wine free-flowing. Over 1,000 guests from across the licensed hospitality sector attended The Publican Awards last night, which was hosted by comedian Dara O’Briain.

CPL were once again proud sponsors of an award, Tenanted & Leased Pub Company of the Year, and our own Daniel Davies attended the event to present it to a worthy winner. They had some tough competition from Charles Wells, who had won the award for the last two years, but Marston’s progress in a considerably difficult market saw them beat off their competition.

The pub company was awarded for their revolutionary take on the tenant-licensee relationship, ensuring they appoint the right people to run and work in their pubs, as well as their flexible attitude towards training, which is all conducted on the premises.

Congratulations to all the winners on the night and to everyone who was nominated. It was a truly enjoyable evening with the celebrations continuing in style, long into the night.

We have added some new online qualifications to include courses in Equality & Diversity and Disability Awareness. Both courses are just a fraction of the cost of face-to-face training at just £30 each.

The Equality and Diversity course is a response to the introduction of the Equalities Act 2010 which came into force last October. The Act changed all previous legislation on discrimination and applies to all places of work, to employees, and to customers. Its aim is to prevent discrimination under the following grounds: Disability, gender, pregnancy and maternity, race (including ethnic or national origins, colour or nationality), religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and age.

The Disability Awareness E-Learning course tackles a similar issue in raising awareness about disability discrimination and its requirements for places of work, employees and customers.

Paul Chase, Head of UK Compliance for CPL Training commented: “We regard both areas as legal compliance courses – like health and safety, fire safety and manual handling. It’s not a legal obligation that employees or employers sit the course, but compliance with the Act is still a legal requirement. At the very least these courses will help to protect the employer from prosecution.”

CPL’s E-Learning platform already offers a range of safety and licensed retail courses to the hospitality sector through its interactive online experience which features animated avatars and on screen tasks. Courses include food safety level 2, health and safety level 2, manual handling, fire marshalling and the Scottish Award for Licensed Premises Staff to an online audience for a much reduced rate of between £25- £35 per course.

Our E-Learning is intended to complement the core face-to-face training business, but aims to improve accessibility, flexibility and cost effectiveness for the licensed retail workforce. The courses are ideal for new staff or smaller independents who cannot always afford to send staff on face-to-face courses.

For more information about taking any of the online courses, please go to: www.cple-learning.co.uk or call 0151 650 6910.

We’ve been growing our own here at CPL Training. Our own pair of apprentices that is!

Following a relocation to Liverpool last spring, Natalie Shearer and her boyfriend Lee Hyatt registered with the local Connexions programme to develop their skills and help search for a job. They both struck lucky in an interview with CPL Work Based Learning Manager, Sue Mayers, who took them both on in April 2010 as apprentices for CPL Training.

Natalie joined the Work Based Learning team while Lee joined the recruitment team and both enrolled in the Business Administration apprenticeship. Natalie Mosses was their assessor and said: “Both Natalie and Lee required additional support to help them achieve their key skills and boost their confidence in the working environment. Both have overcome significant challenges during the year but are now confident, hard-working and resourceful members of the CPL team. They are both real assets to us.”

For more information about our Work Based Learning programmes please email apprenticeships@cpltraining.co.uk.

Essex pub, the Thatchers Arms, to install cinema after winning Pilsner Urquell’s “smartest pub” competition.

We are proud to announce that one of our Food Safety e-learning clients, who all passed their course with flying colours, has won Pilsner’s “cleverest pub” competition, a prize of £10,000. Mitch Adams of the Thatchers Arms, Mount Bures, Essex has decided to thank his pub full of Mensa-class customers by installing a pop-up cinema, theatre and bar in the pub.

The competition started by customers, in their locals, filling out Mensa quiz cards to determine who the top 10 smartest pubs were. After being shortlisted, Mitch was flown to Prague with other finalists where he had to pitch his business plan of how he’d improve the pub to three officials including Caroline Nodder, Editor of The Publican.

However, the trip wasn’t all nerve-wracking, business pitches. Mitch and the others enjoyed a tour of the Pilsner brewery, free drinks (Pilsner of course) and fine dining.

Pilsner loved Mitch’s idea of a pop-up cinema, theatre and bar with a hint of the Czech Republic through its cabaret style including table seating, in-cinema bar, no-noise rustling food so customers can really enjoy the relaxed atmosphere.

Everything is underway at the Thatchers Arms, with the launch party scheduled for June, so watch this space!

So hopefully our training will come in handy for Mitch’s quiet menu, complementary to Pilsner Urquell.

To get to grips with food safety and discover our range of high-quality, online courses please visit www.cple-learning.co.uk

Read about the experience from Mitch himself at ThatchersBeerBlog.

The e-learning arm of national training specialist CPL Training has taken on four new creative recruits to facilitate a growing demand for the company’s on-line services.

Launched less than a year ago, the Wirral-based firm now has a team of 15 permanent IT, programming and creative specialists who together deliver bespoke on-line training packages for cross sector businesses throughout the UK.

The new recruits include two graphic designers, one animator, and a narrator to focus on developing courses and branding the company. The e-learning concept has grown rapidly for CPL Training and is already a mainstay of the wider business operation. CPL’s e-learning is at the forefront of interactive online training, utilising 3D animation and graphics to create an engaging new way to learn on-line.

The e-learning team continues to work closely with CPL’s corporate division and together are now able to offer a mix of face-to-face and online training packages developed to suit the needs of each client. With growing recognition across the UK and an increasing demand for on-line training, the company continues to source and recruit talented individuals to join the team.

Dave Dasher, Head of CPL’s e-learning said: “It’s great to see our young team growing and evolving. Our designers, animators and programmers are an exciting and creative bunch who are constantly bringing new ideas and innovations to the table. By using the latest technology and software packages, we are already leagues ahead of other businesses operating in this arena and are quickly gaining a reputation as leaders in our field.”

The latest edition to CPL’s ever-growing workforce is Database Marketing specialist Louise Sui.

Louise joins CPL Training at an exciting time and has equally exciting and innovative ideas to drive the company forward into new markets. Louise’s career began in Sales and Marketing publishing property newspapers across the UK and then evolved into Database Marketing when she began working for Direct Marketing Support, using data to grow customers’ databases and prospects.

Louise’s background is heavily involved in the Industrial sector and she hopes to introduce CPL Training to this new market prospect, especially with regards to their e-learning platform. Louise will be concentrating on growing CPL’s training base and raising their profile across sectors.

Louise knows where she wants to take CPL Training and with her motivation and drive there’s nothing holding her back.

CPL welcomes hotel and HR expert, Christine Henney, in a new position as Director of HR and Hospitality Programme Development.

Christine joins CPL Training with over 20 years experience in HR and training roles for a number of hotel groups. She has moved from the Mint Hotel group, formerly City Inn Hotels where she was responsible for the Manchester and Leeds hotels.

Prior to that she worked for over eleven years for the Rocco Forte Collection hotels, opening The Lowry Hotel in Manchester, and has more recently worked overseas at the Six Senses Hotel and Spa Resorts in the Maldives, Oman and Jordan.

Christine will oversee the HR function for CPL Training’s 70 employees and will also develop hospitality training programmes and consultancy for existing clients.

Daniel Davies, Chief Executive of CPL Training commented: “Christine brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from the hotel sector which will complement and enhance our existing product portfolio. She will be developing full hospitality training solutions to help meet the challenges inherent in this sector.”

A Cardiff bar has recently topped 150 compliance courses completed and passed in 2010 with CPL’s E-Learning platform.

With 75 members of part-time and full-time staff in a busy Cardiff city centre bar, time is of the essence – especially when it comes to getting people up to speed on compliance training – and Deputy Manager at the Revolution Vodka Bar, Rob Marshall has been responsible for essential training in health and safety, food hygiene and fire safety in the 1200 capacity venue. Added to this the Cardiff site has to gear up with extra staff during every rugby international in the calendar as well as the influx of students and tourists at other peak times for the city.

Getting all staff through the training and tracking their progress was no mean feat until parent company, Inventive Leisure, began work with CPL Training. Developing a series of interactive, online training courses, the CPL E-Learning platform also integrates seamlessly into the Inventive Leisure intranet and its back office payroll function. As a result, new employees are immediately flagged for the requisite suite of compliance courses.

