Hello all,
After a particularly trying week at work, during which my resolve has been tested to the limit I have decided that I need to get out of the bus industry.
I quite fancy trying lorry driving and would very much appreciate some advice from the lorry-driving members on here. I have seen this deal on training - www.redrosetraining.co.uk/courses/ (scroll down to the last item) Is this a good idea? My main worry is that £2.5k is a lot of cash to spend if it turns out that I don't like the job. But it seems to me that getting all those qualifications is a good idea in that they would probably give me the edge over less qualified applicants.
As always, your thoughts would be very much appreciated. Ta!
Last edited by: Badwolf on Fri 3 Feb 12 at 23:17
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I think we need to wait for Pat (pda) and Gordonbennet to give valuable advice on this.
I think Pat has pointed out a lot of schemes charge money, promise a driving job, etc. and leave you out of pocket without a job. There's a company near me that does HGV training... I wonder how many turn the training into a job?
The other problem for you there are lots without jobs that already have the qualifications. And without experience you're at the back of the list of suitable drivers???
Pat I am sure will respond.
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I only just looked at the link. I cannot comment on the company or any like it...
... But if they say it's cheap, limited time/offer, etc. then I smell a bit of a rat. Pat might not reply until around 4am.
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>> ... But if they say it's cheap, limited time/offer, etc. then I smell a bit
>> of a rat.
Aye, that's my thinking too Rob. Ain't cynicism grand...? :-)
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I work in IT.... I am a cynic too. Although on some contracts you tell 'em how it will work out and how we should do it, get shouted down, keep your head down, get told to get it working, .... etc.... and then they know you ought to say I told you so. But you don't as a 'professional'. Others who work(ed) in IT might have similar tales.
Yes I ought to get in a position to get things done in the right way, get another chunk of money etc. But I don't want to anymore.... too complex to explain and I don't need the extra money for what it involves.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Fri 3 Feb 12 at 23:48
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My tuppence worth...
Whether you go for a change of direction or not Rob, your ultimate enjoyment of the job will come down to the individual employer. I've found somewhere now where I enjoy the work and where my skills and experience are valued, but in the past I've worked for some rogue operators both large and small who've expected superhuman performance for subhuman wages.
I suspect the same is true in the world of bus driving, so I would suggest looking for similar work at other companies if your current place is grinding you down. Of course there is also the opportunity for excursion tour driving, school bus work etc. Aren't you fairly close to the seaside? The tourist season starts in 8 weeks, those open-topped sightseeing buses must be worth a punt if you start making yourself known now.
Stick with the day job in the meantime though, it's much easier to find work when you've already got some, believe me.
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I strongly recommend that you have a good read through this before committing yourself;
www.trucknetuk.com/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=5
General consensus seems to be that Red Rose are good but pricey.
There is some sense in the suggestions above that you will not have direct experience, but I would suggest that a lot of your PSV skills are transferable so this should be less of a problem for you than someone who's never driven anything bigger than a car.
A word of caution though; it seems to me that the north west is a particular blackspot in terms of vacancies, so I'd be inclined to keep my current job and perhaps do my training part-time or take a holiday to do so.
ADR and HIAB crane are useful but far from essential; the latter, like fork-lift training, is certainly not an instant passport to a job as experience is highly valued here for fairly obvious reasons.
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Thank you, sir. A very helpful post :-)
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There seems to be plenty of work for truckers down this way still, experienced or not, lot of agency work.
Wages are pee poor tho 7 quid an hour.
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Sorry to be late getting to you on this one Badwolf but I was training yesterday and then today they decided they would like a 5.30am start for the second session.
Red Rose is certainly a reputable training school with an excellent reputation.
I notice too that they don't make any false promises about finding you work, which is realistic.
The price looks good but you need to ask them if there is anything else at all you have to pay for and note it down if there is.
The additional course (ADR/Hiab/Tacho) could give you 35 hours for your DCPC if the courses are registered with JAUPT. If they are not, then this won't happen.
Once you have those answers try pricing the whole thing up locally to you with individual modules and compare it that way.
Ask how they factor in the Initial DCPC as well.
Should you do it?
You will find it hard to get a job initially but as HM says your PSV experience will help there.
You will work harder, and longer hours than you have ever done before.
You will more tired than you've ever been before.
You will either take to it like a duck takes to water, or hate the job.
Having said all that, if you love it it's absolutely the best job in the world and I would say go for it.
My email is in my profile, so if you want anymore info just email me and fire away with the questions:)
Pat
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I can't answer the driving school question as i'm not involved in that side of things and i took my test too many years ago to give a valid view.
The others have answered the should you part of the question fully, and i can only endorse their opinions.
Presumably you will go for artic licence, without a full class 1 you will struggle to find good regular work, unless you happen to have a 3663 or Warburtons or similar in your area who operate large fleets of rigids.
What do you really want from the job BW, do you want distance (tramping) which might well mean being away for all or part of the week, or do you want day or night work where you go home after every shift?
Do you fancy the tippers/skips/bulk refuse, some really enjoy the job, its a bit of a chase round but usually reasonable hours, and not too much bull, tipper and machine drivers don't do PC.
I won't pretty things up, good jobs are very thin on the ground, jealously guarded and usually gained by referral, so unless you've got any mates that could have a word for you, you will probably struggle along for a time on agency, and they are a law to themselves, but don't be shy, carry CV's with you and stick your face in company doors politely and dressed in smart work clothes...anyone looking for a driver will compare your approach to how you would arrive at a new customer in one of their trucks.
emailng CV's to all and sundry is a complete waste of time, and deleted, a lot of drivers use professional CV designs, same as all the others with only the applicants name to differentiate them.
You might find the money isn't any better than you are on now at first, and there will be good days and horrible days, and weeks possibly with little or no work.
About the only way to make serious money is to specialise, eg car transporters and tankers and plant, tankers don't come with the generous package they once did in most cases, the logistics operators have worsened that job in many cases.
You probably won't get taken on either of those straight away, and believe me if you get on the cars you will work harder than you think as you will earn every penny, its a great job in the summer but not so good now, and people with think you work in coal mine as you be permanently filthy.
Worth trying the cars though in due course, most of the proper drivers are getting long in the tooth and there is going to be a shortage of drivers in 10 years, there is a shortage of proper drivers in transport, unfortunately a worse shortage of proper transport management though so neither is known or missed by the other..;)
Incidentally my old company has reached the stage of advertising in a certain jobcentre, 3 or more years ago the job was dead mens shoes, no doubt your own experiences could lead you to guess whats happened, those left are stuck due to mortgages etc.
Certainly worth a good read of the lorry drivers forums, there you will soon work out who is worth listening to.
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>> The additional course (ADR/Hiab/Tacho) could give you 35 hours for your DCPC if the courses
>> are registered with JAUPT. If they are not, then this won't happen.
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Pat, unless I'm overlooking something that'll be irrelevant, since BW will have to do DCPC anyway; AFAIK the hours can't be banked.
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That's what is confusing me about the package offered HM, and why I suggested the question is asked.
There's no mention of the Initial CPC fee so it's a bit vague as to whether it's a good deal or not....and that's to us who understand it!
Pat
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Another question for the LGV drivers. - rtj70
