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Be a carpenter

Carpentry is one of the oldest occupations there is, dating all the way back to Ancient Egypt and beyond. The Bible, of course, features myriad references to carpentry, from Noah and his ark to Joseph, husband of Mary.

That being said, a lot has changed since Biblical times - it's unlikely that Noah or Joseph had any formal carpentry qualifications. But what qualifications does a modern-day carpenter need in order to succeed?

 

What do I need to become a carpenter?

Carpentry isn't like gas or electrical work - there's no specific certification (or set of certifications) that you're legally required to possess in order to become a carpenter. Strictly speaking, the only thing you need to do in order to enter the trade and work on-site is demonstrating your competence as a carpenter.

There are a number of valid ways to do this, but one of the most popular options is to complete a portfolio of work and earn the NVQ Level 2 Carpentry qualification. Having this carpentry qualification under your belt proves that you can complete carpentry work in a competent and professional fashion, and could even help you procure new work if you're operating as a freelance carpentry contractor. So, gaining carpentry qualifications is advantageous, even if it's not essential.

 

How do I get my carpentry NVQ?

Well, hold on now. Before you can start working towards the NVQ Level 2 certification, you'll need to actually learn carpentry.

Again, you have a number of different options here. Some people choose to do an apprenticeship, working alongside an established carpenter and gradually learning the trade from them. Mind you, it can take a number of years to go from apprentice to fully-fledged carpenter, so if you're looking to start your new career sooner rather than later, you may prefer to enroll in an accredited carpentry training course.

View Our Carpentry Courses >

You can start your carpentry training from the comfort of your own home - we now offer live online training, allowing you to learn fundamental carpentry skills in a virtual classroom setting. Click here to find out more about our e-learning options.

Once you've learned all the skills a carpenter needs to know - and you feel confident that you're proficient enough to start work - then you can begin the NVQ process. This involves:

  • Attending a formal induction session
  • Completing a portfolio of evidence (including photographs of the work you've completed and written testimonies from witnesses)
  • Submitting your finished portfolio for assessment

If you're already a competent carpenter and you think you're ready to earn your NVQ Level 2 Carpentry qualification, click here to find out Access Training can help. Otherwise, use the links below to find out more about our carpentry training packages for learners of all experience levels.

Carpentry Training Packages >   Speak to a Course Advisor >

 
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Here at Access Training, we constantly stress the importance of safe electrical practice in the workplace, but this unfortunate incident really brings it home!

On the 12th of April 2017, two demolition workers were tasked with removing electrical distribution equipment from a switchgear room at the Molecular Products site in Essex. The principal contractor had told the men that the electrical equipment they were dealing with had been fully isolated.

Foolishly, one man attempted to 'reassure his colleague' that the electricals had in fact been isolated by throwing a metal crowbar at the 400v ac equipment.

Unfortunately, when the crowbar came into contact with the live electricals it created a flashover (explosion) at temperatures of several thousand degrees which led immediately to quite a devastating fire. The man who through the crowbar, Mr Banks, suffered serious burns and was taken into hospital.

HSE investigated this incident and found that the task had not been properly planned at that suitable control measures hadn't been put in place. The principal contractor had failed to follow the procedures stating that all electrical equipment should be treated as live until properly checked and confirmed to be isolated. 

The Consequences:

  • Mr Banks sustained horrific burns & injuries
  • Russel Haigh and Stuart Haigh pled guilty to breaching Regulation 3 of the Electricity at Work Regulations  Act 1989 and we both fined £80,000
  • AJ Wadhams & Co Ltd pled guilty to breaching section of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 197 and was fined £80,000

HSE inspector Adam Hills said:

“This incident has had a significant impact on Mr Banks life and the injuries could so very easily have been fatal. Had the companies followed the control measures outlined in their respective risk assessments, then this incident would not have occurred. Never assume that an electrical supply is disconnected. Always check with the distribution network operator or a qualified electrician to obtain written proof of isolation before commencing work.”

Read more about this incident here >

 Electrical Training

If there's one thing to take away from this, it's that working with electricals can be incredibly dangerous (and costly) if something goes wrong. That's why we can't stress enough how important it is that you receive the proper electrical training before carrying out this kind of work!

Here at Access Training Academies, we offer electrical training for students of all ages and abilities. If you're interested in pursuing a career in electrical work, come and learn the necessary skills and practices at one of our training centres. 

View Our Electrical Courses >

If you have any questions about our electrical courses, or to arrange a visit to one of our test centres, please don't hesitate to get in touch. You can call us on 0800 345 7492 or email us at info@accesstraininguk.co.uk.

