& 
Construction NVQs
An NVQ recognises what you already do. There is no classroom and no exam: an assessor works with you in your own workplace, you build an ePortfolio of evidence from real jobs, and the qualification follows. For most people it is also the route to the CSCS card the site is asking for.
How an NVQ works
Nobody teaches you your trade again
1. Pick the right qualification and level
Level 2 is the skilled worker level and leads to a Blue card. Level 3 is advanced craft or supervisory. Level 6 is management. Get this wrong and the card at the end is the wrong one.
2. Meet your assessor
They come to you. You agree what evidence is needed and how it will be gathered around the work you are already doing.
3. Build the ePortfolio
Photographs, witness testimony, work records and professional discussion, uploaded electronically when it suits you rather than in an evening class.
4. Achieve, then apply for the card
With the qualification and a current HS&E test pass, the CSCS card application goes in. Sit the test early so it does not become the thing holding you up.
By trade
Trade qualifications
By role
Supervision, management and specialist roles
Why now
Industry Accreditation is going, and qualifications are replacing it
CSCS has been phasing out Industry Accreditation, the grandfather rights route, in favour of recognised qualifications. That leaves a lot of genuinely experienced people needing a qualification for work they have been doing competently for twenty years.
An NVQ is the least painful way through that, precisely because it assesses what you already do rather than teaching it. CITB short qualification grant is available to registered levy payers on most of these, and we submit the claim for you.
- No classroom, no written exams
- Assessed in your own workplace on your own work
- Evidence submitted electronically when it suits you
- CITB grant available to registered levy payers
- Leads to the CSCS card for your occupation and level
Construction NVQs, answered
No. There is no classroom element and no written examination. An assessor works with you in your own workplace and you build a portfolio of evidence from jobs you are doing anyway.
For somebody already doing the work, typically a few months of gathering evidence around the day job. It depends on how much work of the right type comes up and how promptly the evidence gets uploaded, which is largely within your control.
Level 2 is the skilled worker level and leads to a Blue CSCS card. Level 3 is advanced craft or supervisory and leads to Gold. Level 6 is management and leads to Black. Tell us the card you have been asked for and we will tell you which qualification produces it.
The qualification is one half of it. You also need a Health, Safety and Environment test pass from within the last two years. Sit the test early rather than at the end, because a pass that expires while you are finishing the portfolio is a frustrating way to lose time.
CITB registered employers who are up to date with their Levy Returns can usually claim short qualification grant on these, and we submit the claim for you. Rates change, so we will give you the current position rather than a figure on a page.
Get the NVQ sorted before your card expires rather than afterwards. CSCS have been phasing IA out in favour of qualifications, and doing it under time pressure is considerably less pleasant than doing it now.
Tell your assessor early. There are usually ways around it, including simulation for certain units, witness testimony and planning evidence gathering around jobs that are coming. The worst approach is silence for three months.
Tell us the card you need and we will tell you the qualification
Send us the job title, the trade and the card a site has asked for. We will tell you which NVQ produces it, what evidence it needs and whether it attracts CITB grant.