One of the changes that came in with the October 2009 update to the HSE First Aid at Work Regulations Approved Code of Practise is the strongly recommended half-day Annual Refresher Course for those who are First Aiders in the workplace. This applies to all persons with an EFAW or FAW qualification who trained after 1st October 2009. The HSE’s recommended content of the Annual Refresher course is detailed in Appendix 7 of ‘The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981 Approved Code of Practice and guidance’ (last updated 2018). This syllabus doesn’t include ‘choking’ however as this is a topic which many folk are concerned about we recap this after CPR.

‘Strongly recommended‘ is a strange phrase, which means it is not ‘mandatory’ however, should an incident occur, and the First Aiders have not undergone refresher training, the HSE and the courts could ask why this has not occurred if if there any investigations by them into the incident. It was bought in as it is recognised that skills such as CPR deteriorate if they are not practised.

If releasing staff to attend a half-day update is tricky logistically, another way of refreshing knowledge is to book them onto our virtual Annual Refresher course.  The advantage of the in-person course is the hands-on CPR practice, whereas the advantages of the virtual course are the lower cost (no equipment for us to sterilise or travel time/costs for employees) and the ability for candidates to complete the learning in bite-sized chunks making it easier to fit in around other demands in the workplace. There are also some additional bonus topics provided in the virtual course.

Candidates attending this course will still need to update their full First Aid qualification at the 3-year anniversary of their initial training. This course does not replace that requirement. On its own this course does not qualify an attendee as a First Aider.

For individuals if no available dates are showing we may be able to accommodate you through scheduled courses not displayed on the website and for group bookings please contact us.

Recommended for: First Aiders within any workplace to boost retention of knowledge and skills