Be a carpenter

Carpentry is one of the oldest occupations there is, dating all the way back to Ancient Egypt and beyond. The Bible, of course, features myriad references to carpentry, from Noah and his ark to Joseph, husband of Mary.

That being said, a lot has changed since Biblical times - it's unlikely that Noah or Joseph had any formal carpentry qualifications. But what qualifications does a modern-day carpenter need in order to succeed?

 

What do I need to become a carpenter?

Carpentry isn't like gas or electrical work - there's no specific certification (or set of certifications) that you're legally required to possess in order to become a carpenter. Strictly speaking, the only thing you need to do in order to enter the trade and work on-site is demonstrating your competence as a carpenter.

There are a number of valid ways to do this, but one of the most popular options is to complete a portfolio of work and earn the NVQ Level 2 Carpentry qualification. Having this carpentry qualification under your belt proves that you can complete carpentry work in a competent and professional fashion, and could even help you procure new work if you're operating as a freelance carpentry contractor. So, gaining carpentry qualifications is advantageous, even if it's not essential.

 

How do I get my carpentry NVQ?

Well, hold on now. Before you can start working towards the NVQ Level 2 certification, you'll need to actually learn carpentry.

Again, you have a number of different options here. Some people choose to do an apprenticeship, working alongside an established carpenter and gradually learning the trade from them. Mind you, it can take a number of years to go from apprentice to fully-fledged carpenter, so if you're looking to start your new career sooner rather than later, you may prefer to enroll in an accredited carpentry training course.

View Our Carpentry Courses >

You can start your carpentry training from the comfort of your own home - we now offer live online training, allowing you to learn fundamental carpentry skills in a virtual classroom setting. Click here to find out more about our e-learning options.

Once you've learned all the skills a carpenter needs to know - and you feel confident that you're proficient enough to start work - then you can begin the NVQ process. This involves:

  • Attending a formal induction session
  • Completing a portfolio of evidence (including photographs of the work you've completed and written testimonies from witnesses)
  • Submitting your finished portfolio for assessment

If you're already a competent carpenter and you think you're ready to earn your NVQ Level 2 Carpentry qualification, click here to find out Access Training can help. Otherwise, use the links below to find out more about our carpentry training packages for learners of all experience levels.

Carpentry Training Packages >   Speak to a Course Advisor >

 

Handyman courses

Specialising in general home repairs and domestic maintenance, a handyman is very much a 'Jack of all trades'. Covering everything from hanging picture frames to building flatpack furniture, a good handyman will be well-versed in the art of small jobs within the homestead – after all, why should Thor get to be the only hero with a hammer?

If you're a dab hand with a drill and a superstar with a spanner, you yourself could have the makings of a fine handyman (or handywoman). Do you have the skills to pay the bills? Become a doctor of DIY and take your domestic talents to the next level with a handyman course from Access Training

View DIY Carpentry Course >        View DIY Plastering Course >

 

Why take a handyman course?

Whether you want to set up your own handyman business or simply brush up on some essential domestic skills, a handyman course can be a great way to broaden your horizons and enhance your abilities. Here at Access Training, we offer a number of handyman courses that will help you gain the skills and knowledge to complete a number of jobs around the home. 

Completing a handyman course will allow you to easily overcome common home maintenance issues, save money on household repairs, and, best of all, provide you with the necessary knowledge and understanding to be independent within the home. Learning handyman skills can also be a great asset if you're looking to remodel or renovate your home.

Outside of that, handyman skills can be a great way to supplement your income by carrying out odd jobs for others. Better still, a relevant training course could even provide you with a solid base on which to build your very own business. You might find that after completing our DIY carpentry course, you get a taste of the trade and go on to become a qualified carpenter!

 

Which handyman course is right for me?

Often grouped together under the banners of 'property maintenance courses' or 'home maintenance courses', handyman courses offer a whole host of useful domestic skills to learn. From plumbing and bricklaying to painting and decorating, the list of handyman courses available across the UK is vast and wide-ranging. Finding the right one for you can depend largely on your specific needs and aspirations.

Here at Access Training, we offer handyman courses in carpentry and in plastering - two skills that can be really essential in the home! If you want to complete a trade course so that you can go beyond being a handyman in your own home and offer your services to others, then we'd recommend taking a look at our professional trade courses. We offer electrical courses, plumbing courses, gas courses, and more.

The right handyman course for you will be determined by what you want to do with it! To pick up a few skills to use in your own home, choose our DIY courses. To learn a trade and become a professional handyman, be sure to check out our Essential trade courses. 

