The British Institute of Innkeepers has its own qualifications and awards body to ensure professional standards within the British licensed trade. That body is the British Institute Of Innkeepers Award Body or BIIAB. The British Institute of Innkeepers is also the industry’s professional body for those working in this country’s retail licensed industry. The BIIAB are responsible for providing may of the awards in the licensed drink industry, including the Customer Service and Drinks Certificate and Professional Barpersons Qualification.

Training courses by the BIIAB are run through a series of independent training centres throughout the country. Each of the 600 centres in the training network is BIIAB accredited.

Of the many training courses arranged by the BIIAB, arguably the most important one is the National Certificate For Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH). Legislation in recent years has made this qualification crucial. Under the terms of Licensing Reform Act of 2003 anyone authorising the sale of alcoholic beverages to the general public must be adequately qualified, hence the importance of the NCPLH. Without such a qualification you will not be licensed for the sale of alcohol to the public.

Although the NCPLH training course is only a one day module there is an examination at the end of the course and only those who pass the exam will be able to apply for their personal licence. Unsurprisingly the course covers a lot of ground especially in relation to the law and the legal responsibilities of the prospective licence holder. This area of the course covers not only regulations in regard to the licensed premises and duties of the licence holder but also the protection of children and the specific exclusions from the sale of alcoholic drinks.

Another important area of the NCPLH training course is the highlighting of unlicensed activities and the powers that the police possess in being able to close licensed premises. Knowing the ins and out’s of these regulations are essential for anyone looking to become a personal licence holder.

When a person has successfully completed a NCPLH training course they will be able to apply for a personal licence though there are other BIIAB qualifications that the licence holder may want, or is required, to achieve. For example, the training and licensing of door staff is now mandatory and the BIIAB courses in this sector have been developed in conjunction with the police and government authorities.

The sale of alcohol to the general public demands a high degree of responsibility in the society of today. So full training and a thorough knowledge of the laws and regulations is very important. BIIBA can help provide that knowledge and expertise.