Within a day of joining the payroll, each employee receives a unique login access code to go away and complete the relevant courses for their role. Unique monitoring systems mean that it is very difficult to cheat and courses are all live on the web so there is no downloading required. Inventive Leisure have adapted and simplified the health and safety and food safety courses for front of house staff as well as continuing to run the more detailed level 1 courses for salaried and kitchen staff.

Rob admits that the previous face to face system had its flaws. He commented: “With the best will in the world, when new staff join it can be easy to rush through training or put it off until a quieter time. With this system, new starters can easily go home and run through these courses in their own time – there is nowhere to hide from our compulsory training! A lot of it is common sense but at least we know that everyone has had the same level of training within a very short time of joining us. We do still cover training face to face but now it reinforces what they have already done on the E-Learning course.”

Scottish whisky business, Whyte and Mackay are keeping their staff up to date with new licensing law requirements in Scotland. They have purchased CPL Training’s SALPS courses to train their frontline sales promotion teams ensuring that everyone adheres to the key licensing objectives.

The Scottish Award for Licensed Premises Staff (SALPS) fulfils the legislative requirements for all staff selling or serving alcohol in Scotland. The course covers sixteen topics in order to meet the statutory requirements using an easy-to-follow interactive workbook. It is available from CPL Training for around £35 for a 2 hour course or just £10 for the workbook. Full details are available here.

Leisure centres all over the country are switching to the CPL Food Safety Level 2 course online in a bid to keep up with food safety compliance. The E-learning version of the course means that leisure centre staff can achieve the required qualifications at a time to suit them, without travelling to a face to face course. The cost of the course is much cheaper too at just £35 plus vat.

To date over 100 DC Leisure employees have received the unique login codes to access the courses.

DC Leisure (DCL) specialises in the development and management of leisure facilities in partnership with local authorities throughout the UK. Their aim is to better serve their local community and achieve both economic and social objectives. The E-learning option means that they can now gear up in food safety training more quickly and efficiently.

Liverpool City Council has given the go ahead to their Apprentice Business Grant Initiative, which is dedicating £300,000 to local apprenticeships.

The initiative has been created to support employers and small businesses in the taking on of apprentices. It hopes to create 100 places for apprentices, in varying sectors, helping Liverpool’s economy to thrive.

Although the initiative focuses on taking on new apprentices it also supports any existing staff with free training.

At CPL Training we understand the value that apprentices have on a business and are dedicated in providing our full support to employers who are interested in taking on an apprentice, but are unsure about what’s involved.

The benefits of taking on an apprentice are vast and include:

• Increased Productivity
• Increased staff retention
• Decreased sickness levels

Apprenticeships will start on 7th March 2011. However, the deadline for employers to complete an online application is 3rd December. This will be followed by a thorough selection process. Once successful though, employers will be able to draw up to £3,000 per apprentice!

There are some conditions set in place to ensure grants focus on Liverpool apprentices only. For more information on the initiative and to check your eligibility visit www.liverpool.gv.uk/liverpoolapprentice

Our Apprenticeship team are committed to this new initiative and are able to help guide employers through the application process. If you have any queries please contact us on 0151 647 1057 or email us at apprenticeships@cpltraining.co.uk

Ten shift workers at a packaging factory in Ellesmere Port have gained management qualifications following a six-month NVQ training programme.

Each of the ten employees at Saica Pack has gained National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) in Team Leadership (level 2) or Management (level 3) with training provider, CPL Training. The training and assessments have taken place over a six-month period resulting in the final NVQ award and it has been entirely funded through the Government’s Train to Gain initiative.

Saica Pack is a leading supplier of corrugated packaging in Europe, making boxes for all the major high street retailers. The factory in Ellesmere Port is large and noisy with 130 round-the-clock shift workers, many of whom have worked at the plant for 30 to 40 years.

All work towards the NVQ is in the workplace, on the job and evaluation is assessor-driven. Each candidate is observed running through specified tasks from their chosen units at the right level. This meant that CPL assessor, Amanda Weir, had to don safety clothing, hard hat and ear plugs on many occasions to observe and work with individuals.

Dale Williams, Conversion Manager at the Saica plant said: “I have worked here for 21 years and have worked my way up to managing over 80 employees. I’ve have never had any formal management training so I took the NVQ level 3 in Management and it’s been a huge boost to my confidence and motivation. The NVQ validates everything I have learned over the years. It reinforces the knowledge and skills that I have and has filled in any gaps. I didn’t realise how important my job was to the overall business until I completed my NVQ.” Dale is about to embark upon the NVQ in Management (level 5) funded, this time, by Saica Pack.

Plant Manager, Paul George commented: “I was very impressed by Amanda Weir, our assessor from CPL Training. It would have been easy to put off the assessments due to work load but Amanda has been dogged in her determination to push the team forward and get the job done. This achievement has been all the greater since they completed their qualifications whilst continuing to work during a very busy period for us. During this period, our output increased by 35% but the guys still completed their training. They are definitely more motivated as our results show.”

Anyone who is interested in knowing more about National Vocational Qualifications can contact CPL Training on 0151 647 1057. All qualifications are subject to finding suitable funding.

Daniel Davies, Chief Executive of CPL Training won the title of Liverpool Young Director of the Year at the seventh annual Institute of Directors Director of the Year Awards.

350 company directors and guests from the North West Region celebrated their success last night at the Hilton Hotel in Manchester hosted by TV’s Nicholas Owen. The judges described Daniel as the strongest candidate in a healthy shortlist and that his personal impact on the company really shone through.

This is the third award in 2010 for the CPL trophy cabinet and Daniel commented: “I’m incredibly proud to be recognised by the Institute of Directors in this way but it’s down to the hard work from the whole team at CPL Training. 2010 has been an amazing year for us.”

The runners up for the award were Rob Maxwell from Aztec and Phil Hodgkinson from Compass Cost Consultants.

A JW Lees pub in Northwich, The Kingfisher, has completed 70 courses in the first two months since they were introduced to the business by HR Manager for JW Lees, Vicki Jackson.

The Kingfisher employs 27 people on a part-time and full-time basis and all staff are required to complete courses covering compliance training from CPL E-Learning in areas such as health & safety and manual handling. Pub manager, Carolyn Brown has encouraged her team to log on to the CPL E-learning site in their quieter times or in between split shifts to complete the courses on the pub’s laptop.

She commented: “It has been easy to encourage everyone to complete courses. They are well designed, using avatars, 3D graphics and interactive tasks to guide you through the topics. They have made an impact too on our working practices. They have been great refresher courses for me but they have also been real eye-openers for the team and we have all been cleaner and safer as a result.

Staff at the pub were even able to put their new skills to the test recently. Carolyn explained: “At a recent beach party barbecue, the barbecue caught fire and the team on duty reacted calmly and efficiently, choosing the correct extinguisher and putting out the fire. They had a round of applause from our customers!”

The real commercial advantage comes when this basic training is complete and Carolyn can really spend time on developing the customer service aspects of the roles. She concluded: “It will definitely free up more of my time and I’d love to see more courses coming on stream as we go forward.”

Bar supervisor, Ben Jackson has completed all seven courses. He reckons that he’s much more aware of hygiene practices now when walking into the kitchen and enjoyed the fact that he hasn’t had to trek to head office for a half-day course. He added: “I’ve done my courses on the pub laptop in between split shifts. They were straightforward to do and really helpful.”

For more information about taking any of the online courses or bespoke solutions please go to: www.cple-learning.co.uk or call 0151 650 6910.

CPL E-Learning brings food safety level 2, health and safety level 2, manual handling, fire marshalling, Underage Sales Prevention, Drugs Awareness, Age Verification and the Scottish Award for Licensed Premises Staff to an online audience for a much reduced rate of between £30 - £35 per course.

A group of licensed retailers from the North West gathered at CPL’s office at Egerton House yesterday for a seminar on the Government’s new proposals for licensing reform. This was followed by presentations from Nick Bish from the Association of Multiple Retailers and Robert Humphreys from the All Party Parliamentary Beer Club.

Paul Chase, Head of UK Compliance for CPL, gave a presentation on the proposals for licensing reform and the implications for multiple operators. The main thrust of his argument was that the proposals would radically alter the balance of power for obtaining new alcohol licenses from the applicant to the police and local residents. It was, he suggested, an attempt by the Government to severely restrict the number of new licenses and reduce the number of premises which have late licenses. Paul called for the trade to “stop talking to ourselves and engage with the mass media.”