 

Our DIY training courses

At Access Training, we offer two primary DIY courses, both of which are designed to help you become more independent in the home and give you the functional expertise to easily overcome typical household headaches.

The DIY courses currently available from Access Training are:

  • DIY Carpentry Course - From tool handling and basic cutting to hanging doors and fitting locks, our DIY Carpentry Course covers a wide variety of tasks in order to help you improve your practical carpentry skills around the home.
  • DIY Plastering Course - From mixing plaster to preparing surfaces and skimming walls, our DIY Plastering Course will help you create beautiful smooth walls to paint and decorate.

Become a professional handyman

In addition to the DIY courses outlined above, we also provide a number of other 'Essential' courses that are ideal for anyone looking to get to grips with a skill they've never tried before. These are great starting points if you'd like to become a professional handyman and share your new-found skills with the local community.

These include:

These entry-level courses may be considered a step up from the DIY level, providing a superb foundation if you're looking to turn professional in the near future.

Get in touch now to speak with a course advisor >

CORONAVIRUS UPDATE: To help our learners stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are now offering live online training sessions. This means that you can participate in virtual classroom sessions from the comfort of your own home and rewatch each tutorial as many times as you wish. Of course, there's no substitute for hands-on experience, so the practical portion of your training course will still be delivered in person at our fully-equipped training centre. Contact Access Training now to find out more about our unique training packages.

 

If you didn't already know the consequences of working as a gas engineer without being on the Gas Safe register, here is another stark reminder. 

Liverpool Magistrates recently fined a man, Kevin Shephard, for working on gas fittings and issuing Landlord Gas Safety Certificates, despite no longer being Gas Safe registered. Health and Safety Executive (HSE) carried out an investigation which showed that Mr Shephard was registered with the Gas Safe register over several periods between November 2013 and June 2016, but his registration lapsed in June 2016, along with his gas competence qualifications. 

Mr Shephard continued to carry out gas work and maintenance without renewing his registration or qualifications, so was, therefore, carrying out gas work illegally. Mr Shephard pled guilty to breaching several gas safety regulations, was fined £2000 and had to pay legal costs of £2000 also. 

HSE inspector Jane Carrol said: 

"Kevin Shephard carried out gas work which he knew he wasn't properly registered to do. All gas work must be done by registered Gas Safe engineers to ensure the highest standards are met and to prevent injury and loss of life."

How Do I Get Gas Safe Registered?

Joining the Gas Safe Register will ensure you avoid illegal gas work penalties. To get on the gas safe register, you need to pass an ACS assessment - an assessment that can only be completed if you learn the necessary skills, theory, and procedures. 

If you'd like to become a fully-qualified gas plumber, Access Training Academies can help! We offer a selection of different gas courses that will teach you all the necessary skills to pass your ACS assessments, click below to view and enquire today! 

Browse Our Gas Courses >

 

To work continuously as a gas engineer you will need to complete reassessments to stay on the Gas Safe Register. We can help you with your reassessments too!

The term “DIY” can mean many different things to many different people, depending on the words that follow it. From DIY fancy dress to DIY wedding decorations, the universal initialism of “Do It Yourself” can be applied to pretty much anything and everything… provided you don’t mind getting stuck in.

That being said, as a standalone term, DIY typically relates to handiwork around the house and can be a great way to save money on home improvement projects. If you don’t mind getting your hands dirty, DIY could be for you! With that in mind let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work, as we peel off the lid on the essentials of DIY.

 

how to do diy

 

How to DIY

When it comes to DIY in the home, the variety of tasks can be extremely vast and wide-ranging, including everything from re-wiring a plug to fixing a leaky tap. As such, a universal guide to all these tasks is non-existent; however, there are a few common themes that each job will share.

To help get you started on your DIY quest, here are a few simple rules to follow when taking on a task that’s outside of your comfort zone.

 

Do your homework

Before beginning any DIY task, it’s important to know what lies ahead.

While ploughing through your dining room wall with a sledgehammer may seem like a great way to expand your living room (and relieve some stress), the consequences could leave you picking up the pieces for a long while afterwards.

Doing your homework on a DIY task can help you adequately prepare, while also providing knowledge and knowhow on how to do the task properly. Luckily, Google can be your best friend in situations like this and step-by-step instructions can be found on a multitude of tasks in mere seconds.

Meanwhile, to make things completely idiot-proof (in theory), YouTube is also loaded with hundreds of thousands of instructional videos, designed to help you expand your mind, broaden your horizons and reach the DIY promised land in one piece.

