Edinburgh-based St Andrews Timber & Building Supplies hosted the landmark two-day programme at its West Lothian base last week.

A pricing and quantities seminar was delivered in the firm’s state-of-the-art boardroom at its Livingston branch, while students moved outdoors for the second day to learn more about how paving is evolving in the industry.

The academy, which was established in Chester four years ago, says its first foray into Scotland could not have gone better.

“We were really looking forward to coming to Scotland with the academy and weren’t disappointed,” said Landscape Academy managing director Mark Youde.

“I can’t speak too highly of the staff at St Andrews. Nothing was ever too much trouble, no matter what it was. Everyone found the time to talk to us and that is hard to find in business nowadays.

“Livingston was the ideal geographical location to make it accessible to as many people as possible and the facility which St Andrews has there is perfect. The internal space was amazing and perfect for the theory-based courses.

“For the practical courses, we had space by the side of the building which was a bit of a storage area and that was ideal to pop up the marquee area and kept everyone safe away from the work of the yard.

“We had two St Andrews staff members participate on the second day which was great as it gave them a feel of what landscapers and designers are doing within the industry. They said it was really beneficial as they learned so much about what we have to consider as contractors that they didn’t know.

“They now have the ability to talk on a level playing field to contractors and designers as well as the public about what products best suit whatever projects they may be working on.

“The two days were a great success and we’ll definitely be back.”

Kerrie Ferguson, operations director at St Andrews Timber & Building Supplies, said: “It was a privilege to host the Landscape Academy’s first training courses in Scotland at our Livingston branch. Hosting the academy was a major step forward for us as we continue to make an impact in the landscaping sector.

“We’re proud of the landscape offering we have in Livingston, the newest of our branches, and the facility was ideally suited to the delivery of the courses.

“The academy staff were very easy to get along with, their courses were a great success and our two staff members who attended were very complimentary of the whole day and what they learned.”