Can we list the Cheapest courses available?

[Dave]

Can we make a list of the cheapest courses you've been on, [or know about] the price, location, subject and your opinion as to whether they were good value. [Not Meets]

With an definitive emphasis on cost?

Cheers.

[This could obviously be viewed as subjective. You get what you pay for etc. Understandable. But this list is for people who really cannot afford to spend much at all. So, if you spent £600 on a weeks course with a top instructor and found it very good value for money, I can understand that. Done it myself, spent thousands. Never been to the moot, but i bet thats great value. But Im not talking about those. Im talking about courses for the millions of people, who have just enough to feed the kids and fill the car, or are putting their house payments on a credit card. Again, millions of people in that situation.]

I'll start with a half day of plant ID for £18. [Never been on it. Im just looking for the cheapest price tags]

http://www.wildwoodsmen.co.uk/store/p7/Taste_of_the_Wild_-_woodland_foraging.html

And TBH Im not even sure if they even exist!

 

[GGTBod]

The closest i have found to cheap courses as such were on the local council website like a fungal foraging day, these were next to free last time i was checking like 5 quid per person or something mad like that, not sure what other council websites are like but ours has a whats on section, like yourself i have spent good money on courses and always felt i got my moneys worth and some, check out Backwoods Survival School and Prehistoric Experiences with Will Lord

 

[Dave]

I wanna see some of these courses on Groupon!

 

[Madriverrob]

Can we make a list of the cheapest courses you've been on, [or know about] the price, location, subject and your opinion as to whether they were good value. [Not Meets]

With an definitive emphasis on cost?

Cheers.

[This could obviously be viewed as subjective. You get what you pay for etc. Understandable. But this list is for people who really cannot afford to spend much at all. So, if you spent £600 on a weeks course with a top instructor and found it very good value for money, I can understand that. Done it myself, spent thousands. Never been to the moot, but i bet thats great value. But Im not talking about those. Im talking about courses for the millions of people, who have just enough to feed the kids and fill the car, or are putting their house payments on a credit card. Again, millions of people in that situation.]

I'll start with a half day of plant ID for £18. [Never been on it. Im just looking for the cheapest price tags]

http://www.wildwoodsmen.co.uk/store/p7/Taste_of_the_Wild_-_woodland_foraging.html

And TBH Im not even sure if they even exist!

They do exist Dave , I've recce'd their site , its close to me . They don't seem to advertise many dates and didn't respond to an email I sent but I have seen evidence of their existence .......

 

[Dave]

Thats a bit mysterious Rob! They're must be good reason why you cant post their site? Which I'll respect. Do they shun publicity then? [Although now you've wetted the old appetite!]

 

[Dave]

Heres another £25. Navigation. Ive been on a different tamarack course and can recommend Mike and Kev.

https://www.tamarackoutdoors.co.uk/PBCPPlayer.asp?ID=1685314

 

[Madriverrob]

Thats a bit mysterious Rob! They're must be good reason why you cant post their site? Which I'll respect. Do they shun publicity then? [Although now you've wetted the old appetite!]

I think they are small scale , I fancied a coastal foraging course but they only had two dates on offer during the summer and I couldn't do either , no reply when I asked about other dates ..........

 

[Madriverrob]

here is a great spoon carving course .........

http://www.woodmatters.org.uk/course/detail/spoon-carving

Gareth the instructor was great and I felt it was excellent value for money , other courses available also .

 

[Leshy]

Good thread !

 

[crosslandkelly]

If anyone is in the Bolton area on the 14th.......http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/get...ial&utm_campaign=events&utm_content=smithills

 

[Dave]

Wonderful, wonderful post CK. I may well go on that one.

 

[crosslandkelly]

Sorry Dave, you've missed it. It was last month. I'll bet they'll do others though.

 

[Dave]

Aaaaah......

 

[Wayne]

Not sure the point of this thread.

I have a vested interest I should declare from the outset. I own a bushcraft school and think a run some of the best value courses in the country.

However they are not the cheapest.

Too many factors to consider best value.

