"Anybody who's lost their job... my advice is don't be afraid. With hard work and the right training... you can do anything that you want."

Jimmy Adkins, Access Training Academies Tutor speaking to Robert Peston from ITV

Today’ Rishi Sunak announced his ‘Wage Top-Up’ scheme, a plan which effectively allows employers to work a third of their hours for almost the same wage; that is, 77% of their salary for one third of their normal working day. Another skilful avoidance of complete redundancy, another catastrophe missed; but ultimately a temporary measure to delay the inevitable. 

And let’s not forget, that this indicates a reduction in payment from the previous 80% salary offered by the furlough scheme. What happens to people already struggling to make ends meet, now met with a 3% reduction? What will happen at the end of another 6 months when industries are on their knees? 

There is a great cause for concern, as Paul Johnson, head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, predicted that 2 million people could lose their jobs by the end of this year. He called Sunak’s new plans ‘significantly less generous than the furlough scheme’; he also makes a crucial point, that only those currently working more than a third of their usual hours will benefit from this updated system – those not working at all will lose their jobs.

But we at Access Training want to reach out and reassure you that all is not lost. We want to point out the ways in which this period is an opportunity to grasp, that now is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Here are 5 tips on how to navigate the new furlough as a worker:



  1. Use gained time to retrain and prepare 

A lack of time and resources are no longer a reason not to invest in a training course. With Sunak’s new scheme announcement, you have the same wage, but two thirds more free time than before. What better way to use that free time than to upskill, retrain, and prepare for the next phase? It’s a no brainer – invest your time wisely.

 

  1. Plan ahead for the worst

If your sector, business, industry of work is likely to be one of those about to crumble, then planning ahead is crucial to avoiding a redundancy further on down the line. Why leave it to chance? Why not join the thousands of chefs, pilots, solicitors, cab drivers, and many other professionals, who are enrolling on a course with us?

 

  1. Keep your options open

Regardless of what line of work you have been, or are currently in, a construction course will cater for you. And with every other sector now under threat from financial ruin and collapse, wouldn’t it be better to have the option to jump ship if it had to come to that? 

 

  1. You have nothing to lose, everything to gain

As you read this, construction courses are reaching peak demand with new students leaving their careers to begin afresh in construction. With the continued uncertainty ahead, this makes perfect sense: a sturdy and dependable industry, guaranteed work and high demand. Upskilling is a win-win situation: you become more employable, you expand on your professional skills, and you gain qualifications which will always benefit you. In these times, it’s best to leave nothing to chance. 

 

  1. Believe in yourself – remain hopeful

As soon as self-belief is lost, then getting yourself back on your feet and moving forward can become impossible. We are here to assure you that Access Training is your way out and up to security and confidence. As Sunak inspiringly noted in his announcement speech:

 

"What was true at the beginning of the crisis remains true now. It’s on all of us, and we must learn to live … without fear.

Live without fear, and take the leap you’ve been meaning to take – because now really is the time." 



Learn your trade. Get qualified. Make it happen.

A recent study by Which? has revealed that dodgy DIY is a primary cause for plumber call-outs across the UK.

In a survey that covered over 3800 Brits, the variety of home maintenance jobs tackled by the untrained, unequipped and unqualified ranged from unblocking a toilet to fitting an entire bathroom suite.

Somewhat predictably, these DIY plumbing jobs often end in a damp squib, leaving many homeowners in hot water.

As a result, this translates to a lot of extra work for UK plumbers.

 

diy disasters,diy plumbing courses

 

The Numbers

The results of the study highlighted some interesting trends, particularly when it comes to the common DIY tasks we attempt at home.

According to the Which? study, 53% of those that took part had attempted to replace a set of taps themselves.

Theoretically, assuming this survey is indicative of the nation as a whole, that means over half of Britain has dabbled in home plumbing in pursuit of saving a few quid.

Meanwhile, a further 41% had attempted to plumb in an appliance themselves and 35% have attempted to fix a leak.

 

DI-Why?

On the flip side of these figures, traders are commonly hired to help solve these issues created by over-enthusiastic DIYers.

In fact, over 60% of the traders surveyed had been called in to finish the aforementioned tasks, proving that there really is no substitute for first-hand knowledge and professional experience.

Worse still, these DIY disasters often lead to even worse problems occurring, from small leaks developing into larger issues to poor installation completely ruining kitchens.

 

DIY Plumbing Courses

One thing that’s abundantly clear from the study is that DIY plumbing jobs are a sure-fire way to get yourself in deep water – quite literally at times!

That being said, here at Access Training UK, we have a variety of entry-level plumbing courses available, designed to help you not only become a DIY VIP but also a veritable plumbing pro in no time at all.

Ideal for anyone looking to learn a new skill, perfect their DIY skills or change their career path entirely, these plumbing related courses have the ability to change your life as well as your home.

 

Essential Plumbing Course

Designed for absolute beginners, this course provides you with a firm understanding of the basics and sets you up for a potential new career in the trade.

 

Professional Plumbing Course

This all-level course provides a variety of useful qualifications, designed to equip you with the knowledge to confidently enter the world of professional plumbing.