Multiple retailers at the presentation represented over 180 premises in the North West and included Inventive Leisure, Bravo Inns and Flannigan’s.

Recently, we ran a free First Aid Training course to support a local charity called the Wallasey Sea Cadets.

Aimed at integrating young people into their community, the Wallasey Sea Cadets offers fun activities four nights a week and at weekends with additional activities during the school holidays for over 70 young people. The aim is to encourage the cadets to become better citizens by tackling the problems of anti-social behaviour, street disorder, bullying, and drug and alcohol abuse in young people. At the same time they work to achieve nationally recognised qualifications that many young people from other areas take for granted.

Over a dozen cadets and staff took part in the 3-day course, tutored by CPL trainer, Neil Reid. They learnt how to deal with a range of emergency incidents such as what to do with an unconscious casualty, choking, burns and resuscitation. Neil is a member of the Wallasey Sea Cadets team himself having joined when he was only 11 years old. After serving in the navy he returned to Wallasey and now works with CPL Training on security and first aid training.

Neil said: “CPL Training has helped Wallasey Sea Cadets maintain the highest standards of training by supplying free First Aid training courses for the volunteer staff and some senior cadets. By providing these individuals with the full 3-day HSE First Aid at Work qualification they can continue to provide safe and fun training for all the young people involved.”

First Aid courses from CPL Training are available throughout England and Wales on a 24/7 basis to cover shift workers, with discounts for group bookings and full details are available on the website at: http://www.cpltraining.co.uk/training/firstaid/firstaid.aspx

We’re working with the manufacturer of some of the nation’s favourite food brands to ensure that their “glorious food” adheres to the UK’s strict food safety laws.

Premier Foods are a UK-wide manufacturer of food brands such as Hovis bread, Mr Kipling cakes, Sharwood's Asian foods, Batchelors soups, Loyd Grossman sauces, Bisto gravy, Quorn meat free products, Ambrosia custard and rice pudding, Branston pickle and Hartley's jams – to name but a few!

Inherent in all food manufacturing is a strict system of food safety so we’re pleased to be delivering the Food Safety for Manufacturing Level 2 training to production line workers and Food Safety Level 4 training to senior management at Premier Foods.

The level 2 qualification is designed for those who work in all areas of the food and drink manufacturing sectors and delivers an understanding of: the importance of food hygiene, associated food hazards, good hygiene practice and controls based upon an awareness of food safety management systems. These topics are regarded by the Food Standards Agency as being important to understanding and maintaining good practice in the handling, processing and preparation of safe food.

The course is delivered over one day, and assessment will be by a multiple-choice examination consisting of 30 questions and lasting 40 minutes.

The level 4 award is designed for those with managerial responsibility for the management of food hygiene issues. Both courses are awarded by the Royal Society for Food Health.

Courses are available throughout England and Wales on a 24/7 basis to cover shift workers, with discounts for group bookings and full details are available on the website at: http://www.cpltraining.co.uk/training/foodsafety/foodsafety.aspx

As the preferred First Aid training company for City Inn Hotels Group, we have been busy with the award winning group of city centre-based hotels over the last few months.

City Inn hotels, based in six major UK cities, promise an uncompromising approach to quality and a commitment to innovation and customer service. This includes an uncompromising approach to training for their teams too: Staff from each department in the hotel - from kitchen to concierge - are taking part in the three-day First Aid at Work courses for the HSE certificate.

Entertainment and leisure businesses attract large numbers of people and it makes good business sense to be prepared for first aid emergencies. Corporate Account Manager for CPL Training, Michelle Lyons said: “A blocked airway can kill someone in three to four minutes, but it can take more than eight minutes for an ambulance to arrive. Knowledge of a simple procedure could save their life while they're waiting for emergency medical help.”

The minimum legal requirement is to appoint competent personnel who will take charge of First Aid arrangements in the workplace. These personnel need to prepare for this role by taking a one-day training course. The course includes how to maintain first aid equipment and facilities, and when to call the emergency services.

For those businesses with five or more staff such as hotels, the legal requirements are more stringent and a qualified First Aider must be appointed. The training required for a First Aider involves sitting the three-day course.

Courses are available throughout England and Wales on a 24/7 basis to cover shift workers, with discounts for group bookings and full details are available on the website at: http://www.cpltraining.co.uk/training/firstaid/firstaid.aspx

CPL Training is hosting a seminar here at our offices in Birkenhead on the implications of the government’s licensing reform proposals. Representatives of multiple pub, bar or restaurant operators are invited to attend.

The seminar will explore the government’s reform proposals and an informative talk on this subject will be delivered by Paul Chase, CPL Director and Head of UK Compliance. The seminar will also feature an opportunity to hear from two key political influencers, Nick Bish, Chief Executive of ALMR and Robert Humphreys, Secretary of the All Party Parliamentary Beer Group.

The government’s proposals, if enacted, will have major impact on how licensed premises operate and it is in the interests of all operators to attend this seminar (which is free) and discover what is in store for them!

The seminar takes place on Monday 20th September and starts at 2.30 p.m. Contact Paul Chase on 0151 650 6910 or by email on paul.chase@cpltraining.co.uk if you would like to come along. We’d be delighted to see you here.

BHS, the High Street retailer is now training its staff for Personal Licences with CPL in England and Wales. Previously, CPL Training provided Personal Licence training just for the SCPLH in Scotland but has now expanded its training provision to the rest of the 185 UK stores.

The National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH) qualification is now just over five years old and has had a huge take-up since Quarter 1 2005, when personal licence courses were sat by just 2,410 people. In total, as of the end of 2009, over 380,000 people have sat the personal licence course and NCPLH qualification in England and Wales.

For CPL Training, as the biggest provider of personal licence courses, making this training available has involved a huge logistical exercise, as indeed it has for the many smaller providers collectively. Although the number of people sitting personal licence courses has now fallen from its peak in Quarter 4 2005, when 34,998 NCPLH certificates were awarded, to around 15,000 per quarter at present, personal licence courses and the NCPLH qualification are still very popular!

CPL has over 70 venues where personal licence courses are available on a monthly, scheduled basis. We will run over 840 personal licence courses in 2010.

From August 2010 the name of the qualification that people are examined for at the end of a personal licence course will change from NCPLH to APLH – the level 2 Award for Personal licence Holders. This name change reflects changes to the way in which government regulators now wish to name qualifications. Learners sitting personal licence courses will still sit a 40 question multiple-choice examination at the end of the course.

CPL Training is now the approved Personal Licence training provider for Cineworld, the UK’s leading cinema group.

With 78 cinemas around the UK, 50 sites have licensed bars for deluxe screenings and conferencing facilities. Staff at these venues have to take their Personal Licence training course in order to sell alcohol and, as the only national training solution for the NCPLH, CPL is the ideal partner.

Local entrepreneur and founder of CPL Training has been named Businessman of the Year at the annual Wirral Investment Network (WiN) awards.

Daniel accepted the top award from Mark Sotherbury of category sponsor, The Manufacturing Advisory Service, at the packed event held at a luxury outdoor marquee on the grounds of Birkenhead School in Wirral.

In presenting the award, the judges recognised Daniels bid to ‘grow the business with dedication and diversity’ and host Roger Philips commented:

“Daniel launched the business when he was 18 years old and his strong, driven, entrepreneurial leadership style has ensured that CPL Training has become a well recognised brand with an unparalleled reputation as professional, trusted and forward thinking, known nationally as a centre of excellence for training and support services.”

CPL Training was recently presented with the Judges Choice Award at the Liverpool Daily Post Business Awards and was thrilled to receive a second award at the WiN event. Daniel said: “This was a real honour for me. As a local guy, it’s fantastic to see both my own and the wider business achievements being recognised at a Wirral-based business event. There were two other very strong candidates nominated for this award which makes this accolade all the more rewarding.”

Daniel has also been shortlisted in the IoD’s Liverpool Director of the Year category, with the results set to be announced later this year.

Our recruitment division, CPL Recruitment, are currently looking for a number of ambitious, pro-active employees who thrive in a fast-paced environment.

Recruitment Consultant

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a self motivated, dedicated individual to join an existing and successful sales force in our Recruitment Department. The ideal candidate will be a strong relationship builder with good sales skills and have the adaptability to work in a variety of sectors. The role will be split between generating new business and maintaining and managing the existing client base.

