How to become an electrician in the UK

The electrical industry in the UK has recognised formal qualifications that provide a clear qualification route for an electrician whether or not they are a new entrant, already experienced or have overseas qualifications.

Introduction

Electacourse strongly recommend you contact electrotechnical industry bodies and organisations to confirm the qualifications required for becoming an electrician in the UK (link below) for the work which you plan to undertake, but the Electacourse summary understanding of the process of becoming qualified to work as an electrician in the UK is:

All people who are working unsupervised as a fully qualified electrician in the electrotechnical sector need to be qualified to the level of the industry-recognised NVQ level 3 qualifications. How you get to this level is dependent on your status.

For people who want to work only on domestic electrical installations, there is a lower threshold alternative of becoming registered on a self-certification scheme (run by Elecsa, Benchmark and others) who may be able to undertake and self-certify their work on domestic installations. See below the information about Part P and qualifying as a domestic installer.

Fully Qualified Electrician

To become a fully qualified electrician able to do industrial, commercial and not just domestic work, the following are the routes to qualification:

For all new entrants to become recognised as an electrician, the Level 3 NVQ Diploma in Installing Electrotechnical systems and equipment (building structures and the environment) is required. This diploma can be obtained by undertaking study either with or without employer sponsorship at Further Education colleges or private training providers. By the nature of the practical requirement of some parts of electrical training, it is not possible to undertake all elements of this qualification by self-study alone.
For individuals who have some previous experience whether in the UK or elsewhere, they need an interview with an assessor to develop an individual assessment plan without necessarily the need to go back to college to train in the classroom, (see AM2 on electricalqualifications.com).The AM2 assessment is administered by NET (http://netservices.org.uk/). We recommend that even if you have no electrical installation employment experience but have completed a college course, you seek advice from NET on final qualification requirements. AM2 is normally part of NVQ Diplomas.
If you are already qualified in another country, then for some countries there are special arrangements where equivalence between electrical qualifications has been established, the following website has more information – http://summitskillsframework.naric.org.uk/index.asp?file=introduction

Domestic Electrical Installer

Domestic Installer Part P Courses available from some providers are designed to prepare candidates for the self-certification scheme Part P Assessment. On successful completion of a Part P Assessment, electricians are qualified to self-certify their own electrical work on domestic installations.

Electacourse Courses

Electacourse publish the 18th Edition Course provides everything required to achieve the 18^th Edition Wiring Regulations qualification as assessed by the City & Guilds 2382-158examination. This is an essential qualification for all UK electricians. It is also a general requirement (but not necessarily obligatory) for Domestic Installers. Optionally this course includes the City & Guilds 2382-18 18th Edition exam, we have partner examination centres throughout the UK.

Most of the other material which we publish at Electacourse is designed as preparation and revision material for the various City and Guilds examinations and are used by people who are taking these exams as part of their route to qualification and professional improvement as electricians.

We have courses and exam practice simulators which cover

On our website you will find links to our courses and to trade bodies and organisations which can provide complete information about becoming an electrician in the UK. You may also find the information on http://www.electricalqualifications.com useful. On this site you will also find information about transferring your home country qualifications to UK qualifications.