Agri College Aids Pet Care Retailer

Every employee of national retailer Pets at Home can now work towards a higher education qualification thanks to a new partnership with Harper Adams University College.

After five years working with Pets at Home to ensure staff members are suitably qualified to sell animal medicines, Harper Adams is now validating the new 'University College Foundation Certificate in Professional Studies: Responsible Pet Care'.

Staff members at all levels, from new starts to senior managers, will be enrolled on the programme, with many receiving credit for training already in place.

The programme comprises modules in Pet Retail Operations, Canine & Feline Health & Management, Companion Animal Nutrition, Ectotherm (reptile) Health & Management and an Introduction to Professional Skills Development.

The award combines a scaled Professional Studies Framework module with existing credit from the AMTRA Suitably Qualified Person C-SQP qualification, which Harper Adams accredits and which is a requirement by law for anyone other than a veterinary surgeon or pharmacist selling particular categories of animal medicines. (AMTRA: Animal Medicines Training and Regulatory Authority).

Niki Frazer, Training and Development Manager for Pets at Home, said: "We chose to work in partnership with Harper Adams on this project due to their high standards of organisation and the academic credibility they brought to our training of SQPs for our stores. They have provided a quality, consistent service over a period of five years, training more than 1,000 students.

"When we came to look for a partner to work with to gain accreditation for our comprehensive range of internal training programmes, to us they were the obvious first choice."

Emily Chapman-Waterhouse, Business Development Manager for the Animals Department at Harper Adams, said: "It's wonderful to be able to expand the training provided in association with Pets at Home.

"More than 3,500 employees have already commenced this training, so it is a significant development which benefits both the individuals undertaking the accredited learning and Pets at Home as a company, to have its training recognised."

(BMcC/GK)