dead.duck:
I’m still considering training at PSTT and I’ll travel double the distance. Good to know how to get prepared for that. Is there really no Wi-Fi in the hotel?
There is I just couldn’t get a connection on the iPad
Pandion:
I’d hoped I could share an experience that I got wrong and be able to be honest without it appearing like I’m blaming other people. Just that it hadn’t worked for me and maybe some elements of my experience would stop others making the same mistake.
I’m sure this thread will help people prepare for the course and help people to ask the right questions.
Like Pete said, it is unusual for people to just quit but then your mind was clearly in a very bad place after 2 days of training and not helped by your poor short term memory.
You may find getting a driving job helpful before doing another course, such as supermarket customer deliveries. Companies such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Asda, Iceland, often have 3.5 tonne box vans that they use for home delivery that you can drive on a car licence. These jobs are usually part-time.
Another alternative, could be getting a bus driving job as companies will often train you themselves so you don’t have to pay. However, the bus company will expect you to work for them for 1 or 2 years in return for the free training.
Are you planning on going back to Petes for a second go?
IMO accomodation was okay. Wouldn’t book it for my holidays but I’ve stayed in far worst places.
I can understand Pete defending his business. And I was really happy with the service I got from him. So happy I sent my little brother to do his class 2 and 1 as well. We both were pretty pleased. And both did the residential.
I think it’s fair to point out the downsides to the residential courses. But not the ones you have pointed out. The biggest pain is having to travel a fair distance for retests and the associated costs if you fail a test.
All the best with your future plans. I am no longer driving but looking back really enjoyed my training. Was one of the highlights of my driving career. At times I found it stressful - and both my instructors had to tell me firmly (which I appreciate) once or twice to sort myself out. But they did their job well. If the instructor is the one I’m thinking off (as you say lady) I spoke to her when I did my training and she seemed absolutely lovely.
I have no axe to grind in this thread, took my course and test decades ago.
All i will say to any person contemplating getting into HGV driving, if the hardships of a fairly basic but ‘free’ hotel, together with it’s less than state of the art wifi for handful of nights is really going to cause you issues, then i strongly suggest that the industry may not your best career choice.
I’d love to get away for a week or so. I’m a stay-at-home mum of 5. That would be a relaxing, peaceful time even including training and test. And driving 400miles (one way) without anyone moaning, complaining and asking ‘how far’… 
sammym:
Are you planning on going back to Petes for a second go?IMO accomodation was okay. Wouldn’t book it for my holidays but I’ve stayed in far worst places.
I can understand Pete defending his business. And I was really happy with the service I got from him. So happy I sent my little brother to do his class 2 and 1 as well. We both were pretty pleased. And both did the residential.
I think it’s fair to point out the downsides to the residential courses. But not the ones you have pointed out. The biggest pain is having to travel a fair distance for retests and the associated costs if you fail a test.
All the best with your future plans. I am no longer driving but looking back really enjoyed my training. Was one of the highlights of my driving career. At times I found it stressful - and both my instructors had to tell me firmly (which I appreciate) once or twice to sort myself out. But they did their job well. If the instructor is the one I’m thinking off (as you say lady) I spoke to her when I did my training and she seemed absolutely lovely.
Yes we got on fine, it’s why I wanted to see her and explain my decision and thank her for her time. We finished on a handshake and all the best.
Maybe the career ain’t for you. How would you get on with the 15 hr shifts? Sleeping in a lay-by rocking all night?.. come to think about it, maybe the career ain’t for me either
Pandion has had his say and has possibly highlighted some points that upcoming candidates might find useful. I’ve replied to ensure that the context is correct.
As far as I’m concerned, end of thread!
Pete 
Unlocked as I still believe in people being allowed to voice their opinion as long as it’s done in a civil and fair manner!
Pandion:
I’d like to start by saying non of this is about slagging off Peter Smythe Transport, just that I didn’t do my due diligence and have ended up massively out of pocket and a week off with nothing to show for itI’ve ended up making a huge financial and emotional mistake which with more research and asking questions should have been avoided.
I think these two parts, to me anyway, show that the fault wasn’t with PSTT but with the OP
It’s plain that the OP didn’t look anywhere enough into what was needed for the test and it’s been a costly exercise.
