Bug fix training causes confusion

TRAINING companies are charging high and wildly-varying prices for courses which are part of the government?s millennium bug-busting training scheme, write Dan Sabbagh and Lisa Kelly.

Local training and enterprise councils (TECs), educational institutions and private sector firms are offering courses ranging from #130 to over #500 a day. Lengths also vary, from one to 10 days for the same course.

Some observers warn that the variability is confusing small and medium-sized companies which need the most help with the year 2000.

Martin Ford, an IT consultant and a member of the year 2000 taskforce of global standards body ISO, said: ?I think it?s horrifying. I can?t understand why there is so much variance.?

West London TEC director Shan Shanthakumar said the variance between accredited courses was huge. ?There is great confusion,? he added.

The National Training Organisation for Information Technology (ITNTO) ? the body responsible for accrediting training courses ? defended the course system.

Tony Cusack, ITNTO project manager, said: ?As long as bodies meet our accreditation standards, we?re quite happy for them to run courses of different lengths and prices.?

ITNTO guidelines, however, specify that courses should last at least three days, with no maximum length. But some accredited providers are offering courses as short as one day.

According to Cusack, some fees are well above the ITNTO?s expectations ? #120 to #250 a day.

The bug-busting scheme was launched on 30 March by Prime Minister Tony Blair with #26 million of government money.