 

Tools of the trade

They say a bad worker always blames his tools… so if you don’t have any tools, you’ll have no-one to blame if it all goes catastrophically pear-shaped!

Joking aside, a well-stocked toolbox can be a useful addition to any home. Items like a hammer, spanner, pliers and a set of screwdrivers can come in handy surprisingly frequently, whether it’s to tighten a loose screw or knock in a protruding nail.

You may also find that certain jobs require more than just your standard toolbox essentials. Electrical items and power tools like a circular saw or electric drill can also be useful to have, depending on the task at hand.

While other tasks may require more specialist items – such as a tile cutter or a floor sander – it may be worth considering how much use you are likely to get out of a job-specific item. If it’s a one-off job that won’t require revisiting, it could be more cost-effective to rent rather than buy your tools outright.

Specialist tools can be hired at a variety of outlets nationwide and could be a good way to keep your outgoings to a minimum.

 

Know your limits

DIY can be a fantastic way to save some money on a small job or menial repair task. However, if you’re dealing with something that’s totally outside of your knowledge and expertise, with a range of complexities attached, it may be worth reassessing the situation and, more importantly, your capabilities of completing the task successfully.

There’s no shame in admitting you’re out of your depth and knowing when you don’t know can be the difference between a job well done and job that needs redoing. What’s more, blindly sailing into the DIY abyss without a clear view of where you going can be extremely dangerous, particularly if you dealing with elements like gas and electricity.

 

Safety first

Following on from our last point, safety should always be top of the list when it comes to DIY. In fact, it should be the title of the list, written in bold and underlined… twice!

DIY in the home can involve a multitude of dangers, particularly if you’re new to home improvements. Even a simple task like hammering a nail can quite easily lead to a broken finger, so caution should be exercised at all times.

Sensible risk assessment is also hugely important. If you’re painting the ceiling while teetering out-stretched on a rickety ladder, all while your cat sleeps underneath on the glass coffee table, chances are you may want to reconsider your approach.

Whenever you’re attempting DIY, you should also bear in mind the clothes you wear too. This doesn’t just extend to overalls and old threads that you don’t mind getting ripped, dirty or ruined – it also extends to safety gear. Protective gloves can come in handy if you’re dealing with sharp objects that fragment – like glass, bricks and tiles – while safety goggles can quite literally save your vision if a rogue shard or shaving goes airborne.

 

When it comes to real DIY expertise, there’s no substitute for professional knowledge. If you want to expand your home improvement knowhow, why not consider a course with Access Training? Our vocational courses can help you achieve first-hand knowledge in a wide variety of skills – including electrical, gas and plumbing courses – making even the most daunting of DIY duties a doddle.

Get in touch today!

Judge's gavel

It's widely known that gas engineers in the UK are legally required to join the Gas Safe Register before working on gas appliances. But do you know what the punishment is for carrying out gas work when you're not Gas Safe registered?

A Mr Stevens of Milton Keynes recently found out. The director of Master Plumbing Contractors Limited recently appeared before Aylesbury Crown Court, where he was sentenced to 300 hours of community service and ordered to pay costs of £15,000.

This sentence was handed down because Mr Stevens was working illegally when he installed a gas boiler (later found to have defects) at a property in Milton Keynes. The court heard that Mr Stevens had...

  • Professed to be Gas Safe registered
  • Worn a T-shirt bearing the Gas Safe logo
  • Displayed the Gas Safe logo on his company van

...but an investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that, despite all appearances, Mr Stevens actually was not on the Gas Safe Register at the time the work was carried out.

Following the outcome of this hearing, HSE inspector Andrew McGill issued a statement warning "rogue gas fitters" that gas work is "difficult, specialised and potentially very dangerous", and that it should only be undertaken by "trained and competent engineers who are registered with Gas Safe".

How do you get on the Gas Safe Register?

In order to join the Gas Safe Register and avoid the penalties for illegal gas work, you will first need to pass your ACS assessment - and you won't be able to do that until you've learned the essential skills, theory and safety procedures that every professional gas engineer must know.

If you're thinking of joining the trade and making a living from gas work, we offer a selection of comprehensive gas courses here at Access Training Academies. You'll learn in a fully-equipped training centre under the supervision of an experienced gas engineer, and we'll help you to progress smoothly and quickly from learning the basics to preparing for your ACS assessment. We can also help with the reassessments that you'll have to complete every few years in order to stay on the Gas Safe Register.

Our Gas Courses >   Speak to a Course Advisor >

READ MORE: How to Become Gas Safe Registered

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