Frequently asked questions

Yes, you will need to pay tax/VAT if you attend our classroom courses and this is charged at 20%. VAT must be paid for classroom courses, even though the attendee(s) is/are not based in the UK.

VAT may not be applicable when booking our online courses if the attendee is based outside the UK.

When registering for our online courses please select the option relating to the country when you are based i.e. UK or non-UK. This will ensure that VAT is correctly applied to your booking and invoice.

Yes, discounted rates are available in some circumstances: 

• If booking more than one classroom course 
• If booking places for more than one delegate on a classroom course 

For further information on discounts, visit our training courses pages or contact us.

At the point of booking payment can be made by credit card or an invoice can be requested. If paying on receipt of invoice, payment can be made by cheque or BACS.

If you need to cancel your booking, our standard cancellation policy is as follows: 

• over four weeks before the start of an event, your registration fee will be refunded in full, less a 10% (plus VAT) charge to cover administrative costs.
• between two and four weeks before the start of an event, you will be refunded 50% of your registration fee.
• less than two weeks before the start of an event, your registration fee will not be refunded.

Name substitutions will be accepted at any time but you must notify us of these in writing in advance of the event.

Yes, there is accommodation close to Howbery Park and you can download a list by clicking here (.pdf).

When contacting them please mention you are visiting HR Wallingford as discounted rates may be available.

Yes, you can get to Howbery Park by public transport.

The closest railway stations are Didcot, Cholsey and Reading. Public buses (X39-40) run from and to Oxford and Reading, stopping outside of Howbery Park (Thames Travel - https://www.thames-travel.co.uk/)

Our address is HR Wallingford, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, OX10 8BA.

A link to maps showing our location can be found here.

A site map for Howbery Park can be found here. This also includes details on the car parking available on site.

Heathrow is approximately 55 minutes from Howbery Park by road and is also accessible by public transport.

Gatwick airport and Birmingham airport are also within reasonable distance from Howbery Park and accessible by public transport.

There are two buildings on site that are used for our classroom training: 

• Fountain Conference Centre 
• Manor House.

Details on the location of the course will be included in the joining instructions.

A site map for Howbery Park can be found here. This also includes details on the car parking available on site. 

At the point of booking payment can be made by credit card or an invoice can be requested. If paying on receipt of invoice, payment can be made by cheque or BACS.

Bookings can be made online by visiting the relevant course page. 

Our full terms and conditions can be found here. 

If you need to cancel your booking, our standard cancellation policy is as follows: 

• over four weeks before the start of an event, your registration fee will be refunded in full, less a 10% (plus VAT) charge to cover administrative costs.
• between two and four weeks before the start of an event, you will be refunded 50% of your registration fee.
• less than two weeks before the start of an event, your registration fee will not be refunded.

Name substitutions will be accepted at any time but you must notify us of these in writing in advance of the event.

Yes, some of our courses are accredited. Institutions currently accrediting our courses include:

• CIWEM
• IMarEST 

To find out if a course is accredited, visit the course page.

Unless mentioned otherwise in the joining instructions, our classroom courses usually start at 09:30hrs and finish for 17:00hrs.

Registration starts at 09:15hrs on the first day of the course.

For the majority of our courses you are not expected to do any work before attending. If any pre-course work is required you will be advised in advance. 

Yes, lunch and refreshments are provided during our classroom courses.

We always ensure that a vegetarian option is available for lunch. However, if you have other specific dietary requirements please contact us in advance of the course and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.

If you have not been able to find a course that meets your requirements please contact us with details on the subject or area you are interested in.

There are two buildings on site that are used for our classroom training: 

• Fountain Conference Centre 
• Manor House.

Details on the location of the course will be included in the joining instructions.

A site map for Howbery Park can be found here. This also includes details on the car parking available on site. 

This varies depending on the course, for example:

• We have courses that are delivered live by the tutor(s) via MS Teams.
• We have courses that are a mix of both recorded and live sessions. The course lectures and exercises have been recorded so they can be viewed anytime and when convenient for attendees. It would also include live session(s) which are delivered by the course tutor(s) at a schedule date/time.

Links to live course lectures are emailed to attendees before the course start date.

Recorded lectures and course materials will be available to view/download from the resources page on our training website. This page can be accessed via the secure login page. Details on accessing these pages are provided on confirmation of the booking.

Please note, access to the course lectures and materials will only be issued on receipt of payment of the course fees.

The availability of the course lectures and materials varies depending on the format of the course.

Our course programmes include live sessions with the course tutors where you can discuss any questions. 

Yes, a certificate is issued to confirm completion of the course.

Course slides are not provided for our online courses.

No, our online courses do not include assessments. However, depending on the course, they can include exercises, quizzes or group activities. These are used to support the lecture material and can be used to help embed learning.

On confirmation of your place on the course your will be advised of your unique access to the secure area of the HR Wallingford training website. Your username will be the email address you provided in your course booking.
    
The secure area will include:

• Links to the course materials of active courses you are booked to attend. 
• Certificate of completion of course (this will be available after the course programme has closed).
• Details of past courses attended.

There is the facility to reset your password.

• Recordings of lectures
• Any exercises or quizzes relating to the course
• Supporting information or guidance relevant to the course
• Certificate of completion of the course

Access to the course lectures will only be available for the period of the course programme.

Access to the course materials and lectures will be available for a specified period. This depends on the course programme, so will vary from course to course.