Frequently Asked Questions
General Questions
Why should we book with Argent Advancements?
By booking with Argent Advancements, you are supporting a small business, and this has some great benefits for you. For example, you will have the same contact throughout, and you will receive a personalised service.
We are able to keep our course prices very reasonable because our overheads are low, and we can be very flexible – perhaps being able to offer you training the very next day!
Additionally, our courses come with the highest recommendations. Most of our clients have found us through word of mouth. Our trainer has been delivering human centric workshops for over twenty years, and we regularly attend training courses ourselves, to keep on top of industry changes and new ways of thinking.
Where are you based?
We work from a small office in North Weald, Essex, U.K. Our offices are not open to the public.
Most of our courses take place in your company – we come to you and use your classroom. This offers you the most convenience, and keeps the costs reasonable.
Sometimes we book a classroom to hold events and sessions.
What areas do you cover?
Most of our clients are in the UK and Europe, but we can teach in most parts of the world. We also offer classes via Zoom or Microsoft Teams, so distance and travel costs needs not be an issue.
Your background is aviation based, are your courses suitable for other industries?
Absolutely, aviation has the reputation of being the gold standard for safety. Why not learn from experts with this industry who can adapt the course content to meet your needs.
Can you write us a bespoke course?
Yes, we’d love to! We do this often. Please get in touch to discuss your requirements.
What are your opening hours?
Unless it’s urgent, please try to only call us within UK office hours - Monday to Friday 9 till 5. For anything urgent that happens out of hours, a What’s App or text message is usually best. Urgent things may include needing to cancel a course at the last minute. If you’re taking your course online and you need help with anything, unless urgent, we will help you during normal office hours.
DO you take Equality, Diversity and Inclusion seriously?
We do! We are proud to be founding members at Neurodiversity in Business. And you can read our EQI policy here.
Can we see your data protection policy?
Yes, you can find that here.
Can we see your complaints policy?
In over twelve years of trading, we are yet to receive a complaint, but we aren’t complacent, therefore, if you wish to speak to us about an issue, please send an email in the first instance.
How do we read your reviews?
Our excellent reviews can be read here.
How can we leave you a review?
Reviews are vital for a small business like Argent Advancements, and your reviews mean the world to us. You can leave us a Google review here, or email us with your comments.
Do you offer Train the Trainer courses?
These courses aren’t run on a regular basis, but are available upon request. Please get in touch to discuss your requirements.
Who needs Human Factors training, and why?
Most people within the aviation industry require this training by law. You can find further details via your local Aviation Authority – such as the UK CAA.
We recommend HF training for everyone who works in the aviation industry, because an error can occur anywhere within the system.
We believe that Human Factors training will benefit and be of interest to anyone, in any industry, but our courses are especially suitable for safety critical industries such as Aviation, Healthcare, and Railways and Transport.
What’s you cancellation policy?
Argent Advancements reserve the right to invoice you if you cancel your booking in line with the following:
If you cancel our services within one month of the scheduled course / event, 50% of payment is due.
If you cancel our services within two weeks of the scheduled course / event 100% of payment is due.
Questions about face to face training
Where do you hold your courses?
We come to you in your office. This means we do the travelling, so you and your team don’t have to. This helps keep the costs down for you, too. Don’t worry if you don’t have a classroom, we can use your canteen or workshop.
How much is a classroom based course or event?
It may vary depending on the group size and your location, but to keep things really simple we charge you per day and not per person, so your cost per person may be as little as £70 if you have a larger group (the largest group we tend to take is 16 people.)
What’s the course duration?
Our courses vary from a few hours, to a few days. Please get in touch to discuss your needs.
How many people can attend?
We like to work with no more than 16 people for classroom style learning. For wellbeing a mental health workshops and events we may ask for smaller groups depending on the activities taking place.
How do we pay you?
We usually send an invoice to our business customers. (We don’t need you to send us a Purchase Order, but if you do need to raise one, we will quote it on your invoice.) Payment can then be made by BACS, by Credit Card, or by PayPal. There will be a charge for Credit Card payments. Please note, course certificates will not be sent until payment has cleared our bank account.
When will we receive our certificates?
You will receive your certificates after payment has cleared our bank account. Often we are chased by people for their certificates, when really it is their accounts payable department who need a little nudge! If you haven’t received your certificates after a week of payment being made, then please get in touch with us.
