About the Academy

The Academy

The Academy of Professional Investigation is an established and well-respected investigation training school, which has been in existence since 1997. The Academy specialises in investigative training and has had the Advanced Diploma in Private Investigation approved at level 3, under the Edexcel customised qualification framework. The course is fully accredited and provides benchmarked training for those wishing to pursue a career in private investigation. This is currently the only Distance Learning Course in Advanced Private Investigation, that has a Nationally recognised qualification in this highly specialised sector. There are many private investigators working in the UK who have been the beneficiaries of this training course approved by a nationally recognized and accredited Awarding Body.

Through the Academy of Professional Investigation you will receive first class training and assessment and if successful will obtain the Level 3 BTEC Advanced Diploma in Private Investigation. There are both formative and summative assessments built into the course which will provide you with the tools to develop a portfolio of evidence to demonstrate your ongoing practical achievements and will also provide the foundations for the development of your knowledge base which will be tested in a final examination.

Our Founder

Stuart has been a practising professional investigator for five decades and is:

Stuart R Withers
Academy Director

• Founder of Nationwide Investigations Group
• Founder of the Academy of Professional Investigation
• Founder of the World Association of Professional Investigators
• Co-Author of the British Process Servers Guide (The Private Investigators Bible)
• Contributor to the NVQ syllabus in investigation level 3&4
• A full member of the chartered Management Institute

With Stuart's impressive achievements it may surprise you to know that he left school at the age of 15 years with no academic qualifications, whatsoever, and joined the Blue Funnel Shipping Company having completed the Duke of Edinburgh "Outward Bound" award.

After travelling the world, having risen from a deck boy to an able bodied seaman, Stuart stepped into the unknown and in 1963 commenced his career in private investigation. He has since proved that anybody can with ambition, determination and perseverance achieve their goal.

With Stuart's vast experience and guiding hand you can be assured that you too can have a successful career as a Professional Private Investigator.