If you’ve been working as a bricklayer for a long time, there’s a chance that you might have been doing so without having gained formal qualifications like an NVQ.
Since there is no mandatory minimum qualification needed for bricklayers to begin finding work in a domestic setting, it’s often the case that experienced bricklayers will choose to seek these qualifications at some point further down the line.
Given the frequency of this situation, we provide an assessment-based package that significantly streamlines the process for experienced bricklayers who want to pursue an NVQ qualification.
What is involved in the experienced bricklayer NVQ assessment?
The fast-track process requires no on-site assessments or training and can be completed in just a few simple stages.
- We email you a pre-assessment questionnaire to ensure you possess the skills and knowledge required to meet NVQ standards
- You attend a short profiling session with one of Able Skills’ bricklaying assessors who will be able to establish your experience and gather all the necessary documentation and testimonies to back this up.
- You will be invited to the training centre to complete a practical assessment and a recorded professional discussion. If successful, your NVQ certificate will be posted to you soon after.
Who is eligible?
The experienced bricklayer NVQ assessment is aimed at those with a minimum of five years’ worth of experience in the industry, in which you should:
- Be site experienced in all the stated skills of the bricklaying NVQ
- Have sufficient experience with the skills of the NVQ, so that planning your working day, problem solving and decision making and working to deadlines are a usual day-to-day activity
- Have the ability to cope with the demands of an intensive practical assessment process
- Have the ability to work safely at all times
- Have the ability to discuss your work activities with others
What are the benefits of completing an NVQ assessment?
If you’re a bricklayer who wants the ability to work on-site, nearly all UK construction sites now require you to hold a CSCS card before entering.
To obtain this, an NVQ qualification is a mandatory requirement for anything beyond an entry-level or temporary CSCS card, making it a worthwhile consideration if you’re looking for ways to increase the scope of work that you’re able to take on.
Registering for this experienced worker route will initially generate a provisional CSCS Red Card for experienced workers, allowing you to work on-site while completing the NVQ process. Registration will take place at the profiling stage and as long as you sit or have sat a Construction Skills Health and Safety test, you should be eligible.
The card is issued on a temporary basis, while the NVQ is being achieved. The card is valid for one year, is non-renewable and cannot be replaced by a Construction Site Operative or a Basic Skills Green Card.
Even if you plan to continue working mainly in domestic settings, holding an NVQ is a good indicator that you have completed formal training to the highest industry standards, helping you stand out to potential customers and employers.
You can find more information about our experienced bricklayer NVQ assessment here. If you have any questions at all, please feel free to pay us a visit to the training centre where we’d be happy to help.