I’ve tried agencies but the cards a must unfortunately. There are no lads on our course in the industry. I will ask the place that I’m doing it if they have any advice. I will phone ECS on Monday and see what they say. Surly it can’t be this hard to get a card.
This is my reply from JIB a few months back.
The idea of the Trainee cards is to parallel the Apprenticeship route for mature students, therefore you would have to be enrolled towards the NVQ Level 3 with a training provider and also working with a company undergoing formal industry. It's not so much that you're applying for a card, but more that you're confirming your registration with a scheme towards formal industry requirements, which is why being employed with a company is a requirement.
I hope this helps clarify the requirements.