Onsite group vs open-course first aid: which is cheaper?
When you need staff first-aid trained, you face one big choice: send people on an open public course priced per person, or book an onsite group day where a trainer comes to you for one flat fee. The right answer is almost entirely about numbers — how many people you need to qualify. This guide breaks down the cost of each and shows the crossover point.
The two options at a glance
An open course is a scheduled public session at a training centre. You pay per person and slot staff into dates the provider sets. If you only need one or two people certified, this is usually cheaper and simpler — no minimum group to fill.
An onsite (in-company) course brings a trainer to your premises to teach your team, typically up to around 12 learners, for a single flat fee regardless of how many attend within that cap. You choose the date and the venue is your own workplace.
The pricing logic is completely different, which is why "which is cheaper?" has no fixed answer — it depends on your head count.
The maths: where the crossover sits
Because an onsite day is one flat price, the cost per person falls with every extra learner. An open course stays the same per head. Take First Aid at Work, using an onsite flat price of around £1,680 inc VAT for up to 12 against an open seat of, say, £280 inc VAT per person:
- ✓2 people onsite = £840 each → open course wins
- ✓4 people onsite = £420 each → open course still cheaper
- ✓6 people onsite = £280 each → roughly break-even
- ✓10 people onsite = £168 each → onsite wins comfortably
- ✓12 people onsite = £140 each → onsite wins clearly
The exact crossover shifts with the prices you are quoted, but the pattern holds: below about four people, open courses tend to be cheaper; around six and above, onsite almost always wins. Shorter courses follow the same shape at lower numbers.
Costs beyond the course fee
Price per head is only half the decision. Onsite carries advantages that do not show up in the fee: no travel (staff stay on site, avoiding travel time, expenses and lost productivity); consistency (your whole team trains together on your equipment); and scheduling control (you pick the date). Open courses win on flexibility for tiny numbers — no minimum to fill, frequent dates — but every attendee is a separate travel and downtime cost. Both carry 20% VAT, recoverable if you are VAT-registered.
Compliance is the same either way
Whichever route you pick, your legal duty is identical. Under the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 you must provide adequate, in-date first aid cover, and since October 2013 the HSE no longer approves providers — so it is on you to check the trainer is competent. The same due diligence applies to both: verified, insured, awarding-body-checked trainers, a regulated qualification, and evidence of your checks. Do not rely on any "HSE approved" claim.
Making the cheaper option easy
Once you have six or more people, onsite is usually both cheaper and less disruptive — but historically the friction was getting a quote, vetting the trainer and coordinating the day. AidReady closes that gap: an instant flat inc-VAT price for the whole group (for example around £594 for EFAW or Emergency Paediatric, £1,680 for First Aid at Work, £1,140 for full Paediatric, £420 for BLS/AED, each up to 12), a verified trainer who comes to you, an evidence pack, and renewal reminders. For small numbers where an open seat is cheaper, you can still book a per-person place — so the right-value option is always in front of you.
In short
Open courses win for one or two people, but from around six upward an onsite flat-fee group day is almost always cheaper — and saves the travel and downtime an open course adds.
Frequently asked questions
- Is onsite first aid training cheaper than an open course?
- It depends on numbers. For one or two people, open per-person courses are usually cheaper. From roughly six people upward, an onsite group day — one flat fee for up to about 12 — almost always costs less per head and saves travel and downtime.
- How many people do I need for onsite training to be worth it?
- As a rule of thumb, around six or more. That is where the flat group fee, divided across the team, typically drops below the per-person open-course price — and the gap widens as you approach the group cap.
- Do onsite and open courses give the same qualification?
- Yes. The qualification depends on the course and awarding organisation, not the setting. A First Aid at Work certificate earned onsite is identical to one earned on an open course, and lasts three years either way.
- What about very small teams of one or two?
- For one or two people an open-course seat is normally the cheaper and more flexible choice, since there is no group fee to spread. Some marketplaces let you book a per-person place for exactly this situation.
This guide is general information, not legal advice, and does not replace your own first-aid needs assessment or the current statutory framework. AidReady is not HSE-approved (no provider is since 2013); we book verified, insured, awarding-body-checked trainers.
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