The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism is named after Oliver McGowan, whose death shone a light on the need for health and social care staff to have better training. The Health and Care Act 2022 introduced a statutory requirement that CQC-registered providers must ensure their staff receive learning disability and autism training appropriate to their role.
More information about Oliver and the background of this training can be found here.
Eligibility:
Any member of SWAST staff is welcome but some groups will be directed to attend the training by their manager.
What’s involved?
E-Learning and a presentation delivered by experts with lived experience.
Locations:
Places on Oliver McGowan training through our system partners are available in most regions.
Cost:
No SWAST member of staff should pay to attend this training, and all links below are to free of charge training. Please use the codes where required to book this to ensure no charge is applied.
Please note that frontline and EOC colleagues will receive 2 hours of training on learning disability and autism on their annual education day in 2025/26 and the Trust is currently drawing up plans for 2026/27.
The Oliver McGowan code of practice defines two tiers:
- Tier 1 is for those who require a general awareness of people with a learning disability and autistic people, and the support they may need.
- Tier 2 is for health and social care staff with responsibility for providing care and support for an autistic person or a person with a learning disability. This is anyone who provides, or who may be required to provide, a service to a person with a learning disability or an autistic person, regardless of how often that may occur.
| Tier 1 | Tier 2 | |
| Level of patient contact | Staff with no contact with patients | Staff who have contact with patients, either in person or over the phone |
| Role examples | People Partner, ROC scheduler, Management Accountant | EMD, Paramedic, EAA, ECA |
| Training required | 90 minute e-learning programme and attend an online interactive session (likely on Teams). | 90 minute e-learning programme and attend face to face training session. |
The e-learning session was launched for all staff in the Trust in May 2023 and is on your ESR. Please ensure you have completed this before attending a session.
Some system partners will be able to offer spaces on Oliver McGowan training in 2025/26:
| ICB | Status |
| Dorset | Tier 1 and Tier 2 spaces available: Dorset – Click to book |
| BNSSG | Tier 1 and Tier 2 spaces available: BNSSG – Click to book |
| BSW | Tier 1 and Tier 2 spaces available: BSW – Click to book |
| Cornwall | Cornwall – Click to request via email |
| Gloucestershire | Tier 1 and Tier 2 spaces available: Gloucestershire – Click to book |
| Somerset | Tier 1 and Tier 2 spaces available: Somerset – Click to book
Tier 2 code – SWASTT225 (need to avoid charging) |
The protected characteristics monitoring form is separate to the booking button above; completion is optional & anonymous. We ask for information on your ‘protected characteristics’ in order to help us monitor our performance on equality.
If you have already completed this form since April 2025 & nothing has changed, there is no need to complete again.