You Are Here: Carpentry Courses > Onsite Assessment Carpentry Courses
OSAT: Carpentry QUA708 from Able Skills
Carpentry Progression at Able Skills
If you are looking to gain access to the Carpentry industry, Able Skills can help by providing you with City & Guilds Carpentry qualifications which will teach you Carpentry from scratch and then follow up by supporting you through an entire training and assessment process to achieve a Carpentry NVQ at level 2.
Able Skills is possibly the only private training provider in the UK who can offer this level of service because we have:
- Very comprehensive carpentry training programmes in place
- The best possible carpentry tools and materials to train with and
- The staff available to competently train and assess you to carpentry industry approved standards.
As an NVQ approved assessment centre, Able Skills offers Carpentry NVQ on site assessment (OSAT) to those of you who have underpinning knowledge or qualifications or who have spent some time working within the carpentry industry and who have reached a level of competence which falls in line with NVQ National Occupational Standards. We have our own Carpentry Assessors and Internal Verifiers, all of whom are City & Guilds and CAA approved so as long as you are working within the Carpentry Industry, we can come and assess you on site.
Able Skills has been providing quality Carpentry training for many years now and we have watched many of our students move ahead in the Carpentry industry, opening their own businesses and securing building contracts. As their work has increased and their skills perfected, they have reached the point where they are competent to achieve their Carpentry NVQ and this is where we have been able to help out further.
We have 4 Carpentry instructors, Blake, John, Paul and Mark and each of them are competent and qualified NVQ Assessors and have all had experience of on-site assessments; they have all had the benefit of assessing past carpentry students as well as existing time served Carpenters who have been in the industry for some time.
Carpentry NVQ Assessment process
If you feel that you are in a position to achieve a Carpentry NVQ you will need to contact us to arrange a profiling session. At this initial stage, one of Able Skills carpentry assessors will draw up a potential assessment action plan and timetable of how the entire process will be completed. They will guide you through portfolio completion if you do not have previous experience of this and as well as on-site assessments, you will also be required to gather and record evidence as indicated on your assessment plan.
Following your initial interview, we will arrange visits to your place of work where we will also examine and discuss the evidence you have provided.
As you move through the process, an assessor will sign off completed units where a sufficient quality and quantity of evidence has been provided. Any shortfalls of evidence will be discussed and any carpentry training requirements identified. In between visits, you will continue to generate further evidence.
You will be assessed on the following competencies:
VR01: Conform to general workplace safety
VR02: Conform to efficient work practices
VR03: Move and handle resources
Supported by THREE optional units from:
VR09: Install first fixing components
VR10: Install second fixing components
VR11: Erect structural carcassing components
VR12: Maintain non-structural carpentry work
VR13: Set up and use circular saws
There is no time scale on achieving a Carpentry NVQ. If your line of work allows, NVQs can be achieved in a relatively short space of time however, if the Carpentry work you are doing is restricted or repetitive, the NVQ process can take longer because the opportunity to meet all of the required NVQ units will not be available to you.
OSAT for Employers
OSAT is a method of delivering NVQs for experienced workers within the Construction Industry which meets the needs of both the industry and individuals. Programmes are designed to assess individuals in their normal working environment as the focus is on what individuals do in their normal working environment so therefore the benefit to Companies are:
- There is no downtime because Carpentry Assessments are carried out on site
- More qualified and competent employees generate a higher quality product
- Employees complete work faster and waste less time correcting mistakes
- Creates greater awareness of health and safety issues which means there are fewer accidents
The benefits to individuals are:
- helps workers achieve vital skills so they achieve CSCS cards quickly and easily
- takes account of existing skills so workers only train towards the things they don't know how to do
- achieves Carpentry qualifications to show to potential customers
OSAT and CSCS
An increasing number of companies, contractors and clients are looking for operatives and employees to prove their competence via the CSCS card and working towards or achieving the carpentry NVQ will allocate the following:
Blue Card - EXPERIENCED Carpenter and Joiner
This card is available to everyone with on the job experience (normally at least one year in the last three), but lacking any industry recognised formal qualification. To obtain this card you will have to undergo a health and safety test but this card is only valid for one year and is non-renewable. The card is issued on a temporary basis, while your Carpentry NVQ is being achieved.
An Experienced Worker Card cannot be replaced by a Construction Site Operative or a Basic Skills Green Card.
Blue Card - SKILLED Carpenter and Joiner
You may qualify for a blue skilled card if you have achieved a Carpentry NVQ level 2. All applicants must pass the construction health and safety test.
Learn Carpentry and Joinery
If you are not ready for OSAT but you would like to work towards achieving a Carpentry NVQ, Able Skills can offer various Carpentry training programmes to get you started. We recommend our 6, 8 or 10 week Carpentry training courses as we feel that these will provide you with sufficient skills and knowledge to allow you access to the Carpentry industry. All of our courses provide extensive practical and theory training, every candidate has the benefit of 4 time served Carpenters to learn from who will ensure that you are provided with value for money training and every possible opportunity to have a carpentry career:
- The 6 week Carpentry course will provide you with a City & Guilds qualification (6217-02)
- The 8 week programme will provide you with the same City & Guilds carpentry qualification as well as 2 additional weeks of NVQ ‘reality’ training to ensure that you are not only industry ready but ready to start evidence gathering for the pending NVQ
- The 10 week programme covers the City & Guilds 6217-02 Carpentry qualification as well as the City & Guilds Joinery qualification: 6217-05
It is during these particular Carpentry courses where you will also receive guidance on what is required of you in order to achieve an NVQ and where you will receive all of the support you need to move towards being a proficient Carpenter/Joiner.
If you would like to discuss this Carpentry assessment process further or if you have any enquiries relating to price, times , work locations or training, please feel free to contact us on 01322 280202 or email info@ableskills.co.uk
Alternatively, Able Skills is open 7 days every week and we welcome visitors at any time. Please feel free to come along to meet our Carpentry Assessors and maybe discuss the best Carpentry option for you.
To find out more please phone our booking line on 0808 100 3245.
Or for more information pleaseEmail us.
Courses are held Monday to Friday.
Weekend training is Saturday and Sunday.
All Course Times are: 08.30am-16.30pm.
For people travelling longer distances Able Building Skills can provide their own reasonable priced accommodation on request or at the time of booking.
