Training Auditors in Interviewing Skills

This article describes a course in interviewing skills for local authority auditors. It represents a further development of the “Bradford Approach” to interviewing skills training developed by Randell et al for appraisal interviewing and subsequently extended to include grievance interviewing by Gill. As such, it relies heavily on the notion that successful interviewing depends upon a number of precise behavioural skills which can best be acquired through practice in role plays. The course was developed at the request of the Internal Audit Section of Humberside County Council, who felt that existing courses for auditors did not provide adequate training in interviewing skills.