Kate Carter, Engage in Learning's Operations and Marketing Manager, explained, "It's more than likely that an unattended bag or package is harmless, but you can never merely assume that it is. If you're somewhere that could be a target for a bomb threat - such as a government building, a travel hub, or a major financial institution - you should also take into account the current threat level.

"To minimise the dangers to all concerned - especially members of the public - from an unattended bag or a suspicious package, correct procedures need to be followed," she added. "Moreover, those people who're responsible for minimising these dangers need to be confident that they can recognise a suspicious package and deal with it accordingly."

A new interactive training course from Engage in Learning called Suspicious Packages uses real-life scenarios to provide learners with advice and experience about what to do when faced with a bag or package that could be suspicious. Learners face various dilemmas as they journey through these online learning materials and receive feedback on their choices.

The programme advocates using the "HOT procedure" (Hidden - Obviously suspicious - Typical) to help those involved decide whether a package is a piece of lost property or whether it's suspicious and, potentially, lethal. Furthermore, the course covers the 4Cs (Confirm, Clear, Communicate, Control), and also offers advice and guidance on how to judge safe distances.

The course, which is "RoSPA approved" and forms part of the Engage in Learning Health and Safety series, comes with a downloadable eBook that gives the learner detailed guidance on how to check if a package received in the mail is genuine or not.

"This course gives clear guidelines to help learners identify suspicious bags and packages, and how to deal effectively, efficiently, and safely with one if they do," said Engage in Learning's CEO, Chris Horseman. "It's part of Engage in Learning's series of programmes on health and safety awareness training.

"Our unique Speed-Learning function is now built into the course. This allows learners to accelerate the audio without increasing the pitch, thereby facilitating a more engaging learning experience that better matches learners' conversational and reading speeds.

"The course's speed-learning enabled, multilingual, 24/7 accessibility allows users to learn at their own pace and in bite-sized chunks, ensuring they receive the learning input that best suits their own timetables, while placing no constraint on resources or their productivity."