Recruitment Resourcer

Working within a dynamic and growing department, our Recruitment Department is currently looking for a Recruitment Resourcer to join their expanding team. This is an excellent opportunity for anyone wanting to move into recruitment as individuals will be given the opportunity to push their career forward and develop themselves.

For further information on both roles please email Andrew Rannard, Head of Recruitment andrew.rannard@cpltraining.co.uk

CPL Training has teamed-up with Garage Watch to provide NCPLH and other training for staff working for independent petrol retailers. Commenting on the agreement Garage Watch’s editor Mark Bradshaw said: "If you sell alcohol from your forecourt shop, make sure you always have a trained personal licence holder on the premises at all times. Anyone applying for a personal licence must have taken a one-day training course leading to the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH) qualification."

Hailing the agreement CPL training's Head of UK Compliance, Paul Chase said: We're delighted to become the preferred supplier of NCPLH training to Garage Watch readers. With over 70 training venues nationwide where NCPLH training is available on a monthly basis, we’ve always got a venue and date near to where Garage Watch readers live or work. We also have a range of e-learning courses available online in things like Fire Marshal training, food safety and underage sales prevention – so there’s lots of good-value training available for Mark’s readers."

An SCPLH course for a mobile bar business has opened up a range of opportunities for one CPL candidate.

John Codona runs a mobile bar business with a twist – his mobile bar comes with a life-sized inflatable pub with flooring, lighting and garden furniture! When he took the SCPLH course he realised that there were lots more business opportunities for his inflatable pub with Scottish Occasional Licences - the equivalent in England and Wales is the Temporary Event Notice.

Working with CPL trainer and Licensing Consultant, Celine Davenport, he has targeted the local hire market for the smaller inflatable pub (which holds 30 people) and the festival and charity event market for the larger inflatable pub (which holds 80 people). Already business has “inflated” faster than he anticipated with a particular market in unusual weddings.

Let’s hope that no-one “spikes” their drinks in the inflatable pub!

Find out more at www.popupbarservices.co.uk

When you're an award winning bar chain with over 1800 members of staff across 60 sites how do you keep up to date with your compliance training – that 'must-do', due diligence stuff that will keep your customers and business alive?

In trial and then in operation for across the Revolution chain, the new E-Learning courses have already seen hundreds of registered users and completed courses so far. Ioan Eyton-Jones, the Brand Standards Manager for Inventive Leisure with responsibility for E-Learning across the business, is keen to stress the advantages for the operator and said: "CPL Training has developed the online courses hand-in-hand with us. Their system is accessed through our intranet and is linked directly to our HR and payroll functions. As soon as someone new starts in our business it flags them up and they have six weeks to complete the Health and Safety and Food Safety courses that are mandatory for our business. On-site training managers can monitor when the course was taken, how long it took them, how many attempts it took to pass the course and then their percentage pass rate."

Ioan says he has seen a substantial reduction of around £12k in his training costs this year and sees his ultimate goal as moving to a paper-free system, where the administration of both face-to-face training and E-Learning is one system. "I’d make substantial savings straight away just from the annual cost of printing and storage of printed materials."

For more information about taking any of the online courses or bespoke solutions please go to: www.cple-learning.co.uk or call 0151 650 6910.

CPL E-Learning brings food safety level 2, health and safety level 2, manual handling, fire marshalling and the Scottish Award for Licensed Premises Staff to an online audience for a much reduced rate of between £30 - £35 per course.

From August 2010, the NCPLH will be renamed Level 2 Award for Personal Licence Holders (APLH). The change comes as a result of a strategy to simplify qualifications in a new framework.

The APLH will continue to be delivered as a one-day course with a 40 question multiple-choice exam at the end of it.

Changes to policy designed to simplify qualifications resulted in the creation of 'Ofqual' as the qualifications regulator, and a new Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) to replace National Database of Accredited Qualifications.

Paul Chase, Director and Head of UK Compliance at CPL Training has led the discussion with other awarding bodies, on behalf of awarding body EDI, to create a new ‘shared unit’ for NCPLH. This will sit at Level 2 on the Qualifications and Credit Framework. This has involved migration of the existing NCPLH qualification, with some amendments, from NDAQ onto the new QCF. The discussions on the new Unit have been chaired by Angela Yahaya of People 1st, who fully support the submission to QCF.

How does the QCF work?

Under the new QCF every unit and qualification in the framework will have a credit value (one credit represents 10 notional learning hours, showing how much time and effort it takes to complete) and a level between ‘entry’ and level 8 (showing how difficult it is).

There are three sizes of qualifications in the QCF:

• Awards (between 1 and 12 credits)
• Certificates (between 13 and 36 credits)
• Diplomas (37 credits or more)

In the new framework an 'Award' can be from entry level to level 8. This is because the qualification type (award, certificate or diploma) represents the size of the qualification, not how difficult it is. The degree of difficulty is represented by the level – 'Level 1', 'Level 2' and so on. The title of a qualification will indicate how difficult it is, how long it will take the average learner to complete, and its general content.

Leading training provider, CPL Training, has been presented with the Judges Choice Award at the LDP Awards, widely regarded as Merseyside's most prestigious event in the annual business calendar.

At a glittering and packed out ceremony, sponsored by KPMG and DLP Piper, and held at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral, CPL's Chief executive Daniel Davies accepted the award on behalf of the company from Daily Post Business Editor, Bill Gleeson.

The Liverpool Daily Post Judges Choice Award was made to CPL Training for its enterprise, energy, diversification and overseas expansion.

The judges said: "The pure commitment, enterprise and effort shown by this business deserved commendation at this year's awards."

CPL Training was also shortlisted for the NWDA Medium Business of the Year in what was described as a 'close fought category'.

Daniel said: "It is a real honour to receive this award and is a true testament to the hard work, dedication and commitment of each business team within CPL Training."

"The past three years has seen us diversify and expand, entering new markets and using our traditional skill sets to penetrate new growth areas for us – I am delighted that the judges have recognised our efforts and look forward to taking the business to the next level and consolidating our position as one of the UK's leading training providers."

Keith Thompson joined us recently in the new position of Group Sales Director.

He moved from Tribal in Manchester, where he worked as a director for three and a half years. Keith's career in marketing and business services has involved work with a number of public sector bodies including local and central government, law enforcement and the NHS as well as experience in the commercial sector with firms like Orange, NPower and British Gas.

In Keith's new role he will be responsible for sales across all divisions of CPL; from hospitality and compliance training to international training and recruitment services. He aims to enable cohesive growth across the business and ensure that the CPL offer is most appropriate to the market.

Daniel Davies, Chief Executive of CPL commented: "Keith joins us with considerable experience across both private and public sectors. He and his team are an important part of our continued growth and diversification."

Staff at leading training provider, CPL Training, are opting for two wheels rather than four to get them to work, as part of a new company wide initiative.

Ten team members have signed up to the government driven 'MyCycle2Work' scheme whereby employers are asked to hire a bike on behalf of staff wanting to change the way they travel to and from work, contributing monthly through their salary and with optional one off fee for full ownership after 12 months.

Advisors from cycling superstore, Giant, in Liverpool have brought along a range of bikes to CPL's Wirral based headquarters in Egerton House for people to try out and ask questions. With a choice of up to 300 bikes on offer, styles range from Giant TranceX4 mountain bike at maximum spend of £1,000 to the Brompton, a handy fold up light weight bike that can be easily carried on and off trains and buses.

Daniel Davies, CPL Chief Executive said: "We want to support staff looking to make considered changes in their lifestyle and have made this scheme as simple as possible for them to sign up to. We are also keen to operate a sustainable business and hope initiatives such as this help reduce our carbon footprint, minimising the impact our operation may have on the environment as much as possible."

Staff are expected to take delivery of their new wheels in June. One immediate sign up to the scheme was, CPL's Mel Boonstra she said: "I’ve been thinking about getting a bike for a while and using it to get to work but this offer has moved things forward for me. I'm looking forward to exercising more and want cycling to become part of my daily routine."

CPL Training also operates a car share scheme and is currently working towards gaining accreditation for the BS 8555, British Standard for Environmental Management.