Will there be a test or exam?
For our face to face classes, we expect to see you participate and show interest. This is how we decide if you have passed the course. Please be willing to participate as best you can.
What are the courses like?
Some of the words people use to describe our courses are: “fun, enjoyable, interesting, eye- opening, important, relaxed, engaging, interactive, empowering, life changing, thought provoking and entertaining.”
I have some additional needs, how can I let you know about them?
Prior to the course you will receive an email asking you about any learning requirements, any medical conditions we need to know about, and if you would like us to know anything else about you in advance. Please reply to this email if necessary to help us be inclusive and accommodating.
Questions about our online courses
Where do I go to take your online courses?
You can take our online courses here.
How much does it cost?
A typical online course is £60, but bundles are available if you buy several courses together.
What’s the duration of the course
The online courses are completed by most people in 3 hours or so.
Do I have to take my online course all at once?
No, you can come back to it at your convenience.
Is there a time limit on the online courses?
You can take as long as you need to complete your online training. Once you have finished, your account will become inactive, but can be reactivated when you next need it.
Is there a test at the end?
There is a short multiple choice question at the end of all our aviation based courses. The mental health courses don’t have a test at the end.
What happens if I fail the test?
If you fail the test we can chat on the phone or via email to see where you went wrong, and to give you some additional instruction if needed.
How do I download my certificate?
Please follow these instructions.
How long is my certificate valid for?
The mandated aviation courses such as Human Factors have a certificate expiry date of two years. After that you need to take a refresher course, as per aviation regulations. Other non aviation course certificates do not have an expiry date.
My account is showing “inactive” what do I do?
We make your account inactive after you have downloaded your certificate because it keeps the costs down for you and all other uses (we pay a price for each license and we don’t want to pass these costs on to our clients.)
If you find your account is inactive, just get in touch and we will reactivate it for you.
I have trouble reading, is there a video course available?
Most of our courses have narration for you to listen to. If you have specific needs just give us a call and we will try our very best to accommodate you.
What happens if I am having a technical issue?
If you have an issue with your technology, try logging on on a different device (we recommend you try a laptop). If that doesn’t work, give us a call within usual office hours.
Do I need a laptop to take the course?
The online courses should work on your mobile, but if you experience any glitches, we recommend trying again on a laptop before contacting us.
How can I pay?
You can either pay online via PayPal, or a Credit Card, or if you are a company, we can send you an invoice.
I am a contractor in the aviation industry, are your courses suitable for me?
Yes, our courses have been taken my many hundreds of contractors. If your agency asks for proof that you took the course, or any other information, please ask them to email felicity@argentadvancements.com
Wellbeing and Mental Health Courses
What can you offer us?
We can offer all sorts! Our most popular course is a mixture of learning and practical activities. You can find the details for that here.
We can offer you meditation sessions, breathwork sessions, sessions to help change people’s mindsets, we can help you to feel confident talking about suicide. We can offer you holistic / complementary therapies such as Bio- Energy Healing. We have many associates who could offer you and your team guided counselling sessions, Systematic Kinesiology, sound healing sessions, sessions about nutrition, and so much more. Please get in touch if you’d like to learn more or have us create you a wellness package.
What training have you had?
Our trainer Felicity holds a diploma in Bio-Energy therapy, and has worked in the complementary medicine field for many years. She has qualified as a meditation teacher, and holds certificates is many other wellness disciplines.
Why should we offer our staff these courses and events?
With 1 in 4 people being diagnosed with poor mental health, you really would be naïve to think it’s not going on in your organisation. Poor mental health makes people feel rotten. It can lead to errors and mistakes, and lost productivity. Poor mental health can ruin relationships and can have devastating consequences. It makes so much sense to support your team with wellbeing education and events. The question should really be, why wouldn’t you offer your support?
DO you hold courses for managers?
Yes, our sessions for managers give them the knowledge and confidence to spot poor mental health, and then have any necessary conversations with their team.
What’s your take on Equality, Diversity, and inclusion?
We take it very seriously. We actually offer a course to help you learn about this important topic. We work hard to make our classroom environment inclusive for everyone.
can you recommend other wellbeing specialists?
Yes, we work closely with other wellbeing specialist. Please see our recommendations here.