The Nepopo®
gold school
We are the most qualified and experienced teachers of this training method in the UK, having been working and teaching within this framework for over 20 years.
What is nepopo® ?
NePoPo® is a landmark training system that was developed by Michael and Bart Bellon.
The NePoPo® system gives dogs the idea that they can influence their environment. By using it, we train them to be enterprising, innovative, and passionate partners. They carry out their tasks with heart and soul!
The NePoPo® system is often referred to as The Language of Modern Dog Training.
More information can be obtained at www.nepopotraining.com
What is gold school?
- NePoPo Gold School is a 5-day Training Program which is only available to NePoPo® Silver Graduates and NePoPo® New Silver Graduates
- Practical work training with your own dog, with guidance and supervision
- The practical work of applying the theory can then begin. The students will work with their dogs and will see other dogs work in NePoPo®
- Training aids will be discussed and how and why we implement them in NePoPo®
- You will learn how to solve behavioural problems using NePoPo® to create clear and efficient solutions
- NePoPo® is developed and trademarked by Bart and Michael Bellon
our experience
In the early 2000s I was training my sport dog Wolfhaus Bud for IGP competitions. We’d done reasonably well together in competition but he was not an easy dog to live with or train, and the challenges were many!
I met Bart Bellon in Belgium and the rest as they say is history. Bart gave me some great advice regarding Bud’s future career, namely to retire him and start again with a new puppy. So I did.
Over the next few years I immersed myself in learning the NePoPo® system from Bart and applied this to my new dog. Sepp von Haus Silma was raised and trained in the NePoPo® framework and together we became the most successful IGP team in the UK and Ireland, not to mention taking 3rd place at the WUSV World Championship for German Shepherds.
I don’t care much for the spotlight or these podium moments, the photos are few and far between and the few trophies I kept are gathering dust. I do have a deep and enduring love for the sport and the joy of training my dog.
Five years later, I gave my first seminar on NePoPo® to cascade my knowledge and help others learn how to be the architect of their own training plans. Many of the people I’ve taught and mentored over the years have used this information to achieve their goals in IGP dogsport. You can see more of this on our IGP page.
– Paul Flanagan
Why Train at the UK’s NePoPo® Gold School?
NePoPo® Gold School is taught worldwide by a very small number of people, and certification standards are guarded carefully. Paul Flanagan trained personally under Bart Bellon for twenty years before being certified as a NePoPo® Gold-Level Instructor in 2021 — making him one of only a handful of practitioners in the United Kingdom qualified not just to teach the system, but to certify other trainers within it. Hosting Gold School at our Cheshire facility means UK and Irish trainers can certify at the highest level of the system without travelling long distances.
Who attends Gold School?
Gold School is a five-day intensive open only to NePoPo® Silver graduates. Attendees range from professional pet-dog trainers and behaviour practitioners to IGP, ring sport and detection-dog handlers. What they share is a commitment to precise, fair, modern training — and a desire to understand the system at the depth required to apply it to any dog, not just repeat exercises.
What the five days cover
Gold School is practical. You work with dogs every day, applying the full NePoPo® framework: the language of silent conversation, switch-on/switch-off mechanics, building drive and clarity, and the problem-solving methodology for dogs that do not fit the textbook. Expect your handling, timing and dog-reading to be examined and rebuilt — whatever level you arrive at.
Learning from working application, not theory
Everything taught at our Gold School is grounded in real application: Paul’s forty-year career spans serious aggression rehabilitation, police and explosives detection dog production, more than 10,000 client dogs, and ten WUSV World Championship appearances including a third-place individual finish in 2013. Julie West — IGP judge, BIPDT accredited trainer and NePoPo® Gold graduate certified by Bart Bellon directly — supports delivery, and the venue is our working training facility at Gate Farm near Nantwich, where dogs are in residential training year-round.
Dates and booking
Gold School runs at Unit 6, Gate Farm, Wettenhall Road, Poole, Nantwich, Cheshire CW5 6LH. Places are strictly limited by the practical format. For current dates, prerequisites and pricing, see our events page or contact us on 01270 323 707 / hello@libertyk9.co.uk. If you are not yet a Silver graduate, ask us about the pathway — we can advise on the route from first NePoPo® exposure through to Gold certification. You can also read our plain-English explanation of the system in What Is NePoPo® Dog Training?
Let’s Start Something new
sign up now!
Congratulations!
You’re ready to sign up for our next Gold School in Nantwich, Cheshire.
Only existing Silver Graduates and New Silver Graduates are eligible to enroll.
Simply add your details below and we’ll be in touch to provide you with your confirmation and we’re ready to rock and roll!