CPL Chief Executive, Dan Davies, presented an award to Charles Wells Pub Company from Bedfordshire at the pub industry’s “Oscars”, The Publican Awards recently.

The awards were held at a top London hotel, The Grosvenor House on Park Lane and were attended by over 1200 operators and suppliers from the pub industry.

As sponsors of the Pub Company of the Year (in the tenanted and leased sector with more than 200 outlets), Dan was on stage with compère for the night and popular comedian, Michael McIntyre. Anthony Wallis, Managing Director, Peter Wells, Pub Company Sales and Marketing Director and Richard Burt, Commercial and Property Director for Charles Wells joined them to receive their award on behalf of the business which was described as: “A traditional company that is modernising for the future, it is clearly in touch with its tenants, ensuring every pub has support levels to help them survive and thrive”

The other finalists were, Marston’s Pub Company from Staffordshire, who were highly commended, Shepherd Neame from Kent and Trust Inns from Lancashire.

Congratulations to them all!

Pictured (Left to Right): Michael McIntyre, Anthony Wallis, Peter Wells, Richard Burt and Dan Davies.

Our IT team hit the local headlines in the Liverpool Daily Post this week with an article in the Business section about the new E-Learning platform.

With an investment of £0.5 million and an additional 10 staff on the project we have commissioned a truly global team of expert code writers, graphic designers and 3d animators to produce a suite of highly relevant and interactive courses. We can now offer a full turn-key solution to retail operators and are the only training provider to span face-to-face and E-Learning courses on this scale and at this level of quality.

CPL's IT Director, Dave Dasher and his team put together this moody photo on a local dockside bridge near Egerton House which is their homage to Quentin Tarrantino's film Reservoir Dogs. None of the guys are owning up to being "Mr. Pink"

Our intrepid Marathon runner and Marketing Manager, Dave Brown made it through the London Marathon last Sunday in 4 hours, 31 minutes and those all-important 52 seconds. He has raised over £2,000 for his chosen charity, Clatterbridge Cancer Research.

Clatterbridge Cancer Research is a charitable organisation committed to advancing the regional fight against cancer. For nearly 30 years they have been working in the North West of England funding world class research into preventing and diagnosing cancer and how to treat it with the most effective ongoing care. Dave explained the connection by adding: "They are treating my Dad through his fight against lung cancer since being diagnosed last year. He’s doing ok and is now checking on me since I did the run, rather than the other way around. It was amazing to hear that my parents saw me on TV running over the London Tower Bridge!"

Leading training provider, CPL Training, has been shortlisted for three prestigious business awards.

The Wirral-based firm has made the final three in the, 'SME of the Year', category in the Daily Post's Business Awards, also making the shortlist under the same category in the annual Wirral Investment Network (WiN) Business Awards.

Daniel Davies, CPL Training's Chief Executive has also be named as one of three vying for WiN's coveted 'Business Person of the Year' award.

CPL Training has expanded its operation significantly during the past five years, creating jobs locally and nationally, investing heavily in growth areas and launching new business divisions as part of an ambitious long-term development strategy.

Daniel Davies said: "We're really pleased to have achieved this type of recognition locally. We've worked hard during the past few years to consolidate the business and establish ourselves as a major national and international training provider.

"We look forward to attending both award ceremonies and fingers crossed, we'll enjoy more good news on the night!"

We are offering a free online course for anyone who books a national Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH).

Book an NCPLH with CPL Training for just £130 + vat and candidates will receive an online Health & Safety or Food Safety course absolutely free. This offer is available through April and May while stocks last by calling 0845 833 1835 quoting 'free online course offer'.

The online courses are two of seven online compliance courses available from the CPL e-learning website, www.cple-learning.co.uk at a fraction of the cost of face-to-face training courses.

Dave Brown, our Design & Marketing Manager at CPL, is training hard at the moment for the London Marathon on 25 April in aid of Clatterbridge Cancer Research and his Dad.

Clatterbridge Cancer Research is a charitable organisation committed to advancing the regional fight against cancer. For nearly 30 years they have been working in the North West of England funding world class research into preventing and diagnosing cancer and how to treat it with the most effective ongoing care.

Dave explained the connection by adding: "They are treating my Dad through his fight against lung cancer since being diagnosed last year. I've spent a lot of time there in the last year so they are very close to my heart. This will be my first attempt at a marathon and is a definite attempt to prove something to myself as well."

If you would like to sponsor Dave, go to: http://www.justgiving/davecbrown

We're pleased to learn that we have just been shortlisted for the Liverpool Daily Post's Regional Business Awards with the winners to be announced in May.

We are shortlisted for The NWDA Medium Business of the Year, for companies with 51 to 250 employees, and are up against a specialist waste collection and recycling firm, B&M Waste Services and a call centre business, The Contact Company.

CEO for CPL Training, Dan Davies said: "We're proud to be part of the thriving business community in the North West and are delighted to be recognised by our peers in this way."

Liverpool-born former cabinet minister Steven Norris will be the keynote speaker for the event to be held at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral on 27th May.

Accredited by Education Development International (EDI)
Gain the qualification needed to teach publicly funded courses.

Course Summary:Minimum 5 day course that satisfies the government requirement for teachers, tutors and trainers to hold an award in preparing to teach in the life long learning sector.

Who should take this qualification?
Anyone who needs an initial award for their role as a teacher or trainer in the lifelong learning sector or those who want to teach in an FE College, tutor in an Adult and Community Learning Centre or be a trainer for a learning provider.

Course Objectives:
Upon completion of the one mandatory unit, learners will have demonstrated that they are able to:

• Understand the teacher's role and legislative requirements
• Understand appropriate teaching and learning approaches
• Demonstrate session planning skills
• Deliver and evaluate learning
• Understand the use of assessment methods and reasons for keeping records of assessment

Assessment: Assessment by submission of portfolio

Duration: Minimum 5 days

Cost: £450 per person

To apply for this course please contact Mel Boonstra on 0151 650 6910, you can also email your details or complete the form on our contact page.

Catch up on all our news with our latest copy of our newsletter, Aspire. This time our Chief Executive, Daniel Davies is talking about breaking down barriers to learning and information through this millennium’s most powerful new force; the Internet.

To view the Spring 2010 edition click here.

Daniel Davies, our Chief Executive, was involved in the judging of one of The Publican Awards recently.

CPL Training is sponsoring The Tenanted/Leased Pub Company of the Year (with 200 or more pubs) and met all the finalists at a grueling panel interview in London. Charles Wells Pub Company, Marston’s Pub Company, Shepherd Neame and Trust Inns are all in the running and Dan said that the standard was extremely high. He added: "Given the threat of the Business and Enterprise Committee Report, everyone involved in this sector has made a huge effort to review and improve their businesses. It was a tough decision."

The final awards will be presented in London on 21st April.

In a move designed to bring new people into the hospitality industry, CPL is working with the employment services sector to train long term unemployed people for work.

The Steps2Work programme is an intensive two-week programme covering the NCPLH or Door Supervision qualifications with literacy and numeracy skills embedded into the course programmes. So far 700 unemployed learners have been on courses since April giving them basic skills they have never had before.

Head of Welfare to Work , Gary Bennett, added: "Our Steps2Work programme breaks down barriers to employment for many people who have written themselves off. We work through the numeracy and literacy elements of the course using real examples from the licensed retail and security sectors."

We've updated it for 2010 to reflect the expanding nature of our business and we've had some nicer photographs taken too! There are some testimonials from happy customers, a new section on NVQs and our Steps2Work programme as well as the usual course information and booking facility. Let us know what you think.

A suite of compliance qualifications has been launched online as a flexible alternative to face to face training.

The newly created division, CPL e-Learning complements the core face-to-face training business but aims to improve accessibility, flexibility and cost effectiveness for a stretched licensed retail workforce.

A review of current online learning products revealed that course content is often delivered in a patronising style with child-like graphics and no obvious benefit beyond reading a course handbook. So, in creating the CPL e-learning courses, a truly global team of expert code writers, graphic designers and 3d animators were brought together. They have produced interactive, relevant learning materials that are appropriate to adult professional learners.

Food safety level 2, health and safety level 2, manual handling, fire marshalling and the Scottish Award for Licensed Premises Staff are now available to an online audience for a fraction of the cost of face-to-face training.

IT Director for CPL, David Dasher commented: "We are the only training provider to span face-to-face and e-Learning courses on this scale and at this quality."

