Training

About NGO

The objectives of the National Gamekeepers' Organisation include assisting gamekeepers and ensuring quality within the profession. Good training is an important route to achieving this.

The NGO works with a number of colleges which provide residential courses and apprenticeships for gamekeeping students and you can find out more about these and about becoming a gamekeeper via the NGO Educational Trust website.

Continual professional development is an important way for existing gamekeepers to keep up to date with current best practice, changing legal requirements and improved working techniques, so our associated company, NGO Training Limited, provides a range of highly-regarded short courses, mostly one day, to help keepers stay up to date and maintain excellent standards. Details of our current courses are found below.

NGO Training Ltd courses are run throughout England and Wales and the dates of upcoming courses can be found in the events section of this website.

If you would like to register your interest in an NGO training course, please contact the NGO at our head office on 01833 660869.

The NGO offer the following courses:

LOADERS TRAINING BEST PRACTICE COURSE

This is an attendance course, it is designed for people who already load and covers the best practice whilst in the field as well as some firearms legislation. View the course details.

GAME MEAT HYGIENE COURSE

The National Gamekeepers' Organisations game meat hygiene course is now regarded as the industry standard in game meat handling.  This is a one day course that covers small and large game meat hygiene from field to larder. 

Successful candidates will be issued with a unique hunters ID number which authorises them to sell game meat to game handling establishments. This is a legal requirement for all hunters wishing to sell game to game dealers.

This course not only covers large game like wild deer and wild boar but also looks at small game such as pheasants, partridge, duck, rabbit and hare.

The course has a short multiple choice test at the end of the day to ensure competency and is certified and certificated by the NGO and the Food Standards Agency (FSA).  Successful candidates will get a certificate and a credit card type proof of completion.

Tea and coffee will usually be provided but lunch will not so candidates will need to bring their own.

DEER STALKING CERTIFICATE LEVEL 1

The National Gamekeepers' Organisation Deer Stalking Certificate Level 1 (DSC1) takes place over four days if you also require your wild game meat hygiene certificate which allows you to sell your carcass and small game to a game dealer. As of the 1st April 2021 Deer Management Qualifications are no longer awarding candidates who pass the DSC1 the Large Wild Game Meat Certificate - with the NGO you will still be offered to take this qulification which gives you both large and small game.

The DSC1 is the entry level course into deer stalking and deer management and the National Gamekeepers Organisation delivers a quality training course that covers much more than is in the manual.

The course covers most aspects of deer management including identification of species and sex as well as legal requirements and firearms legislation.

The full course includes all course material, registration with Deer Management Qualifications after completion and tuition.

Candidates are also able to just attend the exam and shooting assessment for one day. They will get the course manual, DMQ (awarding body) registration and final assessment.

DMQ no longer include the wild game meat element in the standard DSC1 course but we are including a stand alone qualification so you will be able to gain the full suite need to start or continue your journey in deer management.

Candidates are required to arrive by 09.00, course will run from 09.30 to 16.30 with breaks for tea/lunch.

WILD BOAR CERTIFICATE

This couse is delivered as a distance learning package where you are sent the training material on a USB drive. You will be able to learn at your own pace with support via email or WhatApp from NGO tutors. View the course details.

GREY SQUIRREL MANAGEMENT TRAINING

This course is for people involved in grey squirrel management whether for red squirrel conservation or for control to prevent further economic and environmental damage caused by this non-native invasive species. Accreditation will be given to participants who show proficiency in all aspects of grey squirrel management including the reasons for and methods of control.

What will be covered? • Red and Grey Squirrel Ecology • Reasons for controlling grey squirrels • Methods of Control • Law • Your Squirrel Management within the Big Picture • Safety and consideration for all involved • Records, Monitoring • Test of theory • Setting up Feeding Stations, Practical with assessment • Setting up Traps, Dispatch, Practical with assessment.

The course takes around 4 hours to complete and will be essential for those who are claiming the WS3 squirrel control grant.