Face to face1 day
Emergency First Aid at Work
Hands-on CPR, choking and injury response for the workplace, delivered by qualified instructors.
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Oliver's CampaignOliver McGowan Tier 2Training Provider
Help your staff understand the person behind the behaviour.
Practical, engaging training for care teams supporting autistic people and people with learning disabilities.
Workplace delivery | Team training | UK-wide
Experts with lived experience of learning disabilities and autism
Each Oliver McGowan Tier 2 course is co‑delivered by experts with lived experience of autism and learning disabilities, ensuring this training is grounded in authentic, personal experience rather than theory alone.
Adult social care providers may be able to claim funding towards eligible training.
Care Training That Actually Sticks
eLearning and face-to-face courses built for care providers, support workers and healthcare teams across the UK.
Our courses
Face to face & eLearningBlended1 day eLearning + 2 days classroom
First Aid at Work
Cover the theory at your own pace online, then join us in the classroom for two days of practical skills and assessment.
Enquire nowFace to face1 day
Paediatric First Aid
Essential first aid for those caring for babies and children — from choking and allergic reactions to head injuries — ideal for early years and school staff.
Enquire nowMandatory standardTier 2
Oliver McGowan Tier 2
The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism — helping eligible care providers meet their learning disability and autism training requirements.
Read our Oliver McGowan Tier 2 guide →Enquire nowFace to face1 day
Moving & Positioning
Safe manual handling, hoisting and transfer techniques that protect the people you support and your staff.
Enquire nowBespokeCustom
eLearning Development
Tailored digital courses built around your policies, your brand and the way your team learns.
Enquire nowWho we help
We work with organisations where training has to survive a busy day — and still be there when it matters. The vast majority of our training is delivered face to face, at your workplace or at a venue near you, wherever you are in the UK. Some first aid courses can also include a classroom session.
Care homes & nursing settings
First aid, moving & positioning and mandatory training delivered around shift patterns, so nobody has to miss a handover.
Supported living & learning disabilities services
Oliver McGowan Tier 2 and person-centred refresher training for teams supporting autistic people and people with learning disabilities.
Home care & domiciliary teams
Practical eLearning your field staff can complete between visits, with face-to-face sessions for hands-on skills.
Nurseries & early years
Paediatric First Aid and safeguarding training for staff caring for babies and young children.
Schools & colleges
First aid, safeguarding and Mental Capacity Act training for teaching staff, teaching assistants and site teams.
Healthcare & community teams
Blended programmes for clinical and non-clinical staff, with completion records kept in one place.
About us
Essential Care Skills is a family-run training company based in West Yorkshire. We deliver face-to-face courses — from Emergency First Aid at Work to the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training — alongside bespoke eLearning and LMS implementation for care providers and healthcare teams across the UK.
Andrew started out in the Prison Service, working in Safeguarding, developing programmes for people who were autistic, and helping people who couldn't read to find their way back into learning. Since then he has worked across health and social care, developing training that improves staff performance and improves the lives of the people being supported. He's an IQA — so everything we deliver is held to a properly quality-assured standard.
Andrew is supported by his wife Penelope, who has worked in learning disabilities and mental health for many years. Penelope is an assessor and an IQA too, which means your learning really is in good hands. Together — along with two dogs, two cats and a home in West Yorkshire — they're passionate about delivering worthwhile training. Training that sticks.
A
Andrew
Founder, trainer & IQA
Began his career in the Prison Service, working in Safeguarding, developing programmes for autistic people and helping people who couldn't read to reconnect with learning. He then moved into health and social care, developing training that improves staff performance — and the lives of the people being supported.
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Penelope
Assessor & IQA
Has worked in learning disabilities and mental health for many years. As an assessor and IQA, she makes sure every learner is properly supported and fairly assessed — your learning is in good hands.
Practical, not box-ticking
Every session is built around real care scenarios, so skills hold up long after the certificate is on the wall.
Both worlds
Qualified instructors in the classroom, and the eLearning know-how to bring the same quality online.
On your side at inspection
Training and records designed to evidence compliance — for CQC and your own peace of mind.
Mandatory training, developed for you
Bespoke eLearningWe build eLearning on the mandatory topics every care team needs — from Safeguarding to the Mental Capacity Act — tailored to your service, your policies and the way your team learns.
Safeguarding
Recognising signs of harm, raising concerns and keeping the people you support safe — written around your policies and your team's roles.
Mental Capacity Act
Capacity assessments, best-interest decisions and consent, explained in plain language with real care scenarios throughout.
Need other mandatory topics too — infection prevention, medication, fire safety or anything else? If your team needs it, we can build it. Tell us what you need
LMS implementation
Moving your training online? We set up your learning management system, load your courses and get your teams learning — without the headache. Done with you, not to you.
- 1
Choose & set up
We help you pick the right platform and configure it around your structure — teams, roles and reporting lines.
- 2
Load your courses
Your existing courses and the eLearning we develop for you, uploaded, organised and ready to assign.
- 3
Launch & track
We get your people enrolled and show you how to monitor completions, so nothing slips through the cracks.
Training care teams with courses that stand up to inspection.
Certified
Experienced trainers
Certificates
Included for every learner
UK-wide
On-site & online delivery
Enquire about training
Tell us about your team and we'll recommend the right course or eLearning solution for you.
Chat on WhatsApp
Or email us directly at Hello@essentialcareskills.co.uk · www.essentialcareskills.co.uk