Front counter and reception service
Serve walk-in customers and visitors well: acknowledge people quickly, run a fair queue, balance the phone and the counter, keep personal information private when others can overhear, manage visitors safely, and know what to do when someone becomes abusive or threatening. HSE's definition of work-related violence is a UK example; your site's procedures and risk assessment govern.
- Level
- Beginner
- Length
- About 45 minutes
- Contents
- 3 lessons · 1 video · final exam
- Status
- Published · updated 3 Oct 2026
Skills you'll practise
- Acknowledge arriving customers promptly and serve them in a fair, stated order
- Balance phone calls and in-person customers without leaving either unacknowledged
- Protect personal information at a counter: screens, voices, documents and identity checks
- Sign visitors in and out with a host and badge, and act on incomplete visitor records
- Recognize abuse and threats as work-related violence under the HSE example definition, use the site's safety measures and report every incident
Course outline
- 1.Front counter and reception serviceVideo · 2 min
- 2.Welcoming walk-in customers and visitorsLesson · 15 min
- 3.Privacy at the counterLesson · 15 min
- 4.Staying safe at the front lineLesson · 15 min
- 5.Front counter and reception service: knowledge checkKnowledge check · 17 questions
- 6.Final exam9 questions · passing it completes the course, so people who already know the material can test out
Sources it draws on
The lessons and questions are written from these references, so learners can go back to the original.
- HSE: How employers can protect workers from violence and aggression at work (overview and definition; UK example)
- Your organization's service procedures, policies, authority limits and escalation paths
- General customer service practice (starter content; needs subject review)
See it with your own jobs and topics
Tell us about your team and we'll walk you through setup, from choosing jobs to your first skills check.