For more information about taking any of the online courses and a short trial demonstration, please go to: www.cple-learning.co.uk.

Trials with the Revolution bar chain have already resulted in a new contract to supply their online learning platform for 18,000 qualifications in the first year. The CPL e-Learning system is embedded into Revolution’s staff website and is linked to their HR system to ensure that every new member of staff falls into the e-Learning regime.

We wish all customers old and new avery Merry Christmas and a safe, exciting and productive New Year. We will be working through the holiday period on our all new website, we hope to implement this over the next month. Sign up to our newsletter to be kept up to date with the launch.

2010 is shaping up to be a very exciting year for us, with many new areas of the company to be launched including our new e-learning department.

CPL Training staff Dave Brown, Shaun Rhead, Ian Wilkins and Sarah McDermott took part in the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce 5k Team Challenge on Sunday 20th September.

More than 1,000 Corporate Athletes took part in the 5K Team Challenge.

Dave Brown, CPL Training's Design & Marketing manager said: "We wanted to do something that would be a fun team event and that would raise much needed funds for Liverpool Chamber’s Charity of the Year, Nugent Care."

"We thought this would a perfect fundraiser to support. Getting fit to take part in the team run has been an added bonus as I am running the 2010 London Marathon too!"

Team CPL Training finished in 19th place overall out of 59 in their category with a combined time of 99 minutes 33 seconds.

Now in its second year, the 5k run is along a stunning riverside course past some of the city's most iconic buildings.

For more information on future events contact Alan Rothwell on 0151 709 1413 or email alan.rothwell@btconnect.com. You can pick up entry forms for other runs from Liverpool Chamber of Commerce Reception, One Old Hall Street, Liverpool or enter on the Run Liverpool website.

CPL Training team runner Shaun Rhead draws out the leading pack at the start of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce 5k Team Challenge:

Once again CPL has teamed up with The Publican magazine to sponsor one of the awards at their renowned annual celebration of the best of the best in on-licensed retail. We are sponsoring the Pub Company of the Year - Tenanted / Leased 200+ outlets category and will be involved in the judging process from start to finish.

Daniel Davies, CEO for CPL Training commented: “Entering and winning an award is all about reaching the pinnacle in your chosen career so CPL Training is delighted to join the celebrations with The Publican and recognise those life-changing moments.”

You can now follow us on various Social Networking websites to keep up to speed with everything we do to help you attain the very best standards through training. Follow us on:

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CPL Training, has announced two new key appointments to strengthen their on-trade team.

Ex-Greenalls MD and industry expert, Trevor Upton, will join as a non-executive director. Trevor worked with Grand Met and then Greenalls where he created a Pub, Restaurants & Lodge division called Premier House. Having met with Daniel Davies of CPL he was so impressed by his desire to improve the training within the Hospitality Industry that he was prepared to give up some of his retirement leisure time to join CPL Training.

Meanwhile Terri Hardy will join the corporate sales team in a business development role as well as running some training courses for CPL Training. Terri brings a wealth of experience in the training/HR function and has held a variety of commercial and HR roles for some of the industry's best known companies such as Whitbread, Marston's, Enterprise Inns and Greene King.

Chief Executive, Daniel Davies commented: "We're working closely with pub operators to provide solutions for their training requirements so I am delighted to welcome two such experienced practitioners to the business. I know they will enhance the long-term partnership approach that we are developing with our customers."

Click here to find out more about tenancy and leased opportunities from Admiral Taverns.

Somerfield have been working with CPL Training to prepare for the new Scottish licensing regime.

Over 400 staff at their stores in Scotland have passed the Scottish Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (SCPLH) so far and are now receiving a new Personal Licence from their relevant licensing authority.

Training for the retailer began in February and courses are being taken at the nearest CPL Training location. Somerfield then have further in-house training planned to cover the requirement for staff training in the new licensing regime.

Suzanne Smith, Corporate Sales Director for CPL Training said: "We are delighted to work with Somerfield on this project. Given the scale of the business in Scotland, CPL Training was one of the few providers who could undertake the task. In addition to our eighteen training centres across Scotland we are also able to provide bespoke training clients who have the space and numbers for a course."

Shearings Hotels are blazing a trail by educating their frontline staff in the sale of alcohol. In partnership with CPL Training, they have launched a staff training programme for any staff involved in the sale of alcohol.

Whilst this isn't a current requirement in England and Wales, it is becoming mandatory in the new Scottish licensing regime from 1st September. There are noises from Government to suggest that England and Wales may follow the same route.

Shearings Hotels have already adopted the Scottish Award for Licensed Premises Staff (SALPS) for their Scottish hotels but will also roll out a version of the award to their hotels in England and Wales too over the next few months.

With CPL they have developed "ALPS" in response - the Award for Licensed Premises Staff. This will complement the knowledge and qualifications of the three or four employees who already have the NCPLH or SCPLH at each location.

Hylda Stewart, HR and Training Manager for Shearings commented: "We're looking for a consistent approach across all of our staff in the UK, but this award also makes great business sense too. I'm keen that all our frontline staff are aware of their social responsibility in selling alcohol as well as their legal duty of care."

Shearings Holidays is one of the UK's leading holiday companies specialising in holidays for the mature customer. Shearings Holidays employs around 3,000 staff throughout the group, which includes a chain of 49 hotels throughout Britain and at least 200 will take the new award.

"Hugh turned a potentially arduous and brain numbing day into a relaxed and informative experience."

Pub operator, Admiral Taverns, was extremely positive recently following an NCPLH (National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders) course for new licensees.

The NCPLH is a legal requirement for anyone who wants to run a pub and sets out to provide them with a clear understanding of the framework of law and regulation that underpins the responsibilities of the personal licence holder.

Rather than making this a dry, technical day, CPL Training sets out to explain all aspects of the course through examples of real-life situations in a light-hearted manner that everyone will digest and remember.

Pete Mills, from Admiral Taverns Recruitment Department, sat the course in Chester with some new licensees and was full of praise for Hugh Chase, the trainer for the day and said: "Everyone felt comfortable in the room, which was packed, and were happy to ask questions if there was something they didn't understand."

He added: "I think that a lot of people will go home feeling confident about running a pub of their own and dealing with any inevitable issues or problems associated with working in this trade."

Anyone interested in attending an NCPLH course can call 0151 650 6911 or book online here

Leading training provider, CPL Training, has been named runner up at the prestigious National Business Awards.

Considered the, "National Business Oscars" throughout the business community, CPL Training has been short-listed in the Tenon Award for Entrepreneurial Spirit category which celebrates creative, entrepreneurial drive and innovation.

The company was recognised for its recent strategy of diversification and growth in the face of changing market conditions. During the past year, CPL Training has successfully entered a series of new sectors, launching an international division, specialist security training arm and NVQ branch.

A team from CPL Training joined representatives from other national and regional brand names at a ceremony held at London's Grosvenor House Hotel. Hosted by Andrew Marr and sponsored by the Daily Telegraph and Orange, guests on the night included Secretary of State, Peter Mandelson and HRH, The Earl of Wessex.

Daniel Davies, CPL Training chief executive said: "To be part of the National Business Awards, and to be short-listed in the entrepreneur category, is a fantastic achievement for CPL Training. During the past year, we have re-focused our business model, steering us towards new growth sectors whilst re-affirming our position as number one training provider to the licensed trade.

"To see the company recognised as entrepreneurial and successful at this level is a great honor and real coup for us all."

Brian Davidson from the Garden House Hotel in Gretna and 8 of his staff took the SCPLH course recently with CPL Training and declared the course a "business necessity ".

Whilst the SCPLH is a mandatory requirement for personal licence applicants under the new Scottish licensing regime, Brian felt that it was also an ideal business development course, helping to identify new opportunities for the business as well as highly motivational for his team.

The training course provides each delegate with a clear understanding of the framework of law and regulation that underpins the responsibilities of the personal licence holder.

Brian explained further: "It was one of the best training sessions I have ever experienced, not only was the trainer, Hugh Chase, superb, but we also clarified many grey areas, such as the law in relation to 16-17 year olds being allowed to serve behind the bar, as well as learning lots of new information. People might be unhappy about doing a day's training to gain their personal licence, but in my experience, it was first class and well worth it!"

