How to hire
Match the trainer to the job before you ring anyone. Puppy classes and Good Citizen courses suit young or easy dogs learning manners and social skills; one-to-one sessions suit specific problems such as pulling, recall or jumping up; and behaviour consultations suit fear, reactivity, separation anxiety or aggression, where you want a practitioner with behaviour study behind them. Daycare-folded training suits owners short on time, while award courses suit owners who enjoy training as a weekly habit. When you first enquire, describe the dog's age, breed and the one behaviour you most want changed.
Dog training has no licence-to-practise, so credentials need checking rather than assuming. The Kennel Club Good Citizen scheme runs four awards from Puppy Foundation to Gold through a network of clubs, and you can find a participating club through the Kennel Club's own search [1]. Behaviour practitioners can be found on the Animal Behaviour and Training Council practitioner register, which lets you filter by area and species [3]. Trainer memberships such as APDT, IMDT or CFBA are either stated on the business's own site or checkable on the association's register: Cosford's CFBA record, Pawz4's APDT and IMDT membership and Train Me & My Dog's Puppy School training are all stated or listed this way, while several Telford trainers state no scheme at all. Ask for the membership detail, then check it yourself rather than taking a logo at face value.
If the dog will stay over or attend daycare, the licence matters more than any training badge. Boarding, home boarding and daycare all need an animal activity licence from the council, with conditions on space, exercise, rest and record-keeping set out in national guidance [2]. Ask for the licence number and the issuing council, then check it on the council's own site before you book. Train Me & My Dog prints its Shropshire licence number on its homepage, which makes the check take seconds. Never leave a dog somewhere that cannot show you this paperwork.
Get two or three itemised quotes on the same written brief, so you compare like with like [5]. Each quote should state the session length and number, whether it is a group course or one-to-one, the venue, what happens in bad weather, the cancellation and refund terms, and whether VAT is added. Ask how assessments are charged, whether block bookings carry a discount, and what follow-up support such as videos or notes is included. Treat an outlier far above or below the rest as a question rather than a bargain, and ask what is included or excluded.
Before the first class, ask about vaccinations, class size and methods. Good Citizen clubs usually ask to see vaccination records before a puppy joins a group [1], and any group should be small enough that the trainer sees every dog. Ask what training methods are used and how unwanted behaviour is handled: the ranked Telford trainers describe reward-based or force-free approaches, and you should hear the same plain answer from anyone you consider. Bring the vaccination record, a collar and lead with a legal identification tag, treats and a toy, and tell the trainer about any fear or reactivity beforehand.
Finish with paperwork, not a handshake. Keep the quote, the receipt and any written training or behaviour plan together, with the dates of each session. For stays away from home, keep the boarding licence number and the emergency contact details with the booking confirmation. If the trainer promised a certificate, rosette or award test entry, get the date it will happen. If anything feels rushed or undocumented, pause and ask for it in writing before you pay.
Pricing
As of autumn 2026, a national check of twenty-five trainers puts group classes at about £21 a session, with five or six puppy classes typically booked as a course of about £105 to £125 [4]. In this round, published Telford prices sit close to that picture: fixed-price sessions at Apley Woods with home visits priced by postcode, and an initial behaviour assessment plus hourly field sessions at the reactivity specialist. Few other trainers publish any rate at all.
One-to-one work averages about £73.60 an hour nationally, though the range runs from £30 to £182.50 depending on experience and area, and trainers usually charge extra for the first assessment visit [4]. Sessions focused on aggression average a little higher at about £77.93 [4]. Residential training, where the dog stays at the school, averages about £818.61 a week [4].
What moves the price: location, with London dearer than Telford; the trainer's experience and behaviour specialism; class size, since fewer dogs cost more; the dog's breed and needs; and the length and type of course [4]. Travel to home visits, hire of a field or hall, and video follow-ups can all add to the bill. Block bookings often carry a discount, so ask.
Ask whether VAT is added on top, since published ranges may or may not include it, and whether assessments, travel and venue hire sit inside the headline price [4]. One Telford trainer takes no money upfront and promises you pay nothing if unhappy with a session, but most will want a deposit for a course. Get the scope, the total and the cancellation terms in writing before the first session [5].
Red flags
Guarantees your dog's behaviour fixed in a set number of sessions before ever meeting the dog.
Will not say what training methods are used when you ask directly.
Boards dogs or runs daycare but cannot show a council licence number when asked [2].
Quotes a course price with no written terms on sessions, cancellations or refunds [5].
Runs group classes with no stated cap, so one trainer faces more dogs than they can watch.
Asks for the full course fee in cash upfront with no receipt or booking confirmation.
Dismisses your questions about qualifications, insurance or vaccination rules as fussiness.