All details are on Petes website and as already pointed out a simple call and all questions could have been answered much more easily that trying to figure out when actually on the course
The accommodation is basic but it’s clean and handy, noise is dependent on the person, each of us have our own tolerance on what we call too noisy
I understand Petes view , after all it’s his business, but don’t think any malice was meant at all, I think the OP is more peeved at himself as it’s his own failing to get all the info that’s out him where he is unfortunately the post didn’t convey that as much as OP meant to
Just shows that before committing to such a large cost DO YOUR HOMEWORK!!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
In regards to the original post I don’t think it was best practice to mention the name of the company if the post was simply to warn warn others of residential courses and poor planning.
I also think you can tell a lot about a company and the culture by the way they respond to customer complaints and concerns, I’m not sure reacting assertively on a public forum is the best way to do this. Perhaps a 1-2-1 phone call with the client or at least a written invitation to discuss the matter would have been more professional, but who am I to say.
PSTT clearly run a very slick operation and going through these forums its clear to see many have gone through the system with no issues which is great to see, for something that can be so difficult to learn and so intensive.
I had an experience with a company based in the midlands that offers residential courses. I enquired one afternoon about driving to the centre (about 100 miles) to get a feel for the place, and I was encouraged to pay a deposit over the phone to secure a place. When I declined this option it was then put to me that I could pay a smaller deposit that would definitely be refunded if I changed my mind. This was enough to put me off using an organisation like this unfortunately due to high pressure sales techniques. Instead I opted for a local family run firm (that the person in question slagged off when I mentioned them on the phone) and had a fantastic experience.
I think the OP is right, that before anyone commits £1200+ on a training course they should do some research and get a feel for the company and where possible seek reviews of others negative and positive. I personally found doing my training locally was much easier but each to their own.
Good luck in the future, I’m sure you’ll get it right next time. As for anyone else, God help you if you need to complain to PSTT 
Just shows that before committing to such a large cost DO YOUR HOMEWORK!!
Regular readers will be well aware that I often give exactly that advice. Anyone considering training should only book having visited the training centre and satisfied themselves that they will be comfortable with what is on offer OR book on rock solid recommendation.
Many folks take the second route with us and it’s almost unheard of for us to have any negative feedback. Put simply, we just cant afford to get it wrong as it’s very easy to loose a hard-earned reputation.
I’ve mentioned it previously, but I’ll repeat. Any questions, please call the training centre 01623 555661 and you will get a straightforward answer.
Pete
God help you if you need to complain to PSTT
I have no problem with the OP airing his views and, on balance, it’s clear he’s beating himself up as he made very little preparation for the training.
As the discussion started on a public forum, I see no problem with responding on the same forum.
I think the comment quoted above was a bit tongue in cheek - fair enough! But we receive very, very few negative comments and these are dealt with fairly and generously. The company is run exactly as it always has been. Yes, we need to make a profit. But we need to rob no-one and everybody should be happy they’ve had a fair deal. That’s how I was brought up and thousands of folks have been very happy. I fully understand I come over as defensive. Those who are familiar with the industry will know that our standards are quite different to the “run of the mill” and, as a result, yes I’m going to defend what we do. And I’ll also be the first to admit when something goes wrong.
Pete
Peter Smythe:
Pandion has had his say and has possibly highlighted some points that upcoming candidates might find useful. I’ve replied to ensure that the context is correct.As far as I’m concerned, end of thread!
Pete
Peter, with respect, who made you the king of trucknet?
You cannot command ‘end of thread’ as you see fit I’m afraid - sponsor or not.
I appreciate what you’ve said, but I thought the OP made some very valid points all the same.
This is a free online public forum, with all that that entails. Views are here to be heard, good, bad ,or indifferent, by all. If you Google trucknet, it’s all there, logged in or otherwise, whether one is viewing as a member or a guest viewer, simply put, it’s, ‘out there’ - all day long.
You argue that that the trainee didn’t ask the right questions, but then I suppose any potential trainee could argue the same in return. He/she is a trainee after all, probably coming in, ‘blind’, and may well need some guidance. Your staff may not have also asked the right questions in this instance. No one is perfect.
Regarding the above, did you or your staff ask appropriate questions? For example - Did you sleep well?, How is the guest house?, Is there anything at all that you are not happy about? There can often can be a awful lot riding on the outcome, with people having saved up for a long time just to be able to present themselves before you or any of your staff, so naturally they may be nervous.
