Tag: Certificates Course

Act Now Announces New EU GDPR Practitioner Certificate 

Act Now is pleased to announce the launch of its new EU GDPR Practitioner Certificate course.

This new course is specially designed for Data Protection Officers and privacy practitioners, based in the EU and internationally, whose role involves advising on the EU GDPR and associated privacy legislation. The content of the course has been developed after analysing all the knowledge, practical skills and competencies required for the EU DPO to successfully navigate the European data protection landscape. 

This course builds on Act Now’s very popular UK GDPR Practitioner certificate course which has been attended by hundreds of DPOs throughout the UK and abroad since its launch in 2017.  Our teaching style is based on practical and engaging workshops covering theory alongside hands-on application using case studies that equip delegates with knowledge and skills that can be used immediately. Personal tutor support throughout the course will ensure the best opportunity for success. Delegates will also receive a comprehensive set of course materials, including our very popular EU GDPR Handbook (RRP £34.99), as well as access to our online Resource Lab, which includes over 20 hours of videos on key aspects of the syllabus.

The EU GDPR Practitioner Certificate course takes place over four days (one day per week) and involves workshops, case studies and exercises. This is followed by a written assessment. Delegates are then required to complete a practical project (in their own time) to achieve the certificate. Whether delivered online or in the classroom, delegates will receive all the fantastic features of the course specifically tailored for each learning environment. 

The EU GDPR Practitioner Certificate course builds on Act Now’s track record for delivering innovative and high quality practical training for information governance professionals:

The course director for the EU GDPR Practitioner Certificate, Ibrahim Hasan, says:

“We have looked at every aspect of this course to ensure it equips EU Data Protection Officers with the knowledge and skills they need to implement the EU GDPR in a practical way. Because of its emphasis on practical skills, and the success of our UK GDPR Practitioner certificate course, we are confident that this course will become the qualification of choice for current and future EU Data Protection Officers.”

New Isle of Man GDPR Practitioner Certificate

Act Now is pleased to announce the launch of its new Isle of Man GDPR Practitioner Certificate course.

This new course is specially designed for Data Protection Officers and privacy practitioners, based in the Isle of Man and internationally, whose role involves advising on the GDPR as applies to the Isle of Man(the Applied GDPR) and associated privacy legislation. The content of the course has been developed after analysing all the knowledge, practical skills and competencies required for the DPO to successfully navigate the IoM data protection landscape. 

This course builds on Act Now’s very popular UK GDPR Practitioner certificate course which has been attended by hundreds of DPOs throughout the UK and abroad since its launch in 2017.  Our teaching style is based on practical and engaging workshops covering theory alongside hands-on application using case studies that equip delegates with knowledge and skills that can be used immediately. Personal tutor support throughout the course will ensure the best opportunity for success. Delegates will also receive a comprehensive set of course materials, including our very popular Isle of Man GDPR Handbook (RRP £54.95),as well as access to our online Resource Lab, which includes over 20 hours of videos on key aspects of the syllabus.

The Isle of Man GDPR Practitioner Certificate course takes place over four days (one day per week) and involves workshops, case studies and exercises. Delegates are then required to complete a practical project (in their own time) to achieve the certificate. Whether delivered online or in the classroom, delegates will receive all the fantastic features of the course specifically tailored for each learning environment. 

The Isle of Man GDPR Practitioner Certificate course builds on Act Now’s track record for delivering innovative and high quality practical training for information governance professionals:

The course director for the Isle of Man GDPR Practitioner Certificate course, Ibrahim Hasan, says:

“With its emphasis on practical skills we are confident that this course will become the qualification of choice for current and future IoM Data Protection Officers. We have looked at every aspect of this course to ensure it equips Isle of Man Data Protection Officers with the knowledge and skills they need to implement the Applied GDPR in a practical way.”

FOISA Practitioner Course: A Successful Candidate’s Observations

Donald Maclean, Freedom of Information and Data Protection Officer at Perth College, recently successfully completed our certificated course; the Practitioner Certificate in the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. Here Donald shares his experience and tips for future delegates:

I undertook this course in 2013, and was delighted to see a course that offered certification, and training days that were spread out over 5-6 weeks, which made it much more manageable in terms of my employer’s willingness to sign up for it.

The venue was lovely (overlooking Princes St Gardens in Edinburgh) and the quality of the training was first rate. The trainer (Tim Turner) had a plan, but was willing to take a tangent to address individual issues raised by participants. These tangents, and the highlighting of issues that arise in different types of public authorities, were amongst the most interesting aspects of the course. Examination of the law itself, and how it applies in reality, was detailed, accurate and certainly widened my understanding of the law. Information Commissioner decisions, related to individual aspects of the law, were particularly useful and enlightening.

The course helped me immensely in my job: in terms of added knowledge, procedural aspects, and confidence that decisions and replies would bear scrutiny if examined or challenged. Some aspects of FOISA procedure were altered after this course, to ensure that procedure would lead to the most appropriate and legally sound treatment of FOISA requests. I still keep course materials close to hand, and do still refer to them at times.

