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Nov 2008
First Bus looks to step up a gear on the road to 2012!
First bus drivers in Weymouth are setting out towards their 2012 goal of giving customers an even warmer welcome, as they embark on a special customer service training course and new qualification.
First Hampshire & Dorset is investing to put drivers through the 'Welcome Host' course, which now leads to a new nationally-recognised City and Guilds qualification. Working alongside Tourism South East Training and Skills, it is the first employer in the UK to roll out such a major programme for staff incorporating the award.
It is a key part of the FirstGroup strategy to continually improve customer service for regular customers and visitors alike. It will also help drivers gear up for potentially increased tourism in 2012 and beyond, improving their knowledge and skills in areas like welcoming visitors from overseas, and those with disabilities.
First Hampshire & Dorset Operations Director Chris Bainbridge said: "We have always recognised that a warm welcome and great customer care increases the quality and enjoyment of our customers’ journey experience. It sends a positive message to local people and visitors that we are very serious about aiming for service excellence."
The first driver delegates will receive Welcome Host training on Tuesday 4 November at First Hampshire & Dorset's Weymouth depot. The intensive course is followed by a 30-question multiple choice examination. Drivers passing the exam will gain the City & Guilds Level 2 Award in Welcome Host (Customer Service) (QCF). Two courses per week will be held up to Christmas in Weymouth and the initiative will be rolled out to Hampshire in 2009. If it proves successful, the training will be delivered to some 720 First Hampshire & Dorset drivers in the region.
Chris said: "We're now stepping up a gear with Welcome Host, which is internationally renowned as leading customer service training for the tourism, hospitality and passenger transport sectors. It's also an investment in the development and careers of our drivers; for many it is the first chance to gain a formal qualification."
"Tourism South East Training and Skills and City & Guilds are both strong brands recognised for quality within their sectors and are therefore ideal partners for us as we seek to continually raise our service standards."
Sue Gill, Head of Tourism South East Training and Skills, said: "It's fantastic news that a huge customer-facing business like FirstGroup is investing to empower frontline staff with strong customer service skills. They are the first major employer in the UK to take up the new City & Guilds qualification as part of Welcome Host - recognising the importance of strengthening what staff have learned and providing formal accreditation."
The new City & Guilds Level 2 Award in Welcome Host covers core knowledge required to communicate with customers, identify their needs, recognise trends and changing expectations and deal with difficult situations. Welcome Host forms part of the Welcome to Excellence suite of courses, established as the UK's most popular customer service training, and undertaken by more than 300,000 staff in the tourism, hospitality, leisure and retail sectors, including businesses like Bourne Leisure (Warners, Haven and Butlins), Compass Group, De Vere, English Heritage, One Railway, Imperial War Museum North, and many local authorities.
First Hampshire & Dorset operates 330 buses on 105 routes across Weymouth, East Hampshire (including Porstmouth, Gosport and Fareham) and West Hampshire (Southampton and surrounding area). It is part of First Group plc, a UK based world leading transport operator moving more than 2.5 billion customers every year, across three continents.
Welcome Host training is available from Tourism South East Training and Skills through a series of scheduled courses held at venues across the South East, and through in-house training, which can be tailored to businesses' specific operational situations and demands. Further information from Tourism South East Training and Skills on tel: 023 8062 5533 or visit www.tourismtrainingsoutheast.com
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