In this instance, the guest house is just an extension of yourselves, no? Think Thomsons/TUI/Thomas Cook. It’s a package deal offered by you. Just like a holiday. You are responsible for the offerings and the quality of service they deliver, namely in this case, a decent night’s sleep amongst other things. The guest house is essentially operating as an extension of your company, which makes you responsible, like it or not. Trust me on this one.
You should also give any trainee an opportunity to voice their concerns without having to be asked, remember they are trainees after all and perhaps a bit nervous. It’s all about asking the right questions - you too Peter.
I have read your posts for years now, but your defence does seem just that, defensive.
I have been a night trunker for many years and still love seeing new people coming into the industry and I’m always happy to help newbies out when required. I have read this forum almost daily since around 2006 and signed up some years later, but comment only occasionally, but I do think the OP had some valid points, and your response clouded your judgement just the same. You were clearly angry, but no one gets it 100% right, 100% of the time.
Personally, I think the OP was nowhere near ready for testing, but from what I have read more could’ve been done sooner to identify the problem.
Just some constructive criticism, but maybe you should cut the trainee a little bit of slack here. And do have a word with your guest house maybe? OP was entitled to a quiet nights sleep regardless and this didn’t happen. Comments on here about them are not that great.
I would imagine that as these issues have been brought to the attention of the training provider that they will be pointed out to future trainees so a public forum is a good place in which to highlight those issues IMO
Perhaps the provider could book rooms which are more beneficial to those on their courses 
I first saw the thread on Saturday. I spent the entire weekend worrying about what had gone on. So I was in the office at daft o clock on Monday and, by 10 I’d spoken to the instructor involved, examined the training records, checked that all information was sent correctly and on time (the day the course was booked). I have, since then, gone through everything we send out in the way of information to make sure it’s current and complete. It is. With the best will in the world, I cant make any recipient read the information supplied.
Yes, we’ll mention to the hotel that we’d prefer quiet rooms.
I am still very concerned that we have a customer who has not achieved their aim but I am comfortable that we have done everything that we could be reasonably asked to do - and more.
If I’ve given the impression that I am capable of locking a thread, that just isn’t the case. I have no facility to do so. Neither do I consider myself to be “king of Trucknet” .
But what I do is to run one of the finest training establishments in the UK, achieving some of the best results and with literally thousands of very happy customers.
Pete
As somebody who is also travelling a fair few hours to Pete’s place to train in a few weeks, I was also worried about the B&B that is offered being a light sleeper.
I paid for my own B&B somewhere quieter. I know the one that’s offered is free which is very kind - but it might be a nice option to offer the value towards the course fee if people wanted to book their own. Or towards a different place to stay.
Would be a nice touch imo, but then again that’s just my view as a customer
Even hotels in a quiet location can be noisy if one of the guests starts snoring at night, as the walls in hotels are often thin. Take some foam ear plugs with you just in case.
So Peter Smythe doesn’t think his company has fallen short, yet the OP has clearly not had a good experience. Two opposing opinions.
Peter will clearly defend his company, and the OP will clearly have to justify their ‘critique’.
It’s a bit annoying that someone cannot go to a lot of trouble to write their experience without it having to be countered in such a defensive manner.
It’s not as if there are people lining up to criticise PSTT, most give it glowing praise. So why the need to invalidate someone’s opinion?
If a person has a bad experience, surely you can soak that up Peter? You get enough plaudits on here, yet don’t respond to all of them with reams of responses.
You can’t please everyone, that is a fact of life. I would think it took a lot for the OP to post their experience in the hope it may help someone else, and also to vent a little.
Why the need to feel you have to counter that so clinically? You’re clearly a very good company with many happy customers, but seeking to disprove someone’s experience is not a good look.
It just all plays into this modern phenomena of not being able to criticise ‘greatness’ because it goes against the grain.
I have a lot of respect for high quality training companies, and it seems you do set the bar high, but does that really mean you are perfect??
Criticism is hard to take, but surely in the corporate world it offers an opportunity for improvement■■?
Anyway, I’ve said enough, and I rarely post here, but this one just grated a little…
Peter has taken the comments on board - he said as much in a previous post