Grounds Training celebrates its 1000th course

Grounds Training achieved the 1000^th accolade whilst delivering an Initial Sports Line Marking customised course, accredited by Lantra. Over the past thirteen years, they have successfully gained recognition as the go-to provider for the sports turf industry.

The training division of Pitchcare started in 2006, as Groundsman Training, with Chris Johnson at the helm. Chris quickly developed a range of sport specific turf maintenance courses, which she routed through Lantra Awards' independent accreditation process. These courses formed the core of their education portfolio and, today, remain the only courses to achieve this enviable status.

As requests for training expanded, so did the range of courses to meet the demands of clients. The current portfolio offers a complete range of groundscare courses leading to Lantra Awards and NPTC/City & Guilds qualifications. In 2017, a range of sports turf maintenance online courses were introduced to coincide with the company rebranding as Grounds Training.

The majority of courses are designed to fit the needs of the client and are delivered onsite at their Telford premises. The attendance rate for the Safe Use of Pesticides (delivered monthly) continues to grow, as do the general turfcare courses which include:

• Handheld equipment; brushcutters/trimmers, hedgecutters and leafblowers
• Initial Sports Line Marking - GT is the only training provider in the country to provide this accredited course
• Spraying operations and awareness of weed management
• Turf/soil culture, ecology subjects including pond/wetlands and history of wildflower meadows (customised provision)
• Tree Survey & Inspection
• Management/team leader workshops (customised provision)

Training Co-Ordinator, Carol Smith, is delighted to have played a key role in reaching the milestone. "I joined the team in 2015 as training administrator and, at that point, we had delivered just over 450 courses. In 2018, I took over as Training Co-ordinator and I am incredibly proud of this achievement. It's testament to the strong foundations laid down in the preceding years and, although it has been challenging at times, the results speak for themselves."

Carol continued: "We particularly appreciate the excellent relationship we have built up with our regular clients and we are passionate about encouraging groundsmen, greenkeepers and those employed in general groundcare to work safely and efficiently."

What the clients say:

"I came away with a better understanding and found it very interesting." - Initial Sports Line Marking

"Really enjoyable and very good knowledge gained. Both trainer and assessor great and very thorough." - PA1/PA6A/PA6AW

"Excellent. Explained the issues facing our green clearly but most importantly outlined a plan (in season) to maintain. Given a detailed plan for post season renovation. Budgets also covered. Fantastic!" Basic Turf Maintenance.

For more information and to view the full list of courses available visit Grounds Training