SMALL and medium sized businesses should learn to love the internet and use it more to provide staff with training, according to a survey.

The study by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) found 97 per cent of bosses viewed in-house training as valuable as external courses.

Ilyas Patel, ACCA's spokesman for Lancashire, said: "Small businesses should be aware of the advantages of using the internet as a training resource and encourage staff to make the most of the opportunities it provides.

"Using training websites for career development is a win-win situation for both staff and employer."

Mr Patel said computer- based training is cheaper than external courses, it allows staff to learn on-site, workers can pick the courses most suited to their needs and they can work at their own pace.