For example location, group size, staff ratio. Quality of the catering. I pay a fortune on ingredients to feed my clients to really well.

I have invested 1000s in top quality tools. Some might have a couple of bacho saws and that’s it. Rather than a huge collection of axes and knives for the students to use.

So whilst I think the original post is good intentioned I don’t think it’s a simple premise that here is a super deal, run and book with ACMEs Road runner school of bushcraft because they’re offering a deal.

I was asked by Groupon to design a course for them. Say £100 for a day course with lunch provided. Then discount it by 60% so it’s now £40 per person. Groupon then wants 50% of the £40. So for that £100 experience the school gets £20.
Something has to give and in my experience bailing a couple of providers out when they realised they couldn’t provide what was promised is the quality. Huge groups sizes and very poor customer experience.

So as always do your research and choose wisely.

I look at it that my clients free time is incredibly valuable far beyond the cost of any course. Most folk get a few days leave a year that must be divided amongst family commitments and chores etc so very little time left to indulge in their passions. So 1 day with me has a huge impact on their year. It’s my responsibility to ensure that day is the very best experience it can possibly be from the moment they arrive until they choose to depart.

 

[Dave]

The point is Crossland Kelly just found a free course, that is not run by an acme road runner school and saved me some dosh.
Which is exactly what I asked for. TBH Im not sure why you posted. And yes, it does read like a sales pitch.
Maybe you should read the entirety of my original post again, as I have already covered everything you've mentioned!!

 

[Broch]

I understand where Wayne is coming from and can confirm his courses are excellent (I did his Expedition First Aid course some time ago) so, in my opinion, good value (but not cheap ).

I don't think anybody that is doing this for a living can do 'Cheap'. However, there are ways of getting very good value if you're careful. The best way is to organise training days for specific topics and split the cost between you. Ask around and see if there are 'experts' in your area on topics of interest - first aid (should always be the first one, ask Red Cross or St Johns), willow weaving, carving, fly fishing (!), fungi identification .... In the past I've attended a single day of training on a specific subject for free or only a few quid. I've also spent hundreds on one or two days for a specific course that was very important for me (recently Macro Fungi Identification).

Whilst on the subject, I would also point out that I have been very disappointed in some professional courses costing a lot of money - sometimes because I have made the wrong choice of where my experience fits into the course aims.

Cheers,

Broch

 

[Broch]

The point is Crossland Kelly just found a free course, that is not run by an acme road runner school and saved me some dosh.
Which is exactly what I asked for. TBH Im not sure why you posted. And yes, it does read like a sales pitch.
Maybe you should read the entirety of my original post again, as I have already covered everything you've mentioned!!

I understand your point Dave, but to be fair to Wayne he was only pointing out how difficult it is for a professional to do 'cheap'.

However, having just spent hundreds on a four-day course identifying fungi where a great deal of time is spent in a lab looking through microscopes (as well as two field trips) with two instructors and ten students, and we have still only scratched the surface of the very very complex subject, I doubt whether a free one day course on the subject would have satisfied my needs.

Cheers,

Broch

 

[Dave]

Yeh, didnt mean to bite heads off. Sorry. Not myself.

 

[daveO]

The closest i have found to cheap courses as such were on the local council website like a fungal foraging day, these were next to free last time i was checking like 5 quid per person or something mad like that, not sure what other council websites are like but ours has a whats on section, like yourself i have spent good money on courses and always felt i got my moneys worth and some, check out Backwoods Survival School and Prehistoric Experiences with Will Lord

There are quite a few council run courses for various things depending on where you live. I went on a half day introduction to hedge laying course which was really useful. If you're lucky enough to live in a deprived area like me then you should be able to get council subsidised courses to gain qualifications. I looked into it a couple of years ago and they'd pay for me to take chainsaw classes at the local agricltural college if I had the time.

 

[crosslandkelly]

These may suit someone.
https://www.outwardbound.org.uk/courses/schools-colleges-and-youth-groups/free-taster-course/

https://www.glenmorelodge.org.uk/about-us/free-training-opportunities/