What Compliance Elearning Should Cover

Good compliance training is more than just ticking a box. It educates staff on how to act correctly, and also provides evidence of their training should a regulator come knocking.

Name the Actual Legislation

Modules should refer to real legislation, such as the UK GDPR, Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, Equality Act 2010 and any other legislation that is specific to a particular sector or industry. Simply referring to ‘the rules’ is not enough to provide sufficient evidence of compliance in the event of a regulatory visit.

Include UK-Specific Data Protection Content

Data protection training is one of the most common compliance training failures for small businesses. This training should reference the ICO’s guidance on the required training for staff under the UK data protection legislation and cover matters such as the lawful basis for processing data, the time in which a data breach must be reported, and the roles and responsibilities of staff in relation to UK GDPR.

Use Scenario-Based Assessments

While multiple choice questions testing recall can be fine as a way of testing knowledge, scenario based assessments are generally better at testing whether someone can apply what they have been taught to real life situations. A good compliance elearning program should test learners in realistic scenarios such as dealing with a suspicious email or whether to share a customer’s file with a colleague.

Build in Role-Specific Modules

A warehouse operative’s compliance training will differ to that of a finance manager as they are exposed to different risks within their roles. It is therefore key that compliance Elearning is role specific and only covers the compliance training that is relevant to the employee’s role and day to day activities.

Record Completion and Set Refresh Dates

Keep a record of every completed module, with a date for future reference. You can then set reminders in the future for retraining, for example on changes to legislation, or retraining after the standard retraining period of 12 months.

Good compliance training is specific, specific, evidenced and up to date, or it creates compliance gaps that a regulator could find before you do.