CPL Training Scotland is running SCPLH courses each month in 15 venues across the country for £125 per person (with 15% discount for 3 or more staff).

Call CPL Training Scotland about courses on 0141 359 5659

Wirral based, CPL Training, is celebrating having secured a number of long term training contracts with national employment agencies and local authorities through its recently launched NVQ arm.

The company, considered the UK's leading provider of training to the licensed industries, is beginning to reap the rewards of a year long strategy of diversification that has seen CPL Training open both the NVQ arm and an international division, whose primary focus is on the Middle East.

The move into the NVQ market has been piloted in Wirral and Liverpool to huge success and during 2008, the company trained over 400 people in various disciplines including hospitality, legislation, health and safety and cleaning.

CPL Training has grown its NVQ arm to a team of over 20 people this year, most working both on and off site supporting employers and employees through the learning and training process in support of the NVQ accreditation.

Daniel Davies, CPL Training Chief Executive said: "There is a definite gap in the market for this type of service both within Merseyside and nationally. We have taken our knowledge and understanding of training in closely related areas and applied this to the NVQ sector which has worked out extremely well. We now aim to roll this service out nationally, using the experience gained through our work local."

The Plungington Tavern in Preston was crowned Best Training Pub of the Year at the 2008 Great British Pub Awards in September and the award was sponsored and judged by CPL Training.

Chosen from six finalists from around the UK, Graham Rowson was chosen as the overall winner for developing four core training modules driven by CD and supplemented by oral instruction for all of his staff but also local licensees new to the industry. The modules cover crucial areas such as health and safety, First aid, basic bar work and cellar maintenance. "There is no substitute for training," says Graham. "Efficient, knowledgeable staff are the back bone of any successful pub business and the value proper training gives is incalculable."

Graham and Angela Rowson collected their award from TV comedian, Hugh Dennis, Suzanne Smith, Corporate Sales Director for CPL Training and Morning Advertiser Editor, Andrew Pring.

CPL Training has been short listed in the National Business Awards for The Tenon Award for Entrepreneurial Spirit.

This award recognises successful entrepreneurial businesses that have shown creativity, innovation and have overcome barriers with entrepreneurial drive and determination. All finalists who have been short listed showcase the contribution that entrepreneurs throughout the UK are making to today's economy.

The winners of each category will be announced and presented with their trophy on stage during the Awards Ceremony & Dinner on the 18th November 2008, at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Daniel Davies, Chief Executive for CPL Training said: "We're incredibly proud that the business has been short-listed for a National Business Award. We have enjoyed constant growth over the last few years with a team of dedicated, hard-working people whilst we have strived to stay one step ahead of the market. We're in a tough category against some formidable competition so being judged alongside them is a tremendous honour."

CPL Training's Chief Executive Daniel Davies has been voted Merseyside's Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

In recognition of the fact the professional services sector relies on those unique individuals prepared to take risks and build businesses, the Liverpool Professionals Awards includes a Young Entrepreneur Award.

This year's winner was Daniel Davies. A dynamic individual with a clear vision, drive, determination and ability to achieve all business goals and aspirations, Daniel'' passion for CPL Training has driven the company to become the sector leader it is today.

Wirral-born licensing leaders, Daniel Davies, Chief Executive of CPL Training and Inventive Leisure Chief Executive, Roy Ellis, have joined forces to implement a national training strategy for all of Inventive Leisure's Revolution bars. The 55-strong Revolution bar chain, a recent winner in the prestigious Publican awards, appointed CPL Training as its preferred training provider for all licensing training including the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH), the Scottish Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (SCPLH), and the National Diploma for Designated Premises Supervisors (NDDPS).

CPL Training, the UK's leading provider of training to the licensed retail sector, has to date trained over 250 Inventive Leisure staff. CPL currently operates 70 training venues throughout the UK and delegates are able to select a training venue local to them. Daniel Davies commented: "I'm pleased that our companies are able to collaborate on a national basis. Revolution Bars is one of the UK's most well established and recognisable brands, whilst CPL Training is the market leader within its field. This successful collaboration has developed through a mutual understanding of the synergies that can be achieved by a national bar chain and a national training provider working together."

CPL TRAINING MAKE MARK AT GREAT BRITISH PUB AWARDS

CPL Training, the UK's leading provider of personal licence training, has announced its category sponsorship of this year's Great British Pub Awards. These prestigious Morning Advertiser led awards are designed to recognise excellence in licensed retailing across the sector. CPL Training is set to sponsor the Best Programme for Pub Staff Training award which will be presented to the pub that has done most to develop the skills of its staff.

Held at the London Hilton on Park Lane in September, the awards are considered one of the highlights in the industry calendar. Suzanne Smith, Corporate Director of CPL Training said: "The Best Programme for Pub Staff Training is a new award being launched this year. CPL training has worked closely with the MA to develop this award as we felt that it was important to mark the achievements of publicans in training and developing their people. The category winner will be chosen after reviewing evidence of best practice in dealing with customers, perfect pour, product knowledge and individual career progression."

The UK's leading independent drinks retailer, the Thresher Group, has announced the completion of personal licence training for its 1,000th member of staff, the culmination of an 18-month partnership with leading training provider, CPL Training.

Philip Loring, head of Thresher Central Operations and CPL Training Chairman, Paul Chase met 1,000th candidate, Chloe Ayers, at the Thresher store in St Albans store to personally congratulate her, marking the occasion with a celebratory bottle of champagne.

Paul Chase, CPL Training Chairman said: "This is a real landmark that illustrates the excellent working relationship between CPL Training and Thresher. Our skills, experience and understanding of the licensed-retail sector, and the expert delivery of our flagship qualification, the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH), has enabled us to meet all of the criteria established by Thresher at the outset."

The collaboration between the two organisations was established in 2006 with the aim of consolidating Thresher's training activity, ensuring that relevant team members could access personal licence training quickly, and at venues local to their stores.

CPL Training is the UK's largest licensed-retail training provider, and currently operates 54 training venues throughout England and Wales from which the NCPLH is available. A further 14 venues have recently been opened in Scotland from which the new Scottish personal licence course will be delivered.

Philip Loring, head of Central Operations for the Thresher Group said: "The Thresher Group operates over 1800 stores in the UK and the new Licensing Act requires us to make a significant investment in staff and training. Our partnership with CPL has proved to be very successful, enabling us to concentrate on the recruitment of staff in the knowledge that CPL can deliver a consistent, high quality training package throughout the UK.

CPL Trainings founder and chief executive, Daniel Davies, has been selected as one of the brightest business people in the North West of England by leading business magazine, Insider.

Its annual award focuses on the 42 individuals under 42 years of age that it believes are contributing most towards the region's development.

Daniel Davies said: "It's great to receive this level of recognition, both on a personal level and in terms of the company as a whole."

CPL Training has been providing licensee training in Scotland since July 2007 at two training venues, in Edinburgh and in Glasgow. We aim to open another three centres - in Aberdeen, Inverness and Dundee by October this year, creating local availability in all of Scotland's main population centres.

A CPL Scotland office will also be established so that we can co-ordinate training in Scotland and provide a first class service to Scottish learners. CPL Scotland's Director of Training Denise MacKean commented: "We are proud to announce the launch of CPL Scotland and to commit ourselves to the provision of training and qualifications for the benefit of the Scottish people."

The transition to the new licensing regime in Scotland will begin in 2008 with Licensing Boards accepting personal licence applications from February 2008 onwards. The new Scottish Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (SCPLH) will be available from CPL Scotland from October this year and will replace the current Scottish Licensee's Certificate.

Paul Chase
Chairman, CPL Training

Protect your premises against teenage tipplers and under age test purchasing!

With Check 21 materials you can send a clear message that in your premises staff will "Check 21" to ensure that sales of all age-restricted products do not take place.

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Following a significant increase in violent crime involving knives used by school children, the Confederation of Professional Licensees (CPL) has launched the EDI Level 2 Award in Underage Sales Prevention

Aimed at businesses that sell age-restricted products, the one-day course will educate delegates on all of the products deemed illegal for sale to specific age groups. Items range from domestic knives to computer games, petrol, liqueur chocolates and alcohol.

The course will also offer guidance on how to deal with underage customers, including how to check for proof of age and how to act in situations where conflict may arise when service has been refused.

The course has been developed in association with Education Development International.