 

Advanced Plumbing Course

Ideal for beginners or those looking to update their existing skills, this course allows you to learn the ins and outs of plumbing and gas fitting.

 

Bathroom Installation Course

Specifically designed for those that want to design and install bathroom suites to a professional standard, this course is open to all skill levels.

 

For more information on our plumbing courses, call now on 0800 345 7492 or hit the button below to get in touch online.

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Learning how to fit a bathroom is a vitally useful skill in the trade industry, and is equally as useful to people of a non-professional background. While sourcing the materials is easy, it takes knowledge and skill to achieve a desirable finish, regardless of experience in similar fields and examples from online tutorials.

At Access Training, we provide a comprehensive Bathroom Fitting Course and a combined Bathroom and Kitchen Fitting Course, which both take your through the many aspects of work involved in completing a successful bathroom renovation. From producing pipework, to installing toilets, baths and basins, we will guide you through the process of a achieving your new portfolio of skills, allowing you to achieve a City and Guilds certificate in recognition of your achievement. This will allow you to complete bathroom fitting work unsupervised, and will also allow you to progress onto more advanced units if desired. 

Here are some of the people who may benefit from learning how to fit a bathroom:

Property Developers 
If you're just embarking on a future career in property development, or are looking to keep the costs of labour down in current projects, it could be immensely useful for you to learn how to install bathroom fittings without the need for additional help. 
While you may possess some previous skills in home improvement, you may not have the knowledge or practical experience required to fit a new bathroom successfully, and this lack of experience could result in a less-than-perfect finish. Completing our course will allow you to fit bathrooms that you can be proud of, adding to the value of the property and lending an air of professionalism to the job.

Home Owners 
If you're looking to improve your own home without the need to hire labourers to complete the job, then it could be equally as useful for you to familiarize yourself with this trade. If you choose the combined course, you will not only learn how to fit a bathroom, but will also gain kitchen installation skills; both of which will prove to be incredibly useful in carrying out home improvement projects for years to come.

Job Seekers 
Home improvement tradespeople are always in high demand, to undertake work with larger companies as well as independently. If you're looking to kick-start a brand new career that will allow you to work flexibly and according to your own contractual preferences, then this could be a great place to start, giving you the opportunity to start earning straight away, or progress onto more advanced courses. 

For more information about this or any other of our courses, get in touch with us today!

If you're interested in this course but are unsure if it's exactly what you're looking for, you may wish to consider the following similar/complimentary courses:

 

National Apprenticeship Week is fast approaching, and the Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE) is just one of the many groups drawing attention to just how important that are to the trade industry.

With university degrees proving to be less helpful in the job market, its not surprising that so many young people are turning towards different career paths when leaving school. Stable jobs are getting tougher and tougher to get into as Britain slowly climbs out of the recession, and when an employer has to make cuts new graduates are usually the ones that suffer. By learning a trade such as plumbing, electrics or any sub-sector of the construction industry, young people are providing themselves with skills for life that are often in demand for more than the skills most degrees yield.

According to the Office of National Statistics, over a quarter of university graduates are earning less than school leavers on apprenticeships. Not only this, but a survey by BAE Systems and the Royal Academy of Engineering also highlighted just how beneficial trades training courses can be. Almost a third of respondants (29%) said that they now see training schemes as a viable option for their children. They also admitted that five years ago it was something they would have never even considered.

CIPHE CEO Kevin Wellmen stressed just how important apprenticeships, specifically calling them the "lifeblood of the industry" and saying that they should be given the respect they deserve. He added: "For too long they have been seen as a second-class route to a career. I believe that attitude is now changing."

However, he also commented that the plumbing and heating industry needs its apprentices to be of the highest standard, which they should aim toward by achieving an NVQ diploma. This will "ensure they have the right skills to tackle the challenges they will meet in the workplace".

And where can you achieve an NVQ qualification? Access Training Academies of course! Our intensive training courses provide all the skill and quality you'd find in a college course, but in a fraction of that time. The tutors are all experiences tradesmen themselves, all with a wealth of knowledge and experience to share with you in classes of no more than eight students to a tutor. With accredititation from the likes of City & Guilds, Logic, BPEC, NICEIC, the Gas Safe Register and more, you can rest assured that we put nothing short of 100% quality into all of our trade courses. To find out more, give our team a call on 0800 345 7492.

National Apprentice Week 2014 will take place from the 3rd to the 7th March. Stay tuned to this blog for more stories during that time!

Is the popularity of a good relaxing bath in decline?

A new study from online bathroom retailer UK Bathrooms seem to think so, as their research has found order trends and customer feedback for baths has had a 54% decrease in the last year. On the other hand, the popularity of showers seems stronger than ever which has seen a staggering 72% increase. The study even found that three quarters of British homeowners would choose to install a shower in their home over a bath.

The survey looked at 1342 homeowners in the country, and was part of ongoing research into the opinion about bathroom styles. Respondents were also revealed the reasons why they considered showers to be superior to baths - 46% considered it much quicker, while 34% also added that a shower left them feeling much cleaner than a bath did.

