StockmenUK Masters is a totally new approach to training in the dairy industry, designed to make it easier to get the training you need to improve herd performance, progress your career or to increase motivation and job satisfaction.

Training should be a crucial activity for everyone who earns a living from dairy farming.  The industry is getting more and more technically challenging and staff need to constantly learn new skills and develop the skills they already have.  Anyone looking to progress through the industry from assistant herdsman through to a herd manager position need to develop the skills they have.

But ask yourself the following questions:

• What skills do you need to develop to improve performance or career prospects?

• Where do you go to find out which courses are available?

• How do you know how good a particular course will be?

• How do you know it will deliver the training you need?

• How do you know what other people think of the course and whether it is value for money?

Until now, there was no single place where all the details of dairy training courses were gathered.  If you wanted a training course you had to look for advertisements in the press or hope you received a leaflet through the post.

But now, thanks to the MDC and Stockmen UK all this has changed and in one place you can…

• Find details of a wide range of courses covering a large number of subjects
• Read details of the trainers who will be running the courses
• Book on a training course
• Register interest on a future course
• Give feedback on the trainer and the course

It has never been easier to find the training you want and to book on a course.  And as all courses are assessed before they are listed you can be certain that you are received a well respected, effective course.

And to help demonstrate you have attended and passed the course, you will receive a StockmenUK Masters certificate after every course and your personal training record will be updated to show what training you have attended.

Using StockmenUK Masters is a easy, involving just 6 simple steps

WHY DO I NEED TO BOTHER WITH TRAINING?

Here’s 5 good reasons

To learn new skills which could make you more effective in your current job

As the industry develops so you need to develop too.  Just look at the changes which have occurred in the last 10 years.  To make the best of these changes you have had to learn new skills.  And new skills can make you more effective at what you do.

To learn the skills to help you develop your carer and move onto a more challenging position

If you want to take on a more responsible position you will need to show you have the skills to tackle the job.  Training can be a great help in securing a new position

To help improve herd performance

Better trained staff are better equipped to get higher yields and margins and improve overall herd performance whether by better nutritiona knowledge, superior man management skills or whatever.

To help reduce costs

Better traind staff are able to do jobs that were previously contracted out and so training can actually reduce costs on farm.  For example a herdsman trained in lameness prevention and foot trimming can help reduce vet and medicine bills by working closely with the vet and undertaking routine tasks themselves.

To increase motivation and staff satisfaction

Staff who have been trained are normally more motivated to do a good job.  They are more challenged in the role and can gain greater satisfaction from more involvement and responsibility

WHAT SKILLS DO I NEED?

While many of the skills required by a herd manager are the same as those required by an assistant herdsman are the same, many are different.  At the same time the level of knowledge required in a particular area will vary.

By understanding the skills yiu have and the skills required for a different position it is possible to
Identify missing skills
Identify skills that can be developed
Prepare yourself for a more senior position

Working with people from across the industry, Lantra have developed the Online Competence Framework (OCF) which is an invaluable source of information of the skills needed for particular jobs.  It lists the skills needed for a range of different positions including

• Relief milker
• Assistant herdsman
• Herdsman
• Assistant herd manager
• Herd manager

For each skill it then explains exactly what is required.  You can use the OCF to design a training programme to suit your needs and then use StockmenUK Masters to find the courses.  Click here to visit the OCF <LANTRA LINK HERE>.