It’s that renewals time of year, so I can announce that…
It’s just been confirmed that Peter Smythe (PSTT) is continuing to sponsor the Newbies’ Forum.
Thanks to Peter.
Oh, and I almost forgot these… 
… 
He’s paying you millions of pounds a year in sponsorship and you put his name in the smallest writing possible
xichrisxi:
He’s paying you millions of pounds a year in sponsorship and you put his name in the smallest writing possible
I’ve no idea of the fees, because they’re handled separately to what I do.
I did nip back in and alter the font size though.
WHat happened to the other two that jointly sponsored it last year?
jonnyboat:
WHat happened to the other two that jointly sponsored it last year?
I can’t say anything for sure because I’m not a party to those discussions.
I don’t get to know the how or the why, but my guess is that they decided not to continue sponsorship for some reason.
Peter must have it bad … to pay to put up with us for longer … he must have a good psychiatrist 
Hi All. Happy to continue sponsorship of this forum. Users will find all sorts of useful information and get involved in some lively discussions!
For me, I really enjoy answering questions specific to learning to drive a truck. I have spent hours teaching folks to reverse artics by private message, for instance. I don’t “reject” folks because they haven’t selected us as their trainer. A lot of time is put into folks in the hope that I can solve their problems. Many users choose to come to us and we’re grateful for that.
We have frequent offers but a fair deal is always available.
So bring it on with your questions; happy to help.
Pete
PSTT and Mansfield will always have a place in my heart Peter, be back maybe for my psv at some point
Petes passion for HGV training is amazing. You won’t find any other school that has posted a fraction of what Pete has on these forums to help new drivers.
Regarding sponsorship. We (EP Training) sponsored this forum for a while last year to try and make the playing field on here a little more even.
There were rules in place regarding sponsors posting certain things and one sponsor decided to break the rules and just do whatever they wanted to. That’s why we stopped advertising.
I cannot speak for Ritchies Training. So Peter has the forum all to himself so he can rag the ar** out of it. I am not knocking Peters setup however this forum was all about people finding local, reputable companies in their area. It clearly has changed to the Sponsor selling his training to the country and sod the rest.
We don’t mind paying to be a sponsor…but it had to be on a level playing field, which it clearly was not.
This is the first I’ve heard that we’ve broken sponsorship rules. Amazing that we were asked to continue as sponsor if that was actually the case.
And yes, we will continue to offer our services to anyone who is interested. I’m happy that we offer first class training at a fair price - and this is supported by the frequent positive feedback and zero negative feedback.
Alongside this, I will also continue to help and support the many folks that contact me in the realisation that they may have misjudged their choice of trainer. This is normally “mid course” and, with help, they sometimes still manage to pass a test. There is no financial reward for this; it’s often done by pm with no public knowledge. But the satisfaction makes it worthwhile. It also consumes many hours each week.
So I’m sorry if I’ve got it wrong but nothing’s going to change anytime soon.
Pete
hgvlgvtraining:
… it had to be on a level playing field, which it clearly was not.
Hi,
Firstly, I have to say that I’m not a party to those discussions, so I really couldn’t comment one way or the other.
Having said that, could I suggest that you contact the relevant person to privately discuss any concerns you may have please?
Let’s be fair, Pete does comment on a lot of threads in this forum advertising his school regardless of the context of the thread.
ItsJoe:
Let’s be fair, Pete does comment on a lot of threads in this forum advertising his school regardless of the context of the thread.
There are no forum issues with that.
If I was a sponsor I would take every opportunity to do the same.
ItsJoe:
Let’s be fair, Pete does comment on a lot of threads in this forum advertising his school regardless of the context of the thread.
I guess you would be absolutely fine if Peter were promoting the ESTA, wouldn’t you? Also, you forgot to mention that Peter is always keen to respond to any questions posted in this section of the forum as well as through pm’s.
Rav
PS I thought you wanted to delete your account - have you changed your mind (again)?