Feedback was supplied to my HR department and line manager, and I was able to report that I considered the course to be excellent value for money. Certification was useful in terms of acknowledgement of CPD activities, and also for my professional status.

I tended not to worry too much about the exam. It was made clear that if we did the required reading and familiarised ourselves with course materials and Information Commissioner decisions, we would have the knowledge necessary to pass the exam. So, I did the homework, read the course materials, and paid attention to the content of the Commissioner’s decisions. On the odd occasion during the exam when I drew a blank, I suspect it was due to age and failing memory. The only part of the course I struggled with was the interpretation of the case studies for the projects. I found it difficult to settle on an approach to the case studies, without getting so wide in scope that several scenarios would be required. Once I settled on a case study, and thought about the best approach, everything flowed fairly freely after that.

For future candidates I would recommend the following:

  • Do the homework.
  • Remain focussed during training sessions.
  • Read the course materials, particularly the procedural and exemptions materials.
  • Learn to pick up the key messages and facts being discussed, and note them briefly in your course materials.
  • Pay close attention to the reasoning included in Commissioner’s decisions, particularly when undertaking the project.
  • Ask questions. You usually get a pertinent and helpful reply, and it encourages group discussion.
  • Don’t worry about the exam. If you’ve listened, discussed and read course materials, you will be fine.
  • Enjoy the course and the access to expertise.

The Practitioner Certificate in the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 is suitable for the FOISA novice as well as the experienced practitioner. Thus far we have had very strong candidates from a variety of backgrounds.

If you’re considering joining the course, what can you expect? Read what the tutor has to say and have a go at the FOISA test.

New Certificated FOISA Course: What the Tutor Saw

Act Now runs a Practitioner Certificate in the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 – the inaugural course has been completed, the second one is currently running, and two more are scheduled for October and December. The course is endorsed by the Centre for FOI based at Dundee university. If you’re considering joining the course, what can you expect?

I wrote the course and I deliver it in Edinburgh (or elsewhere, if you’re interested in us bring the certificate to you). The first thing you can expect is to be in expert company – this is not to blow my own trumpet, but to reflect the high quality of the candidates we’ve welcomed. On both of the Spring courses, we had very strong candidates from a variety of backgrounds. But this mustn’t put off, the FOISA novice. One of the advantages of experience fellow delegates is that you can ask questions and get information from a wide variety of people with different experiences. The course also starts right at the beginning, with a clear explanation of the FOISA nuts and bolts.

More importantly, you get a focus on practicality. If you want an academic focus on the political and philosophical implications of FOI legislation, you may be disappointed. We don’t spend time on the history, and the comparison between FOI 2000 and FOISA is drawn only when it might be helpful for delegates. This course is designed to be for practitioners – people who have to deal with a daily influx of requests, difficult and challenging applicants, and tricky decisions. We look at the Scottish Commissioner’s guidance, useful decisions, and best of all, delegates themselves share their experiences. Some of the best ideas came from those people who work on FOISA every day. Most trainers like to show off, but it’s been good to shut up sometimes and let other perspectives be heard.

One of the chief objectives of the course is to demystify areas that are sometimes shrouded in uncertainty – not every candidate is convinced that they need to know about the Environmental Information Regulations, but many seem to have gone away with the ‘is it FOISA or EI(S)R?’ question slightly higher up their list of priorities. We have also had the traditional ‘what is personal data?’ debate to good effect, despite the risk of exposing who in the room is a real information rights geek (it is usually just me!).

At the end, we have an assessment, and again, the focus is on practicality. The feedback from the first round of delegates has been very positive, and so the format will remain unchanged. Many people who return to the exam room after years working in the office find the transition tricky and the effort of hand-writing an exam exhausting, so we have tried to find an alternative to the traditional 3 hour pressure cooker. The exam is a test of knowledge – candidates have to remember facts, and apply their knowledge to three detailed, list-style questions. Few FOISA professionals benefit from being able to remember specific subsections by rote, so the focus is on providing clear, accurate answers to practical questions. After this, delegates are given projects to choose from, and in 20 working days, they have to pick a request, consider all of the options, and then deliver a full response including a refusal notice.

The aim of the course is to give practitioners confidence, to ensure that they know how FOISA and the EI(S)Rs work, and to improve their ability to do their work. However, anything involving a ‘Certificate’ inevitably comes around to the big question of getting the marks. To pass this course, candidates need at least 50% of the marks on both parts of the assessment – exam and project. The first round of results are in, and everybody passed. The exam results were solid, but all candidates came into their own with the project. Every single one was really impressive, despite our demand for absolute precision on the project side. The results may be flattered by the quality of the candidates, but by giving people the chance to go away, consult other sources and have the time to make their case, we saw superb results.

This is not an easy course – day 1 is straightforward, but days 2 and 3 are hard work, with homework after each and the prospect of an exam shortly after the final day(see the course structure ). However, all candidates seem to have enjoyed it, and more importantly, all of them have shown so far that they are practitioners of a high standard. Roll on October!

Tim Turner is the tutor for the Act Now Practitioner Certificate in FOISA. More details of the course are on our website. Please get in touch if you have any questions (info@actnow.org.uk) 

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