FAQ
Questions we're frequently asked...
We hope this is helpful but don't hesitate to contact us at academy@1stc.uk,
if you don't find what you're looking for here!
A: Once the payment is made you will receive an automatic booking confirmation which will include a link to download the course materials.
Please note: This email might end up in your spam/junk folder.
The email will look something like this…
A: No account needed! Simply join from your browser…
A: No, you don’t even need an account
A: All our virtual training is delivered via Zoom. We find it more flexible with far more options that the trainers can use while sharing the screen.
If you would like to book virtual in-house training for your staff and have the training delivered via Teams we can absolutely do that for you! 🙂
For in-house training, we require min 8+ attendees. To find out more please contact us.
A: Yes we do have an invoice option available. You can simply select the invoice option at the checkout and provide a PO in the relevant field.
A: Yes we do! The onsite option will be visible on our virtual course pages. Simply click on the “Onsite” button to view the page.
A: Absolutely, we have attendees from all over the world who join our open courses published on our course calendar.
A: Anywhere in the UK, just contact us for a quote. And if you are further afield, give us a shout anyway and we’ll see what we can do.
A: Certainly not. STC is VAT registered, so we are obliged to charge VAT on all services offered to customers based in the UK. Whether you checkout and pay on our webshop or request an invoice, you’ll see that we only charge VAT based on the address you provide, if it’s in the UK.
A: Yes they are! The course content belongs to BRCGS and attendees complete the official multiple choice exam on the BRCGS Educate platform to get their certificate. Only BRCGS ATP’s and AVT’s may deliver their courses. Find us here including links to our BRCGS profiles
A: This is only for any BRCGS courses you attend (does not apply to our STC courses). As we deliver official BRCGS courses, you will need an account so that you can receive an official BRCGS certificate for the qualification you have achieved. You can find useful videos on how to get started with BRCGS Educate here.
A: Yes please! We welcome all feedback and appreciate customers taking the time to do so. Please visit https://g.page/r/CfAwYuMzVADxEAg/review to leave a Google review. Thank you.
Or visit our review page here: https://1stc.uk/reviews/
A: It’s a recognition programme for professionals working for BRCGS certificated sites (Food, Packaging, Storage & Distribution, Agents & Brokers and Consumer Product industries). Gaining recognition from BRCGS means that the person has a professional level of knowledge and competency in their industry. This has been achieved through attaining a variety of qualifications, which have been assessed by either exam or assignment to demonstrate competency. The product safety related courses (such as HACCP / PCQI / HARA etc.) can have been achieved through other providers and don’t need to be BRCGS qualifications, however the remaining qualifications are BRCGS qualifications, one of which needs to relate to the standard relevant to your industry. You can find more information here or on the BRCGS website. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions at all related to this programme.
- Do you want to become a third party auditor for a certification body? If so, please see this very useful leaflet.
- Do you want the qualification simply so that you can know more as a consultant, or to conduct first-party (internal) or second-party (supplier) audits? In this case, simply attending one of our auditor courses will qualify you to do exactly that. There are a number of options, please see this useful graphic to view them.
- BRCGS: No, however it is accepted that BRCGS courses are developed by industry experts and BRCGS are the owners of the various standards. In addition, only BRCGS Approved training partners (ATP’s) can deliver these courses; you can checkout our ATP profiles here.
- STC: Yes, the courses are CPD accredited. There are a variety of accrediting bodies and CPD accreditation is simply a recognition of continued professional development, particularly relevant to industry. STC qualifications are accepted by local authorities, certification bodies (to approve lead auditors for example), by BRCGS when approving applications for BRCGS professional recognition etc.
- STC is also an approved CIEH training centre. CIEH themselves abandoned Ofqual accreditation back in 2016 as the burden vs benefits were simply not evident.
- While Ofqual is well respected, it is the course specification (the agenda, the hours and objectives for example) which is assessed rather than the actual course content. STC develop our own qualifications using industry experts to create up to date and value adding content with sensible exams as the final assessment.
- It’s worth noting that all Ofqual exam based qualifications require intense invigilation processes, requiring scheduling and two cameras for closed book exams for example. In the practical world of today, where qualifications can be attained in an efficient way through remote attendance, such onerous requirements are excessively difficult to manage for both the trainers and the attendees. Our chosen qualifications (BRCGS, STC & CIEH) can be practically delivered, with exams assessed simply and with integrity, online and via Zoom.
- All the courses we deliver certainly meet the true definition of the word ACCREDITED and between BRCGS, STC and CIEH courses, we bring you a fantastic choice
A: Here’s a useful video on where to find any of the BRCGS standards, including the new Food Safety Issue 9 standard.
A: Here’s a useful video on where to find positions statements relevant to your standard.
A: Yes we can! We have a document ready to send to you if you are or have been a customer of the STC Academy. Please send us an email to academy@1stc.uk and we’ll sent it right over to you 📨
Yes, we do!
UKPRN 10083324
Actually we do, contact us if you’d like to set up an interest free payment schedule.
Actually this really does worry some people! The concern is that the courses might not be genuine qualifications or of lesser value. We posted about this here. We are BRCGS approved training providers, and some of our trainers are Principal trainers – proud and honoured to deliver training on behalf of the BRCGS academy. The BRCGS courses are official BRCGS qualifications, assessed via the BRCGS Educate portal. Our STC courses are highly valued and well respected. It’s just really important to us to keep exceptional training affordable to all.
