Openwork is increasing its training and education support to help firms improve their client offering throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

The Openwork Academy has enrolled more than 460 candidates since 2014 and over 200 in 2019.

The academy team, led by Lorna Mills, has re-formed the training delivery to online modules to keep the programmes running remotely. Remote workshops have been introduced to support studies, benefiting more than 180 candidates in the past month, and development sessions have also been rolled out to provide weekly inputs to Academy candidates.

All candidates are being supported through the Academy, which achieves pass rates of nearly 90%, through group study workshops and by an “expert” tutor with Openwork funding the costs including study material and initial examination fees.

Remote assessments for new potential candidates will be hosted on four dates over the next two months – 22 April, 23 April, 20 May and 17 June. Nearly 80 new candidates have enrolled this year.

Lorna Mills, head of academy at Openwork, said: “Despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus, it is very much business as usual at the Academy. We are all in this together, with the Academy team focused on converting our courses to online delivery as well as ensuring that the opportunities remain open for new delegates.”

Claire Limon, director of learning and acquisition at Openwork, added: “Our contingency plans, reinforced by the hard work and determination of Lorna and her team, have enabled us to maintain all existing Academy programmes and we continue to support our existing population of Academy candidates on their journeys.

“The rapid delivery of our online learning capability demonstrates Openwork’s commitment to expanding access to financial advice by training and nurturing a new generation of advisers through our market leading Academy.”