Training

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Training

If you have been awarded training on your DSA equipment with Barry Bennett, you will need to place the order with us by submitting your DSA funding approval letter. Place your training order.

Our dedicated team of trainers are all DBS checked and specialise in working with students with visual and hearing impairments, learning difficulties, physical disabilities and mental health issues. Where necessary we can provide chaperones, female only trainers, carer support training and translators for hearing impaired students.

If you have any special requirements then please make a note of them when you submit your order, or simply make our scheduling team aware when they contact you to arrange your training.


Training
What can I expect during a training session?
Once we have greeted and introduced ourselves to you, we then set about establishing your needs. We will ask questions about your IT background and knowledge of the equipment and software you have received.

We then proceed to get an overview of your disability needs and requirements from the training sessions. We will round this up with questions about how you like to study, work and organise yourself and the type of course which you are doing. With this knowledge we will then start to implement the training, confident that the session will be fully adapted to your individual needs.

We believe that there is a great requirement to be organised during your studies and we will assist you with the skills and techniques necessary to implement this into your day-to-day routine.

We will adapt the system to your specific requirements - this may be as little as setting up a document template with your preferred colour of background, font size and type, borders, word and line spacing etc. through to full system colours, icons and shortcuts, work back up and general IT usage to make this the least part of studying that needs attention.

Finally, we will move on to train on the supplied equipment / software, showing you how to use this to ensure that your study and work is achieved with minimal effort and that you are fully supported throughout.

Training sessions can be carried out face-to-face at your home, campus or alternatively, remotely via a broadband internet connection.
With one of the largest and most experienced AT remote training teams in the UK, we are able to provide a customer tailored service that is perfectly placed to train and support students in your requested environment at a date and time which is most convenient for you.

Our remote training sessions are delivered using a hugely successful internet based training deployment software with the highest security end-to-end 128-bit AES encryption. All our trainers are either certified as, or working towards, Edexcel Level 3 Award in Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector (QCF), or equivalent.

The training can be carried out on a one-to-one or group basis giving carers and support workers the opportunity to join in the sessions. You can request male or female trainers and choose from morning, afternoon, evening and weekend availability.

Benefits and features of remote access training:

  • Delays due to traffic & weather conditions are eliminated, so the session starts when you want it to start
  • Training can be carried out with and without a webcam, giving you as much interaction as you wish
  • We are able (if you wish) to record the full training session for later viewing and referral so the benefits of the session are never lost
  • You have full control throughout and can chose to end the session at any time if you wish to do so
  • Almost all software training can be carried out remotely, the main exception being VI products as this is best carried out in person
  • Distance is no object – if you have placements abroad they can still access first class AT training and refresher sessions
  • Mental health issues and anxiety can be relieved as you do not need to allow a stranger into your personal space, or travel to an alternative location such as a library
  • Technical issues are minimised as you can access the trainer's computer if your own computer software has a glitch, so the session is not compromised and the technical issues can be resolved afterwards
  • Choice is key, so if you start your first session of remote training but find, for any reason, that it's not suitable for you, then we will bring the session to a close and reschedule the full session on-site at no loss to the yourself
  • The convenience of being able to access training on weekends or evenings is ideal if you are on fulltime courses such as nursing and engineering
Supplier quotes

Dolphin Logo
"We were really impressed by all the trainers from Barry Bennett, not only did they demonstrate excellent knowledge of our products (all achieved between 90 and 100% pass for their Accreditation), but also the ability to teach their own knowledge to others successfully. All are really competent, valued Dolphin trainers, and very pleasant people too."
Paul Bishop, Training Products Manager


Claro Logo
"Claro Software enjoys its relationship with North West partner Barry Bennett. The close proximity of the two businesses results in a continuous working relationship, supporting the needs of our customers and product enhancements."
Dave Stevens, Director Claro Software


Texthelp Logo
"We, at Texthelp, are very proud to work with the Barry Bennett team. All Barry Bennett's trainers have received Texthelp's rigorous certified training accreditation, meaning that we are confident that they can offer training of the highest standard on our software."
Texthelp


Nuance Logo
"Barry Bennett Ltd have been an accredited Dragon VAR for over ten years, three of which more recently as a Dragon Premier Partner. They support a nationwide team of trained staff specialising within the assistive technology arena, specifically the Special Education Needs sector, as well as the various Government Access to Work schemes. As a Government QAG approved DSA supplier, Barry Bennett Ltd maintain Dragon Certified Instructors for the variety of their in-house and external user training courses. In addition to which, Barry Bennett Ltd now also have access to the complete range of Nuance desktop multi-user software licensing products."
Jonathan Whitmore


Matchware Logo
"Barry Bennett's staff are well prepared, organised and conscientious in the way they approach supplying equipment and training to DSA students. When we started supplying MindView to DSA funded students we chose Barry Bennett as our main supplier. This has proven to be a great decision as MindView is now the most recommended Mind-Mapping tool for DSA students. One of the main reasons for our rapid growth in the sector has been the annual Barry Bennett training events. We find these to be the best way available to us to get in front of DSA decision makers, from trainers to assessors to disability service managers."
David Kidd


Notetalker Logo
"We have been working with Barry Bennet for over 10 years and rate them highly on their dedication to high service levels and customer satisfaction. They are also a great team to work with and this shows through in the professional and friendly way they organise the annual workshops for assessors. These workshops play a key role in ensuring assessors who attend have a thorough working knowledge of the very latest technology which can be passed onto their student charges."
Jeremy Brassington


Olympus Logo
"Olympus have been working with Barry Bennetts for a number of years, and they have been instrumental in establishing the Olympus range within the DSA and ATW markets. The annual Barry Bennett Assessor Conferences offer a unique opportunity to meet with Assessors to not only deliver training, but to also gain feedback for product future development. Due to the experience and vast knowledge of the Barry Bennett team Olympus hold regular R&D meetings with them to present new products before release, and their advice, feedback and guidance has been invaluable in our product developments."
Lee Buckley


LexAble Logo
"All of Barry Bennett's trainers have taken and passed our accreditation training course(all passed with distinction), so we are confident they can pass on their knowledge to their students to ensure they all get maximum benefit from Global AutoCorrect. Our support is ongoing, as we are about to accredit them in the latest versions of PC and Mac Global AutoCorrect. On a personal note, I was particularly impressed with the level and standard of questions fired at be by the trainers on our software, and incorporating it within their students coping strategies."
Bob Preston