Experienced Carpenters who need NVQs

With the 2010 requirement for all site workers to hold Experienced Worker cards or Skilled Worker cards, the need for experienced tradesmen to gain NVQs has never been more important. Without the right qualification, you will be unable to gain access to site to undertake your work as a Carpenter.

As a result, the Construction Awards Alliance has developed a fast track programme for those experienced Carpenters to achieve NVQ without the need for site visits.

This fast track route to the right level of qualification in Carpentry is available to all time served and skilled Carpenters, those of you who have never previously had the time or the opportunity to gain a qualification to reflect your Carpentry ability.

EWPA – (Experienced Worker Practical Assessment) is a fast track qualification option and with the right evidence in place, can be achieved in as little as 2 days, usually at weekends so there should be little or no disruption to ongoing commitments.

Everything can be done at Able Skills Construction Training Centre as we have the facilities and staff in place to fast track you through the NVQ process.

If you feel the need to be formally assessed in order to gain your Carpentry NVQ and an Experienced Worker CSCS card then this fast route to NVQ is ideal.

Able Skills has approval from Construction Awards Alliance and City & Guilds to assist skilled Carpenters in gaining an NVQ. This process is non complicated and can be completed in a relatively short time frame if all of the evidence required is readily available.

If you have been working as a Carpenter for quite some time and you are competent in your Carpentry ability and have a very good general knowledge in all areas of Carpentry, then come along to Able Skills to meet with one of our Carpentry Assessors to discuss your route to gaining a Carpentry qualification.

A short meeting to establish your competence could put you well on your way to obtaining a Carpentry NVQ, a requirement for any construction site worker for 2010.

We have all of the required assessment procedures in place: qualified staff, excellent facilities and all of the support and guidance to help you obtain a Carpentry NVQ.

Candidate Criteria

This is a fast route open through the Construction Awards Alliance / City & Guilds awarding bodies. It is available for workers with a minimum of five years experience and who do not need any further Carpentry training.

All EWPA candidates must:

•    Be site experienced in all the stated skills of the Carpentry NVQ
•    Have sufficient experience of the skills of the NVQ, so that planning your working day, problem solving and decision making and working to deadlines (with regard to Carpentry) are a usual day-to-day activity
•    Have an ability to cope with the demands of an intensive practical assessment process
•    Have an ability to work safely at all times
•    Have an ability to discuss your work activities with others

The following units make up the level 2 Carpentry NVQ (QUA 808) and you will be required to provide evidence of:

Mandatory Units required: 3

QCF01 – Conforming to General Safety in the Workplace
QCF02 – Conforming to Efficient Working Practices in the workplace
QCF03 – Moving and Handling Resources in the Workplace

Optional Units required: 3

QCF09 – Installing First Fixing Components in the Workplace
QCF10 – Installing Second Fixing Components in the Workplace
QCF11 – Erecting Structural Carcassing Components in the Workplace
QCF12 – Maintaining Non-Structural Carpentry Work in the Workplace
QCF13 – Setting Up and Using Circular Saws in the Workplace

The 4 Steps of EWPA

Step 1: Upon contacting Able Skills, we will arrange a profiling appointment for you and make recommendations of the kind of information and evidence you may wish to bring along to support your application as an experienced Carpenter.

Step 2: At your profiling appointment (which will last for approximately 2 hours) our Carpentry assessor will introduce you to the process and make an initial assessment to ensure you are suitable to qualify through this method.

They will look over any items of Carpentry ‘evidence’ you may have with you, evidence you provide can be in a written form, such as witness statements from customers or supervisors worked with in the past, or it can take the form of photographs of your work, site plans, qualifications or proof of Carpentry employment.

If there is insufficient evidence but it is clear that you are a competent Carpenter, you will be advised of what additional Carpentry evidence is required which you will have to bring back to the Centre to undertake a review. You will also be required to sit a health & safety test for your CSCS card if you haven’t done so already.

Step 3: Once all of the required portfolio evidence is complete, you will undertake a practical assessment of your skills which will be observed by our Carpentry assessor. This will be followed by a recorded professional discussion to assess your knowledge of Carpentry; we will aim to complete this process over a period of 2 days, weekends are available.

Step 4: If you are successful, you will receive your full, Skilled Worker CSCS card and your NVQ certificate. If you do not pass the assessment all is not lost: the work you have done can still count towards your qualification through OSAT.

EWPA Summary

The entire Carpentry EWPA process can be completed quite quickly if all of the evidence is in place and as Able Skills is open 7 days every week, you can choose when you would like to complete the varying aspects of this Carpentry award so if weekends suit you better, no problem.

Whether you are looking to gain an Carpentry NVQ for the purposes of obtaining a Skilled Worker CSCS card or if you are considering emigrating and taking your Carpentry skills to another country, this experienced worker fast track option is a fantastic route to gaining that all important Carpentry qualification.

This is an opportunity for you to have the paperwork that is sometimes an official requirement to prove that you are an experienced and skilled Carpenter.

NVQs are the requirement from 2010 for any site based employment, without the qualification and the CSCS card, you will not be able to continue working in the way that you have been.

EWPA and CSCS

Registering for the EWPA NVQ route will generate a:

Red Card - EXPERIENCED WORKER

Registration will take place at PROFILING stage and as long as you sit/have sat a Construction Skills health and safety test., this card will be generated. The card is issued on a temporary basis, while the NVQ is being achieved.

The card is valid for one year and is non-renewable.

An Experienced Worker Card cannot be replaced by a Construction Site Operative or a Basic Skills Green Card.

Blue Card - SKILLED WORKER

You may qualify for a blue skilled card once you have successfully completed the EWPA process and achieved the NVQ level 2

EWPA fees and structure

Profiling appointment - £150.00 (inc vat)

EWPA Review (if undertaken) - £422.50 (inc vat)

EWPA Practical Assessment - £422.50 (or £845 if review is not required) (inc vat)

Total will not exceed £995.00 (inc vat)

Carpentry Image Gallery

Book the Above Course

We are sorry but this course is not available for online booking. To book this course, please call us on 01322 280202 or use the form below: