NICEIC Certification Scheme Criteria to become registered as an experienced electrician?

[Joemile]

I have been working as an electrician under an NICEIC Approved Contractor for the past 10 years. I have my C&G2365 level 1/2/3 (acquired before 2021) and my 18th edition but I have started to carry out my own work on the side over the years so I plan to become self employed eventually and want to register as a domestic installer.

I am just curious as to what criteria I would need as a long term electrician working consistently on the job? I have heard about an NVQ level 3 portfolio but that seems bizarre for someone like myself who has years of experience and works in a supervisor role within an NICEIC registered company.

I'm just wondering is there an alternate path for experienced competent electricians? And if not, What other criteria I would need to add to my current qualifications to become a domestic installer?

 

[DMElec.1]

I have been working as an electrician under an NICEIC Approved Contractor for the past 10 years. I have my C&G2365 level 1/2/3 (acquired before 2021) and my 18th edition but I have started to carry out my own work on the side over the years so I plan to become self employed eventually and want to register as a domestic installer.

I am just curious as to what criteria I would need as a long term electrician working consistently on the job? I have heard about an NVQ level 3 portfolio but that seems bizarre for someone like myself who has years of experience and works in a supervisor role within an NICEIC registered company.

I'm just wondering is there an alternate path for experienced competent electricians? And if not, What other criteria I would need to add to my current qualifications to become a domestic installer?

Welcome to the forum, your position is actually not really that valuable as Its not really elevating your qualifications - I have been many many managers supervisors and administrators in my time, that's all about directing people and not about meeting/exceeding the requirements of the IET/BS7671 etc - talk to NICEIC, NAPIT etc and ask them for a list of the requirements - or google it - they are all online - that will show you what they actually need. Remember, what you do for yourself is way more valuable than what you do for an employer, I was a manager for logistics for a sizable company, totally useless in showing whether I can pull off an EICR with competence.

 

[Yellowhammer]

NAPIT have a pretty helpful list that goes through all the qualifications required for each of the "tiers" they offer, and a handy chart showing what works you can carry out under each tier. I'm looking myself at the moment and have found that much more helpful and explicit that anything on the NICEIC site.

You do need to have the NVQ with AM2 or equivalent as well as 2391 though for a CPT

 

[David1977m]

NAPIT have a pretty helpful list that goes through all the qualifications required for each of the "tiers" they offer, and a handy chart showing what works you can carry out under each tier. I'm looking myself at the moment and have found that much more helpful and explicit that anything on the NICEIC site.

You do need to have the NVQ with AM2 or equivalent as well as 2391 though for a CPT

Hey buddy, just seen this at the bottom of the post you updated this morning. Do you still feel like NAPIT have been helpful??

 

[Yellowhammer]

Hey buddy, just seen this at the bottom of the post you updated this morning. Do you still feel like NAPIT have been helpful??

ah this has not aged well!

To be fair, the list of required items is still fairly useful... Just not so much their customer service once they have your money!

 

[PS Electrics]

NAPIT have a pretty helpful list that goes through all the qualifications required for each of the "tiers" they offer, and a handy chart showing what works you can carry out under each tier. I'm looking myself at the moment and have found that much more helpful and explicit that anything on the NICEIC site.

You do need to have the NVQ with AM2 or equivalent as well as 2391 though for a CPT

From the NAPIT EAS Qualification guide

LIST 5 – Initial Verification (INSPECTION AND TESTING) This is an additional qualification required for work in dwellings unless you have completed a level 3 certificate or diploma from lists 1 to 2 which included initial verification

My understanding if you did an apprenticeship with AM2 that included Initial Verification and so 2391 is NOT required for Domestic Installer.

This was confirmed by NAPIT on the telephone.

Also this from the IET Electrotechnical Assessment Specification

"An ECS Registered Electrician Gold Card with the occupation of Installation Electrician, which will show the relevant version of BS 7671, should typically be sufficient to demonstrate the qualification requirements in Tables 4B to 4E. "

Table 4B to 4E cover Domestic Installer

Table 4E is Initial Verification which is List 5 in the NAPIT EAS Qualification guide

Though the IET EAS table 4E seem to imply you have to have 2391!

I queried this with the IET but they are not directly responsible for the production of that Specification it is done by a working party who could not give me a definitive answer, I queried it because NICEIC insisted 2391 was required for Domestic Installer!

 

[UNG]

My understanding of the EAS Qualification Guide is that of a minimum required standard for acceptance onto a CPS, if any CPS chooses to set a higher joining requirement then that is the schemes choice

A few other points if the EAS set a higher minimum standard / requirements in the future I believe any existing CPS members will have a grace period to reach the new minimum standard / requirements or they will be removed from the CPS. On the last EAS Qualification guide I read ISTR a requirement to have a training / CPD schedule in place in order to raise standards going forward

 

[PS Electrics]

My understanding of the EAS Qualification Guide is that of a minimum required standard for acceptance onto a CPS, if any CPS chooses to set a higher joining requirement then that is the schemes choice

You make a good point here but I don't believe this was the intention when the government set up the CPS (Competent Person Scheme).

-------

How schemes are authorised​

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) is in charge of authorising competent person schemes.

To make sure that the standards are consistent, there are rules that scheme operators must follow and conditions they must meet.

-----

The rules state there are agreed Minimum Competence Requirements which of course is the EAS as produced by a working committee to the IET.

This covered by Rule 9

Scheme operator to assess applicants as technically competent against agreed minimum competence requirements. For applicants this should be before registering them with the scheme. The assessment must include an on-site assessment.

So no I don't agree that any CPS can really set higher requirements regarding EAS and scheme membership. That would go contrary to the schemes being consistent.

A few other points if the EAS set a higher minimum standard / requirements in the future I believe any existing CPS members will have a grace period to reach the new minimum standard / requirements or they will be removed from the CPS. On the last EAS Qualification guide I read ISTR a requirement to have a training / CPD schedule in place in order to raise standards going forward

Yes of course though I have heard that if you are already registered then the new requirements are not always enforced, that is of course hearsay, I do not know if that is fact.

 

[UNG]

You make a good point here but I don't believe this was the intention when the government set up the CPS (Competent Person Scheme).

The government may have created the legislation but they did not set up the CPS that was down to Nic, Napit et al

How schemes are authorised
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) is in charge of authorising competent person schemes.

I think you will find that is down to UKAS

To make sure that the standards are consistent, there are rules that scheme operators must follow and conditions they must meet.

I'm sure that each scheme can agree the membership criteria on an individual basis as long as it meets or betters the prescribed standard

The rules state there are agreed Minimum Competence Requirements which of course is the EAS as produced by a working committee to the IET.

This covered by Rule 9

Scheme operator to assess applicants as technically competent against agreed minimum competence requirements. For applicants this should be before registering them with the scheme. The assessment must include an on-site assessment.

So no I don't agree that any CPS can really set higher requirements regarding EAS and scheme membership. That would go contrary to the schemes being consistent.

Nowhere in the EAS Qualification Guide does it prevent or suggest a higher base requirement can or cannot be set by any of the schemes approved by UKAS

Yes of course though I have heard that if you are already registered then the new requirements are not always enforced, that is of course hearsay, I do not know if that is fact.

On whose part from what I have heard the standard of some of the assessments is at best poor and turns a blind eye to some issues as has been said many times it's all about the money

 

[PS Electrics]

The government may have created the legislation but they did not set up the CPS that was down to Nic, Napit et al

I think you will find that is down to UKAS

They created the legislation and set out the conditions for authorisation as I had outlined in my previous post. NAPIT , NIC et al run these schemes on their behalf. Rule 1 states the CPS has to have UKAS accreditation.

I will repeat again in case you missed it on the UK Gov website

"To make sure that the standards are consistent, there are rules that scheme operators must follow and conditions they must meet."

UKAS ensures through assessment that the CPS adheres to the conditions of authorisation that I mention above amongst other criteria.

I'm sure that each scheme can agree the membership criteria on an individual basis as long as it meets or betters the prescribed standard

Maybe but this would mean standards are not consistent as per the conditions for authorisation.

Nowhere in the EAS Qualification Guide does it prevent or suggest a higher base requirement can or cannot be set by any of the schemes approved by UKAS

Because the EAS Qualification Guide is not for that purpose, it is a document detailing the MINIMUM required standard for competency.

On whose part from what I have heard the standard of some of the assessments is at best poor and turns a blind eye to some issues as has been said many times it's all about the money

I can agree on this

 

[UNG]

They created the legislation and set out the conditions for authorisation as I had outlined in my previous post. NAPIT , NIC et al run these schemes on their behalf. Rule 1 states the CPS has to have UKAS accreditation.

I will repeat again in case you missed it on the UK Gov website

"To make sure that the standards are consistent, there are rules that scheme operators must follow and conditions they must meet."

UKAS ensures through assessment that the CPS adheres to the conditions of authorisation that I mention above amongst other criteria.


Maybe but this would mean standards are not consistent as per the conditions for authorisation.


Because the EAS Qualification Guide is not for that purpose, it is a document detailing the MINIMUM required standard for competency.


I can agree on this

I have not missed it on the website as I know the background to it
Unfortunately from information posted on this forum a number of years ago I think you will find the legislation was actually set by one Emma Clancy who having not had a good hearing at a parliamentary committee circumvented the parliamentary committee looking into the CPS by going directly to the government minister and got the legislation agreed before the committee reported
I'll leave you to look into Ms Clancy's employments and decide who was employing she / her at the time