Rav:
ItsJoe:
Let’s be fair, Pete does comment on a lot of threads in this forum advertising his school regardless of the context of the thread.I guess you would be absolutely fine if Peter were promoting the ESTA, wouldn’t you? Also, you forgot to mention that Peter is always keen to respond to any questions posted in this section of the forum as well as through pm’s.
Rav
PS I thought you wanted to delete your account - have you changed your mind (again)?
Maybe you didn’t read my post earlier in the thread where I commend Pete on his dedication to these forums?
My point was, Pete does comment a lot on threads which have nothing to do with training providers, advertising his school. That shouldn’t be allowed and we shouldn’t be afraid to call Pete out on it.
And I don’t care what training provider people choose because at the end of the day the money isn’t going in my pocket.
ItsJoe:
Rav:
ItsJoe:
Let’s be fair, Pete does comment on a lot of threads in this forum advertising his school regardless of the context of the thread.I guess you would be absolutely fine if Peter were promoting the ESTA, wouldn’t you? Also, you forgot to mention that Peter is always keen to respond to any questions posted in this section of the forum as well as through pm’s.
Rav
PS I thought you wanted to delete your account - have you changed your mind (again)?
Maybe you didn’t read my post earlier in the thread where I commend Pete on his dedication to these forums?
My point was, Pete does comment a lot on threads which have nothing to do with training providers, advertising his school. That shouldn’t be allowed and we shouldn’t be afraid to call Pete out on it.
And I don’t care what training provider people choose because at the end of the day the money isn’t going in my pocket.
And within the Newbies Forum, that Pete PAYS to sponsor, there is no issue with him advertising his school. That is part of the deal.
Colingl:
ItsJoe:
Rav:
ItsJoe:
Let’s be fair, Pete does comment on a lot of threads in this forum advertising his school regardless of the context of the thread.I guess you would be absolutely fine if Peter were promoting the ESTA, wouldn’t you? Also, you forgot to mention that Peter is always keen to respond to any questions posted in this section of the forum as well as through pm’s.
Rav
PS I thought you wanted to delete your account - have you changed your mind (again)?
Maybe you didn’t read my post earlier in the thread where I commend Pete on his dedication to these forums?
My point was, Pete does comment a lot on threads which have nothing to do with training providers, advertising his school. That shouldn’t be allowed and we shouldn’t be afraid to call Pete out on it.
And I don’t care what training provider people choose because at the end of the day the money isn’t going in my pocket.
And within the Newbies Forum, that Pete PAYS to sponsor, there is no issue with him advertising his school. That is part of the deal.
So to confirm, Pete can post on any thread, regardless of what the thread is about, with self promotion? That’s just called spam. Fair enough if the thread was talking about what training provider should OP chose but not when it’s about when OP has a full license and is wondering what equipment to bring to work for example.
ItsJoe:
Colingl:
And within the Newbies Forum, that Pete PAYS to sponsor, there is no issue with him advertising his school. That is part of the deal.So to confirm, Pete can post on any thread, regardless of what the thread is about, with self promotion? That’s just called spam. Fair enough if the thread was talking about what training provider should OP chose but not when it’s about when OP has a full license and is wondering what equipment to bring to work for example.
Joe,
You’re entitled to your opinion, but since you seek confirmation… I should confirm that the reality is somewhat different.
Speaking of reality, maybe you’re still struggling with that concept
FYI: spam is unauthorised advertising (and stupid pointless posts ,) whereas Peter is continuing as a forum sponsor in case you missed my meaning in the OP as well as Colingl’s explanation.
As for advising what somebody brings to work, Peter and anybody else, including you (for now ), can offer advice.
I hope I’ve clarified this (and your) situation because it is intended to halt any further attempt to derail this topic if you get my drift.
Peter Smythe has offered some good advice to new and old over the years, even if he didn’t advertise on here. I would still point people towards him. There is another bloke on here always banging on about ADR, he doesn’t advertise but has many followers [emoji23]