Cutting costs, not corners: S.M.I.L.E Counselling’s journey with iHasco

As a charity, every penny counts for S.M.I.L.E Counselling. Every pound spent on administration or external services is a pound not directly supporting young people. At the same time, there are training non-negotiables like fire safety, first aid, moving and handling, and Health & Safety which can’t be skipped.

The problem? Traditional training providers were simply too expensive and too time-consuming.

Andy Gray, Training Manager, explained the reality:

“Anything that saves time and anything that saves money is a good thing. One day’s external training isn’t hundreds of pounds anymore, you’re talking thousands.”

As a charity organisation, S.M.I.L.E needed a training solution that kept their staff confident and skilled, that wasn’t going to break the bank.

When Andy joined S.M.I.L.E, the charity was already using iHasco for its training. Having worked with other providers in the past, he quickly saw why iHasco was the right choice.

From day one, Andy saw the difference compared to other providers:

“The quality of iHasco’s training… was exactly what we needed as an organisation. Other providers were good enough, but iHasco’s solution just made sense.”

The platform instantly made life easier for both staff and managers. Instead of dragging staff into lengthy face-to-face sessions or paying for costly external providers, new team members could jump straight into their LMS and complete their training online, at their own pace.

“Rather than me or someone else teaching fire awareness, Health & Safety, or first aid, it’s easier just to get new staff set up on the platform. They can complete [training] in their own time, even in a single day if they want.”

Andy also highlighted that our video-based training resonates with staff that have different learning styles. Our courses are designed to be engaging and accessible, which is especially important when you’ve got a busy team with different ways of absorbing information.

From short videos to interactive tests, the training keeps people interested and helps the information stick.

“The videos do accommodate all the different learning styles… staff even appreciate that you can’t skip over the video—it keeps them engaged.”

For Andy, that means peace of mind. He knows staff are learning what they need to learn, without cutting corners.

A safer, tidier workplace

Andy’s breadth of experience has enabled him to witness a whole host of workplace environments – and not always in a good way. That’s why when he joined S.M.I.L.E, he saw first-hand the impact that high-quality Health & Safety training had on the overall environment.

“Without a doubt, this is the tidiest, most organised, and probably environmentally safe workplace I’ve ever been in… even things like cables tied and boxes lifted correctly are down to the training.”

Confidence when it counts

Fire alarms used to go off regularly at S.M.I.L.E (thanks to a temperamental boiler!), but instead of panicking, staff always respond calmly and smoothly.

“Nobody panicked, everyone followed the procedure. That really showed me the fire awareness training was working.”

Ready for growth

With plans to move into larger premises and expand their team, Andy is confident iHasco will grow with them.

“The outcomes we’ve seen in practice have been exactly what we would want to see. As we grow, iHasco will be instrumental in getting people up to speed.”

Most importantly, the time and money saved on training means S.M.I.L.E can put more back into what they do best, which is helping young people. In Andy’s words:

“It’s cost effective and it makes life easy.”

At the heart of S.M.I.L.E Counselling’s work are the young people who need support, encouragement, and hope. By taking the stress out of compliance training, iHasco frees up time, energy, and resources so the team can focus on what really matters, which is changing lives. And for S.M.I.L.E, that’s the real impact.