Wilplan Close Protection Course - The Blog

D

Dizmo

Full Registered User
Greetings all.

I thought I'd let you all know what I think to the Wilplan Training CP course day by day whilst I tackle it!

Day 1 (yesterday)

FPOS(I) course Monday - Thursday.

First day of the course wasn't what I expected! After a 2 hour car journey to the site I was expecting to have a site introduction and then cover the basics of First Aid at Work to ease everyone into the course. I was completely wrong, the course started intense, covering the basics but also dealing with reading of pulses, blood pressure and o2 stats. Although I was wrong I enjoyed the intensity and I can expect today to be even more intense. This part of the course is a training provider requirement so you have to do it but should you fail it won't stop you from going onto the CP part of the course Friday onwards.

So to conclude (as I'm now running late for breakfast)...

Intense but enjoyable and the knowledge you take in from the first day alone is great. The tutors are great and have a good sense of humour - a requirement to get through the course without losing the will to live. The only downside - you don't finish till at least 17:00. First day: finished at 19:00. Accommodation is sufficient, the food (in with the package) is of a good standard and as far as the breakfast is concerned; I'll let you know!

That's it for now guys, I'll try and get back every day and let you know how things are progressing.
 
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Day 2 (Tuesday 22nd April 2014) (yesterday)

FPOS(I) Monday - Thursday

It's now early morning of the third day. Showered, dressed and already ready for breakfast! So what happened yesterday? At around 8:00 my roommate and I went for breakfast. I promised I’d let you know what my opinion of the food was like however given that my stomach doesn’t always agree with grease at that time in the morning I opted out of eating a full ‘Lancastrian’ breakfast. So all I can say about the breakfast is; the cereal and toast was nice.

Once we’d finished breakfast our team (the designated team to turn the water boilers on, make sure there were sufficient mugs, ensure lighting was on, check to make sure there was access to fire exits via exit routes, etc) arrived at 8:45 ready to start the day at 9:00. Yesterday was just as intense as Monday however all the procedures learnt yesterday ‘dropped into place’ alongside those learnt on Monday – this made it easier to take in. I’m not going to go into specifics as I don’t want to spoil the experience, not only that but if you decide to come on the FPOS(I) course your tutor may teach the curriculum in a slightly different order.

So I’ll just summarise with some annoying to remember (at first) acronyms:

Day 1: DRSCABC, LIONEL, CPR, BP’s (basic), Stats (basic), clearing airways (basic) primary survey and there’s loads more...

Day 2: As above including CAT Bleeds (using of tourniquets, applying pressure), DEFIB, Clearing airways (more advanced) OPA, NPA, o2 , Burns (including scolds), Shock, primary and secondary survey and loads of other important bits of information regarding procedures and understanding Latin terminology.

The food menu (whether you are staying in the hotel or not) is the same for Wilplan trainees as it is for anyone else apart from you can have the ‘à la carte menu’ ((in a restaurant) referring to food that can be ordered as separate items, rather than part of a set meal) if you are willing to pay the difference in price. The menu changes every day so you won’t have to endure 3 weeks of the same food. This, especially for picky eaters like myself can be a little awkward but the hotel have accommodated my dietary requirements so far so hats off to them. I was panicking that I’d be eating steak for 3 weeks solid and end up with meat blindness!
You get your breakfast (continental and full Lancastrian breakfast) and evening meal (2 courses) included in the accommodation package however please be aware that if you, like me, don’t usually have a starter and wish to have a main and a dessert to remind the waitress/waiter that you want a dessert. Apparently because most people have a starter instead of a dessert the waitress/waiter may not remember to ask if you wish for a dessert. I know this because I asked a waitress and that’s what she said!

No doubt if I get any replies to this blog someone is going to say “why do you spend as much time talking about food as you do the course?â€; it’s rather simple..... After a long day (usually between 9 – 10 hours) the food side of the package is extremely welcoming, especially after 10 hours of solid studying and then homework!
So guys and gals I hope you’re enjoying my blog as much as I am writing it. Keep tuned for today’s highlights which will be posted at roughly the same time tomorrow morning.
 