Paul Chase, Chairman of CPL commented:
"It is imperative that retail staff are given the necessary support, education and training to deal with underage sales prevention."

"By attending a one-day course, businesses and individuals can protect themselves from potentially dangerous situations and damaging repercussions for their business and staff."

The Confederation of Professional Licensees (CPL) has scooped a prestigious UK-wide contract with Britannia Hotels providing a bespoke training service for the company at each of its 31 hotels.

Britannia is the UK's largest privately owned hotel group with an annaul turnover in excess of £500m. The decision to join forces with CPL is testament to the company's commitment to provide the highest quality training for its 4,000 plus workforce.

CPL will train over 700 Britannia employees during an initial one-year period where courses are set to include basic and intermediate food hygiene, first aid, hazard analysis and the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH).

Michael Marten, group personnel and training manager for Britannia Hotels said: "Our collaboration with CPL demonstrates Britannia's aim to improve our training capabilities, by using a company that provide a one-stop shop service that is of the highest quality available."

CPL will provide a predominantly in-house training service where courses are delivered at the client's premises. As the UK's largest provider of training to the licensed trade, CPL has developed a programme that meets the specific needs of Britannia offering a flexible and responsive approach.

Chris Carney, managing director of CPL commented: "The Britannia contract win demonstrates our ability to diversify into any sector where professional training is required. We look forward to rolling out the national training programme for our client, responding to the evolving needs of Britannia and delivering training programmes that are in line with current and future legislation."

The Confederation of Professional Licensees (CPL) has been appointed as the NCPLH (National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders) training provider for Thresher.

The collaboration between CPL, the largest training provider to the licensed trade in the UK and Thresher, the UK's leading independent drinks retailer, will allow Thresher to consolidate its training function, utilising a limited number of approved providers to meet all of its training needs.

CPL was chosen by the organisation because of its ability to offer a nationwide service through a network of 60 training venues. In total 800 Thresher employees will undergo NCPLH training over the next 12 months through CPL.

The large-scale contract was awarded following an initial regional based training programme where 50 Thresher staff members underwent the NCPLH examination process. Upon successful completion, CPL were cited by Thresher as a professional, reliable and well established organisation with the national capabilities to provide training to key staff members for all UK outlets.

Daniel Davies, Chief Executive of CPL commented: "We look forward to working closely with Thresher, developing a long-term relationship with them and striving to ensure that we are able to meet all of their existing and future training needs."

Philip Loring, head of Thresher central operations commented: "We are delighted with the new partnership which will enable us to provide NCPLH training across a wide geographical area, closely aligned to our store locations."

An extensive survey carried out by the UK's leading provider of training for the licensed retail sector, CPL, has revealed that almost 53% of participants have endured verbal abuse, threats of violence or have been physically attacked when refusing to sell alcohol to an underage customer.

Over 1,000 people took part in the nationwide survey, all of whom are employed within the licensed trade and have undertaken the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders qualification through CPL. These shocking findings demonstrate the ongoing and widespread threat faced by licensed retailers as a result of youths attempting to purchase alcohol.

The survey also asked whether individuals have received training in how to refuse alcohol to underage customers - where 87% answered yes, the figures above suggest that training and support is proving ineffective and inadequate.

With Government pressure mounting and with new legislation allowing courts to impose potential fines of up to £5,000 and six months in prison to businesses or individuals caught selling alcohol to minors, lack of training and support continues to leave retailers open to attack.

Paul Chase, CPL Chairman commented: "Whilst this survey demonstrates a growth in the number of staff being trained in underage sales prevention, if training doesn't include conflict management, how to identify underage customers and how to refuse sales, then it leaves licensed retailers and their employees in a very vulnerable position."

Leading restaurant and bar group, Living Ventures has joined forces with CPL to create a bespoke training and development programme.

The country's number one licensed trade training provider CPL, will offer ongoing support and training to staff at each of the 29 Living Venture restaurants and bars which include The Living Room, Est Est Est and Black House Grills.

Launched in 1999, Living Ventures has enjoyed rapid growth and success - the company brands are now some of the UK's most well recognised and popular venues for eating and drinking. The company's decision to work closely with CPL demonstrates Living Ventures ongoing commitment to ensuring its customers experience a first class service from a well trained and skilled workforce.

Daniel Davies, CPL's Chief Executive commented: "Our recent appointment as preferred training provider by Living Ventures is a great coup for us and reinforces our position as the training provider of choice for the country's leading restaurants and bars."

The Confederation of Professional Licensees (CPL) has launched launch the UK's first Diploma for Designated Premises Supervisors.

The Level 3 National Diploma for Designated Premises Supervisors has been developed in association with EDI and offers advanced training for those who hold the NCPLH (National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders). This course aims to provide licensees with the knowledge to uphold the terms stipulated in the new Licensing Act, safeguarding themselves and their business for the future.

Daniel Davies, Chief Executive of CPL commented: "CPL is the first company in the UK to offer this advanced level of training support for people involved in managing licensed premises. We recognise the needs of premises supervisors and have developed this course to ensure that the responsibilities of being in control of licensed premises are clearly communicated and understood by these key individuals."

The Confederation of Professional Licensees has this week revealed the findings of an extensive survey focusing on the impact of the pending smoking ban for individuals working in a licensed premises.

With a 60/40 split between on and off trade respectively, the report highlights significant fears for personal safety, views on how the ban will affect the wider trade, public awareness of the restrictions imposed by the ban and how difficult the ban will be to enforce.

Using the opportunity to voice their concerns, 56% of on trade respondents expressed a fear that they would face verbal abuse, physical threats or violence when attempting to impose the ban. Paul Chase, CPL Chairman commented: "These results are particularly worrying and highlight fears for personal safety - businesses and individuals are clearly not confident that they can deal with situations where conflict may arise."

Almost all delegates agreed that action should be taken to reduce the risks of passive smoking and an average 80% supported the ban. When asked the question, "Do you believe that the smoking ban will attract new customer groups", 57% answered, "Yes".

Responding to the issue of enforcing the smoking ban, 56% of the on-trade felt that the process would be "moderately difficult". Whilst 27% felt it would be "difficult" to enforce, only 17% said that the process would be "easy"

When asked what impact the pending ban would have on the licensing trade, 47% believed that trade would fall, whilst 36% felt that it would have no impact and 15% believed trade would improve.

Paul Chase said: "This is a unique survey, because it questions people working in the trade, all of whom were about to apply for their personal licence."

"It is clear that whilst this group supports the smoking ban, they are concerned about personal safety and very few believe the impact on the level of trade will be positive."

The survey was carried out by the UK's leading independent provider of training to the licensed trade, CPL, who questioned over 1,000 delegates nationwide during a three-month period, each of whom was training to gain the NCPLH (National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders) accreditation.

CPL, the UKs leading provider of training to the licensed retail sector, has strengthened and consolidated its core management team, appointing a new financial director and two high profile non-executive directors.

John Taylor, former European supply chain Director at Unilever will join former Bristol & West International Director and Chief Executive, Chris Robinson, to support and advise the team on strategic issues as the company continues to enjoy rapid growth, diversifying into a range of new sectors and disciplines.

John Taylor will examine CPL's market position and identify future areas of possible growth that are clearly aligned with the company's wider expansion plans. His knowledge and understanding of corporate development will prove to be a huge asset as CPL prepare to drive the business further forward.

With over 20 years experience in the banking and finance industry, Chris Robinson has particular strengths in the establishment and development of customer relationships. His key role will be to support and develop the strategy required to expand CPL's partnerships with existing and potential corporate clients.

Chris Robinson commented: "CPL is a dynamic company that is recognised nationally as a leader within its field. Its association and partnerships with some of the UK's premiere brands is testament to the company's growing success. I look forward to continuing to work alongside the senior management team on a range of exciting new initiatives."

Other changes include the appointment of Gail Mortimer as Finance Director based at CPL's head office in Wirral. Daniel Davies assumes the position of Chief Executive, leading CPL's overall development, whilst Paul Chase retains the position of CPL Chairman, with responsibilities for qualification and course development and CPL's expansion into Scotland.

Commenting on these changes, Daniel Davies said: "The appointments of both John and Chris is a fantastic coup for CPL. By bringing their knowledge, skills and experience to the company, we are supported by some key business players who have operated at the very top of British industry. Their future support will be imperative as our business continues to grow and evolve."