“Driver CPC is a waste of time and money.”
“I’ve been driving for 30 years – there’s nothing you can teach me.”
Sound familiar? It’s fair to say that the Driver CPC isn’t universally loved but, with less than 3 months until the second major Driver CPC deadline, what if training actually benefitted your business with courses that, dare we say, drivers might find useful?
The Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) training is an EU directive whereby drivers of large goods vehicles and public service vehicles must complete 35 hours of professional development training every five years. The timing of the introduction of these regulations means that trainers will now be preparing for the many drivers required to complete their 35 hours by September 9th 2019.
It’s difficult to argue with some of the frequent criticisms levelled at CPC. However, from our perspective, Transport Managers pick the core courses like driver hours and tachographs (all important of course) as a way of addressing, or being seen to be address, a driver’s hours infringement problem. In our experience it’s not so much the training or a driver’s knowledge (after all, some can actually recite the regulations), but rather that the standards have not been enforced day to day. So why not instead put training time to good use and pick courses where drivers would gain knowledge in areas they’d find useful?
When arranging courses for clients, Transport Management Solutions (TMS) actively promote a more varied programme besides driver hours, tachograph and driver defect checking. There’s actually a vast array of courses that can add value to a business, for example practical learning such as Emergency First Aid (an actual certification). And if those core skills are still needed why not consider a ‘mix and match’ approach to courses? We operate our CPC training as part of consortium called Driver CPC 4U who can support this, with a selection of 3.5 hour courses which can be mixed and matched to balance need and variety.
Driver CPC may feel like an inconvenience but it’s one piece of regulation that you could turn into a genuine opportunity for your business and people. For more information on the support TMS can provide, please call us 01275 390001 or email admin@transportmanagersolutions.co.uk.
