Quick answer
Identify training needs by comparing each person’s actual duties with the knowledge and practical skills those duties require. Use observation, discussion, relevant experience and control-failure evidence to find gaps. Set a specific learning objective and verify its application; a course list or job title alone cannot establish that everyone has suitable competence.
Map the work and its risks
List the tasks, products, equipment and decisions attached to each role. Include deputies, temporary workers and occasional duties such as receiving deliveries or answering allergen questions. Identify which tasks require supervision or specialist input.
GOV.UK training guidance focuses on skills and learning appropriate to the role. Relevant experience can contribute, but check how it fits the current method and equipment.
Gather evidence of the gap
| Evidence | What to ask |
|---|---|
| Observation | Can the person perform the method and recognise a failed control? |
| Discussion | Can they explain why the control matters and when to seek help? |
| Records | Are there genuine checks, repeated errors or unexplained gaps? |
| Change | Have duties, equipment, recipes, products or procedures changed? |
| Previous learning | What was taught and practically verified, and what was outside its scope? |
Do not assume every failure is a training failure. An inaccessible instruction, broken facility or unrealistic workload may need a different corrective action.
Turn a gap into an observable objective
Vague objective: “understand allergens”. More useful objective: “use the current recipe and supplier information to pass an allergen enquiry to the designated person without guessing”. Specify the method, practical check and limits of authority.
Another example is receiving chilled food: the learner should demonstrate the site’s checks, identify an unacceptable result and follow the approved hold/report action. Do not substitute a universal temperature number for the actual assessed procedure.
Choose learning that fits the gap
A short demonstration may resolve a narrow practical gap; structured learning may help broader knowledge; a novel technical process may require competent specialist advice. Combine methods where useful and arrange understandable materials and suitable supervision.
FSA management guidance supports procedures reflecting the real operation. Teach the correct current method, then observe a suitable demonstration before authorising independent work.
Record the decision and review triggers
Record the need, objective, learner, learning method, responsible person, practical verification and any restriction. Review after changes, incidents, repeated failures or evidence that the method cannot be applied reliably.
Use the published opening checks to discuss one practical set of duties. The useful outcome is a safer task and clear competence decision, not simply more completed courses.
Next steps
- Map the actual tasks and competence requirements.
- Find specific gaps using several kinds of evidence.
- Choose suitable learning and an observable objective.
- Verify performance and record the remaining limits.
Read the official practical guidance — Use the current source alongside the procedures for your own business.