NVQ2 advice and guidance - Plumbing Forum | Plumbers Forums

plumuk84 · 03-03-2008

Hello

I'm currently in full time employment on a shift pattern, i'm interested in plumbing primarily for job security as i have nothing else to fall back on. I recently purchased NVQ 2&3 plumbing theory on the internet and have started studying it. I was going to go with OLCI home study you buy the theory then pay for practical/reg fees etc but was very wary as they would not tell me exactly how much it would cost altogether. I have made initial agreement with an equaintance who is a working plumber corgi reg etc to provide me with a workplacemnt to fit around my current shift pattern.
Could someone tell me what the best thing to do is to get an NVQ2 plumbing

can i just go to practical lesson at OLCI or equivalant then build my portfolio for NVQ with the work placement

or can i just do theory then go straight out on work placment to build my portfolio

any advice orguidance would be apprieciated.

ninjastealth187 · 03-03-2008

Hello mate,

If you can help it dont spend a bomb on these fast track courses.

I am doing the 6129 tech cert at a private college for the amount of £240! And that includes boots and tools.

It does however take 8 months at Two days per week. (semi fast track)

If you live near to or can commute to Essex, Hertfordshire, or East London, please let me know and I will give you the details of where I train.

The NVQ l2 is a seperate payment of £900 but you havent got to worry about this until you have finished your course.

Hope this is of help to you, or anyone else on here for that matter!

cont: forgot to mention, the course is goverment funded through a college but the training is delivered away from the college by a private company in a plumbing center.

plumuk84 · 03-03-2008

Damm i'm in Somerset just outside of Bath so bit too far to travel unfortunutely. thanks for your help though. Unable to go to college because of my current work commitments, thats why OLCI seemed idea. just read on their website they have courses for people in the trade already but without a formal qualification and you only need to do the workshops you are not familar with.
Does anybody know if i get upto scratch on theory and build my portfolio whilst i'm under the wings of a more experianced plumber. could i then just be assesed by OLCI theory and practical and gain city& guilds 6129 that way? maybe i'm dreaming and is too good to be true but it would save me a hell of alot of money that way

Yet again any help is apprieciated

ninjastealth187 · 04-03-2008

Yes and no.

The 6129 is just the technical aspect. You do not have to do this certificate to achieve the NVQ 2. This is seperate.

If you can learn the trade from a plumber you can then just undertake the NVQ l2 with the oicl, as all the NVQ 2 consists of is you doing your work whilst a assessor visists you and verifies your work.

People do the 6129 cert because they find it extremely difficuilt to find a good plumber to take them on.

The plumber that you work with / learn from must be time served and have 5 years of books to prove this.

If he fits the critearia he can sign off your modules for your NVQ 2 for you. This and a few assessor visits will complete your Nvq 2.

Hope this helps.

plumuk84 · 04-03-2008

Thank you very much this has cleared a lot up in my mind now. i'm pretty sure the plumber i intend to train/learn with has 5 yrs experiance. According to the internet varies website to website on how long it takes to achieve NVQ2 from 6 months to at least 2 years? Baring in mind when i start with the plumber i would have no practical experiance at all and very little theory how long realistically will it take for me to gain NVQ2? do i get assessed at my on-the-job placement or do i have to travel to one of the training centres to be assesed? How much can i expect to pay olci for assesments NVQ registration etc?

**uug197h** · 04-03-2008

you will be assesed at a center for the C&G and onsite for the NVQ2

plumuk84 · 04-03-2008

ok thank you Ugg
So the C&G 6129 tech certificate is that a must to gain NVQ2 or does it just help?

ninjastealth187 · 04-03-2008

You do NOT need to undertake the city and guilds 6129 technical certificate if you are already working with / as a Plumber.

If you do not want to take the above, I would suggest that you work alongside a good Plumber for at least a year to gain some experience and then apply for your NVQ L2 once you know what your doing.

Of course the other option is to undertake the tech cert 6129, but this is NOT a must and hands on experience with a compotent Plumber will be more beneficial.

As stated before, the NVQ L2 is a work based assessment by verified assessors who visit you on site. The NVQ L2 is not a course where you learn Plumbing, it is a certificate of compotence that is awarded upon satifactory completion of work based assessments.

plumuk84 · 04-03-2008

ok thanks for clearing that up once again. I'm so glad i happened to pop on here to see what people had to say.
like explained in earlier threads i'm going to be working with a competent plumber around my current shift pattern sly this will be part time probably between 8-10 hours per week. Would your advice be to work with the plumber for at least a year then apply for NVQ level 2 once i have experiance? then its just a case of building up my portfolio of work right?

ninjastealth187 · 04-03-2008

Yep. Thats deffinately the way to go, and I know plenty of people who have done this.