Moving on to bathrooms themselves, 40% of respondants only had showers in their bathrooms, with 28% only having a bath and 32% owning both. If they were to move or rennovate their bathrooms, 78% said that installating a shower was of much higher priority than a bath. Why? 51% considered showers to be the speedier option, while 37% also preferred it because showers take up much less space than a bathtub.

Whether you're a bath or shower person (or both!), the winner here is still bathroom installers and plumbers in general. Whether your customer wants a shower or bath (or again, both!) installed, a fully qualified plumber is the only man for the job. If you're interested in specifically going into bathroom fitting, Access Training also offer specialised bathroom fitting courses to provide trainees with everything they'll need to know to perform the job to a professional standard.

To find out more give Access a call on 0800 345 7492 today.

When it comes to bathroom fitting it seems the homemade goods are the best ones, with new research finding British tradespeople to believe UK goods are far more reliable than those produced abroad.

The research, which comes from online bathroom retailer UKBathrooms.com, looked at 1,012 tradespeople from all of the UK who work with bathroom fixtures and fittings in order to gauge opinion. With a total of 47% agreeing that British made products are superior, it seems the majority of fitters are opting to buy from UK manufacturers wherever they can.

Questions asked for the research included:

  • "Do you take into account where a product is manufactured before buying?" 62% believed this to important, while the rest didn't seem to care as long as it did the job.
  • "Which manufacturing country do you believe produces the most reliable bathroom fittings/products?" This was posed to all that had answered yes to the previous question, with Britain coming out on top with the aforementioned statistic. Coming in second were Chinese made products with 19%, while Germany took the third place spot with 16%
  • "Do you regularly purchase British made bathroom fittings?" With 67% answering 'yes' to this. When asked why, reliability was the most common reason with 57% explaining that British made products tended to have better longevity. 35% also cited that support was much better, as any problems with UK items could be easily fixed. 24% even said they simply preferred the "design and style" of the home products!
  • Finally, respondents were asked "Do you think it's important for tradespeople to support British made products?" 52% believed it is indeed important, with 61% agreeing that the UK industry needed their support. 40% also said that they do so to keep Britain's bathroom manufacturing industry in good demand.

UKBathrooms.com director Peter Gregg commented that he was pleased to know UK-based bathroom manufacturers are "held in such high esteem amongst tradespersons". He then went on to discuss the benefits the company has seen in using them itself - a higher level of quality control, easier to source and shorter lead times than buying from production lines in the Far East.

He concluded by saying: "The manufacturing industry’s love affair with the market in the Far East has taken a knock over the last few years as more and more suppliers are looking at the possibility of a return to the UK. Tradespersons being supportive of UK manufacturing can only be a good thing to those looking at the possibility of coming back to Britain."

Fancy learning all about bathroom installations and having a go at it yourself, with the aim to even turn professional? If you're looking for a more active line of work, Access Training Academies offer high quality bathroom fitting training courses that will give you the skills and qualifications to make that a reality. At the end you'll also have the perfect grounding to continue on to more advanced plumbing training should you so wish. Give us a call on 0800 345 7492 and our course advisers will be happy to tell you more. Don't delay and book your place today!

Historically, property has yielded better returns than any other investment vehicle; an added benefit is that a piece of land never goes to zero value like equities and the likes.  Then, there is the regular income in the form of rent and the perks of living in a well made home to consider. However, are these benefits enough to justify the cost of enrolling in a property development course?

When should you consider property developer training?

If you have discretionary income or enough savings to invest in property, it would be best to jump into the sector well prepared. After all, a shoddily constructed house in a remote area will not fetch you the expected returns. This is where all the homework you put into buying a piece of land will come in handy.

Because property purchases involve a significant amount of money, it would certainly be prudent to consider taking a property development course before you embark on this rewarding pursuit on a business or professional level.

What can you expect from property developer training programmes?

Although a property development course offered by a reputable establishment will set you back by at least a few thousand pounds, the knowledge and experience that it provides will be invaluable when you wade out into the world of property dealings.

These training programs are designed to offer in depth information on every aspect of property development from choosing the right location to construction minutiae like interiors, tiling, plumbing, electrical systems, structural concepts and more. All in all, by the time you complete the training programme, you will be well versed with every facet of property development  

Choosing the best property development course for you

You will need to start looking for programs with a clear idea of how you intend to use this education. For instance, you can find both commercial as well residential property developer courses in the market. 

Also consider the precise area of property development that interests you; for instance, apart from the 360 degree courses that cover all aspects of property development, you can also find specific training programs that only deal with property law, or architecture and designing  or even with market analysis and more.

Once you know your requirements, look for information on establishments that offer property development courses. The internet is by far the most exhaustive source of data on colleges and other learning centres that offer vocational education.

In London alone, there are almost 40 colleges that offer training on property development; apart from this, you can also find numerous private establishments that offer formal courses on the subject.

Finally, always choose a program that will earn you a formal certification, preferably one that is accredited under the NCFE 2 Q license.

Get in touch to learn more about our training courses!

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