The Training Officer
We will need to know who the Training Officer will be, as they will take overall responsibility for the trainee and will be identified as the Training Officer in the trainee’s OneFile e-portfolio. This does not mean that ‘Training Officer’ is your job title; it refers specifically to your relationship with, and responsibilities for, the STP trainee. There must be one individual identified as the Training Officer for each trainee.
The qualifications, experience, and skills of the Training Officer are among the most reliable indicators of a trainee’s experience and success within the programme. Please complete the ‘Evidence of Meeting the Requirements for the STP Training Officer Role’ form. This form must be signed off by the Head of Department. You should also review the person specification for the role and read it carefully before completing the application.
The Training Officer needs to:
- Understand the aims and objectives of the programme and be familiar with the curriculum.
- Have a level of theoretical scientific knowledge that enables them to provide ongoing challenge to the trainee in relation to the underpinning science.
- Explain the programme to others within the department and ensure goodwill and support from colleagues.
- Work with colleagues in their own department and other departments to ensure the trainee has access to all the required training opportunities.
- Plan the trainee’s training, provide guidance and mentorship, monitor their progress, and address any areas requiring improvement.
- Help the trainee manage their time and resources throughout the training period.
Qualifications
We ask for a postgraduate science qualification because this is the academic level of the STP. The Training Officer must be able to discuss, explain, challenge, and support scientific thinking at this level. If you do not hold a postgraduate science qualification, do you have equivalent knowledge and experience gained through professional practice and continuing professional development (CPD)?
Ideally, the Training Officer should also hold a training qualification. Being able to perform a role well does not necessarily mean that you will be able to train someone else to perform it. Effective training requires a range of skills, including:
- identifying a learner’s preferred learning style
- assessing training activities
- providing constructive and meaningful feedback
- monitoring progress
- taking responsibility for the training plan
- recognising when additional support is needed
- providing pastoral care and training support throughout the programme
We also recommend that the Training Officer undertakes a self-assessment of their strengths and areas for development as a trainer, as well as a 360-degree review.
Registration
We would expect any Training Officer to have the relevant statutory or voluntary registration for the specialty concerned. Ideally you should be a registered clinical scientist because that is the registered status the programme should lead to. Being registered at that level ensures you are familiar with the standards.
Knowledge and understanding
To train an STP trainee, the Training Officer must have a clear and detailed understanding of the STP curriculum for their specialty, particularly the workplace modules. They must also understand the assessment requirements of the STP. It is the Training Officer’s responsibility, working in partnership with the trainee, to ensure that all the required training activities have been completed.
The Training Officer should also be familiar with Good Scientific Practice, the Academy for Healthcare Science document on which the standards for clinical science are based. It is also beneficial for the Training Officer to be familiar with scientific specialties that are closely related to their own, as this can help support the trainee during the rotational phase of the programme.
Time for training
To take on the responsibilities of a training officer, you must be allocated sufficient time within your current role to deliver training. This includes having time to meet regularly with the trainee(s), assess training activities, and review e-portfolio work. Meetings should also be used to identify any gaps in training and discuss how these can be addressed. Training Officers should have sufficient time to monitor progress, provide feedback, and be available to support and mentor the trainee(s).
We recommend meeting with your trainee(s) at least once a fortnight or once a month. It is helpful to keep a record of what is discussed during these meetings. These notes can be used to agree next steps and actions, provide evidence that progress has been reviewed, and support future review meetings.
Seniority and experience
A Training Officer must be at a more senior level than the trainee they are supervising. We would expect you to hold a position within the department that is at least equivalent to the typical level of a clinical scientist.
Departments sometimes ask newly qualified clinical scientists, immediately after completing the STP, to act as the Training Officer for the next trainee. Some recent STP graduates may have considerable experience working in the NHS or elsewhere, while others may have come directly from undergraduate study and may not have held a substantive (non-training) post within the health service.
We welcome the involvement of graduates of the programme, but we do not recommend that the Training Officer role is undertaken by a relatively inexperienced new graduate. The role is straightforward when everything is going well, but would someone in this position feel confident dealing with a trainee who presents significant challenges? Would they be confident providing difficult feedback to a trainee whose work is not meeting the required standard, addressing issues of professional conduct, or providing pastoral care and support to a trainee experiencing difficulties?
Ideally, you should have substantial experience of managing others at a reasonably senior level and have completed all the mandatory training required to act as a line manager. If you do not have this level of seniority and management experience, you may still be able to act as a Training Officer. However, we recommend that you do so under the supervision of a more senior manager. The division of responsibilities between you and that manager should be formally documented and submitted as part of your application.
In addition to managing the trainee as an individual, you will also be responsible for overseeing their workload and directing and planning their training. You should have experience of undertaking postgraduate research so that you can support the trainee during their research project. If you do not, you will need to provide assurance that suitable arrangements have been made within the department to provide this support.
You should also have experience of assessing and signing off training activities. If you do not, you will need to identify individuals within the department who can carry out the required assessments. You will also need to familiarise yourself with the standard of evidence required to sign off assessments and training activities and ensure that this standard is applied consistently in both your own assessments and those carried out by colleagues.
Training and induction to the role
We ask all Training Officers to complete our ‘Training for Training Officers‘ and to cascade the learning to colleagues involved in delivering training. Ideally, you should also complete any in-house training available, including your Trust’s online learning, to support you in delivering training. Most Trust learning and development teams typically offer training programmes for educators.
Personal attributes
We recognise that you may not be able to provide definitive evidence of the personal attributes listed in the application form. However, we ask that you reflect on your strengths and areas for development as a trainer, identify any areas for improvement, and plan how you will access any support you may need.
Support for you as a Training Officer
The person specification outlines a number of best practice measures that will help ensure your role as a Training Officer is fully supported by your department. We ask you to indicate which of these measures are already in place. For any that are not yet in place, we ask you to confirm that you will work with your department to implement them.
For all other staff involved in any significant extent in training
This applies to any staff who will be taking on a significant amount of training and particularly assessment. We need to see that the majority of the people involved have experience of delivering training and assessment. Please complete the ‘Education and Training Qualifications’ form. You can include CVs, as additional evidence.