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Day 3 & 4 (Wednesday 23nd & Thursday 24th April 2014) (yesterday)

FPOS(I) Monday – Thursday
Apologies for not updating my blog over the past two days, they have been extremely hectic!
I’m going to cut this one short as the real fun came on Thursday. Wednesday was, in my opinion, boring and extremely stressing on the brain. Most of the morning we were sat watching slide shows crammed packed with information which I found really hard to take in. It’s imperative that if you do decide to come on this course that you read the learning material given to you; this has to be done in your own time and since the course generally doesn’t end till 17:00 – 19:00 every night you only get a few hours to yourself to eat, study and wind down.

The final day of FPOS(I)…

Yesterday was by far the most exciting but stressful both on the mind but also on the body. In the morning we were given about an hour to familiarise ourselves with our kit and to do any last minute practicing before the examination. Then came the physical examination which is done in pairs and we decided that we were going to go first (oh how I wish we hadn’t). The physical exam isn’t particularly hard however it’s the ‘not knowing what to expect’ (exactly what you’d have to deal with in a real life scenario) aspect which can cause mistakes to be made. We finished the exam and were both deferred because whilst trying to save the manikins life neither of us called for an ambulance. It sounds stupid that anyone would forget to do something so simple as to ask for medical assistance but when there are two of you you concentrate more on communicating with each other and a simple thing like calling 999 can be missed. After taking the examination again with a different partner I passed more or less in the first 3 minutes.

Now comes the fun bit, outside scenarios!

For about 3 hours you are thrown into situations which not only test your mental ability but also your physical ability. You’re expected to safely get people out of cars, carry people with broken legs in battlefield conditions and help people who are being aggressive, abusive or are unable to speak English. One of my patients with a broken leg was shouting and swearing at me constantly while his mate was laid face down with a gunshot wound. There was fake blood pouring everywhere, abusive language and the potential risk of being shot by enemy riflemen. All in all it was good fun but you need to have a lot of energy both mentally and physically.
So the final part of the day…

The paper exam (multiple choice) 25 questions, 45 minutes to complete. I passed!
 
Course Complete!

Hey all,

Sorry for not giving a full day to day of the course - I was too busy to update. I've finished the course now and just wanted to offer up my opinion of Wilplan as a Training Provider. I personally give them 10/10. They ticked all of the boxes for me and the fact that the hotel is next to the office/classroom is just great. Not only were they supportive throughout the 21 days but have also offered to help in any way they can for the future - jobs, C.V reviews, advice and anything else that the team can do to help all that have trained with them. If you want to go on a Close Protection course and wish to pass without doing the work then don't choose Wilplan Training Ltd; they aren't a 'turn up and pass' training provider. The course is physical and mentally challenging so a good level of fitness is required however you do not need to be built like Arnold Schwarzenegger.

On the Wilplan website you will notice, if you have done some research, that you can share accommodation with a member of the same sex. This, in my opinion, is a good thing to choose - not only for the financial saving but also for mental support. The hotel is, as I have mentioned in my above posts, adequate. The rooms are clean, the food is nice and more importantly the staff are polite, professional and friendly.

I'm not going to go into full detail of the course as I'd be here all day and night typing.

If you have any questions regarding my experience then please do get in contact with me. If it's regarding the course outline and costs then obviously I'd advise you to speak to Claire or a member of the team at Wilplan Training. Claire is a lovely person and will spend hours on the phone answering all your questions.
 
Hey everyone. I can't seem to edit any of my previous comments, which is probably good to some extent, given that it was nearly 9 years ago when I wrote this 'not finished' blog. Something I have noticed, after reading only a few paragraphs in.... It's 'o2 sats' (stands for oxygen saturation), not 'o2 stats'. That really annoys the hell out of me, sorry about that!
 
I should also mention that Wilplan Training Ltd is no longer an active company - the company closed its doors in August 2018. It was a sad day when they closed up shop, however I was fortunate enough to get to train with them. I know I've already said this, however I'm going to say it again, thanks Gary (sorry, I can't remember the names of everyone else that worked with you).
 
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