News & Blog

As an HGV and PCV training company, we are often asked about the HGV driver medical which is needed in order for potential drivers to get their provisional licence. Hopefully, this article will ease all the worries you have before you go. The main thing to remember is DON’T WORRY you just need to be…

SP Training has secured an agreement with Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) to deliver training to its examiners, enabling them to achieve their truck and bus driving licences before they become fully-qualified vocational examiners in LGV (large goods vehicle) and PCV (passenger carrying vehicle). In the last two years, DVSA has trained 63 examiners…

SP Training is welcoming plans to include acquisition of the C+E or articulated truck licence within the apprenticeship standard. The company has provided an array of training services to a diverse range of businesses, from owner-drivers to national groups, and says a change in the way funding is structured can help the industry by allowing…

Which month do you think the most road traffic accidents occur?  You might expect the answer to be one of the winter months because ice and snow increase the risks to road users. However, it is August that usually sees more fatalities on UK roads than any other month. For this reason, road traffic accident…

SP Training is reminding Cumbrian businesses with a road transport fleet to ‘use it or lose it’ when it comes to accessing the funds they’ve paid into the government’s levy scheme to help address the national commercial driver shortage. After running for 24 months, money paid into the levy by individual businesses will now start…

There are more and more of people taking up cycling every year. Whether it’s to improve health and fitness, helping the environment or just to save some money there are definitely more cyclists on the roads. But how do we stay safe and keep others safe? Tips for Cyclists Many people are put off cycling…

The Apprenticeship levy, which came into effect in April 2017, is part of the government’s plan to increase the quantity and quality of Apprenticeships. The levy is a new tax which aims to fund three million new Apprenticeships in England by 2020. All UK employers who have a total employee pay bill above £3m a…

As most of you probably know by now ‘The Edge’ is back! Once again we have been out and about letting you know what we have on offer and finding out what training you need. But why would you want to take us up on the offer of training? 1 – It’s Not Just One…

The Green Cross Code was created to raise awareness of pedestrian road safety in the United Kingdom. Even though the Green Cross Code is taught in schools it needs to be reinforced at home by parents/guardians practicing and explaining the code to children. In 2015, 39% of child road casualties were pedestrians that is 6,280. Help stop your child being…

Hopefully you will never be involved in a road traffic accident but what if you are? What would you do if were the first, or the only, person to arrive at the scene of an accident? Do not panic we have some basic advice to help keep yourself safe and save lives. Warn Others Park…

For many years lorry drivers have benefited from nights away money being paid to them tax free as long as the payments were in accordance with the agreed rates.  From 6 April 2017 there have been changes to this guidance which all haulage businesses should be aware of. The Essential Information Can I still pay…

SP Training have formed a partnership with Scania to begin offering a national HGV driver training programme. SP Training and the Swedish giant want to combat the UK’s shortage of qualified HGV drivers, which is estimated to be 40,000 below what is needed. The partnership is aiming to help equip people with HGV driving licences via…

Stobart Group is to use SP Training to run an apprenticeship scheme and provide drivers for Stobart Energy – formerly Stobart Biomass. This is designed to create new jobs and address the national shortage of skilled HGV drivers. The programme has been launched by Stobart Group at its Carlisle, Widnes and Tilbury depots. SP Training…

Growing demand for HGV drivers has led SP Training to quadruple its workforce in four months. The business aims to tackle a UK-wide shortage of HGV drivers by providing tailored training programmes from its custom-built facility at Carlisle Airport. Such has been the demand, SP Training has already increased its staff numbers from four to…

Carlisle College has been awarded £8.5m in funding to support Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) vision for Cumbria to have one of the fastest growing economies in the UK by raising skills levels and reducing skills gaps. The project will offer funded training opportunities, focusing on workforce development within Cumbrian small and medium sized enterprises…

Ellis Castiglio is living his dream, Ellis wanted more than anything to drive a truck for a living so he approached SP Training for help. Where to start? First of all he had to obtain his provisional truck licence then pass his theory test, before starting the driver training and test. SP Training helped Ellis every step of the way…

A new, industry leading logistics training centre has been launched at Carlisle Airport by SP Training, the newly branded specialist training division of System People. Designed to support the logistics industry, the facility is one of the largest and best-equipped Logistics Training Centres in the UK. Led by Robin Brown and Tony Higgins, SP Training…