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Try and put a date on second fix when there are other trades involved......I do agree though,even as electrical trainee (yep 6) that things need sorting because the install this post is about is getting far more common, ironically I’m a electrical trainee (yep 6) because the short course “electricians” I was getting on my jobs were absolute pony and when the chippie knows more about installing what cables and where than the “spark” the industry is in trouble!
 
And who's going to pay for the assessor to make 5 visits a year to every contractor, not me as I pay enough every year.
 
Personally I would hold the training centres AND schemes to account, they are the people’s responsible for passing these people,having been through the system personally as it were, they are unable to teach the stuff outside of electrical theory that,especially in domestic work, is essential, Point proven by this donut holding back boxes in with foam wtf!
These people leave the centres with they confidence boosted having passed the exams and go straight out and quote ridiculous money for full rewires etc as they have no idea as to how a building actually works,not just from an electrical standpoint but in any way.
I’m not saying shut the centres as there are plenty of people that go through them for the right reasons, been in the trade years but no quals, leaving the military and need relevant quals or on some occasions people actually want to change careers and do make it work with hard work and the right attitude.
Just make them accountable when things like this happen........rant over where’s my beer!
 
You can’t ALWAYS blame these type of poor installs on the short course electricians, but as a usual you do as it’s so easy todo so. Fully trained, time served electricians have also done some of these atrocious installs as well over the years, as can be seen on YouTube and other forums and even this forum too. As of yet there’s NO proof this install was done by a short course electrician or a time served one either.

I’m proud to say that I took the Tradeskills4U route and completed their Bronze Electricians course which is actually 3 & half weeks in total (18 days), does this make me an electrician, NO, but on paper and based on the C&G’s exams I took (which nearly EVERY electrician has passed), I’m qualified and classed as a competent person to carry out domestic electrical work, but I am on a very, very long journey of gaining experience, which is never ever ending, even for the ‘time served’ electricians out there.
 
I'm not a qualified spark, never will be. But I can say hand on heart I have never and would never do anything like this. It's not just length of training and years of experience, it's basic personal/professional standards that should keep work neat and correct.

I'll accept that some problems require a great deal of thought and experience. But.. "Should I wrap this cable around a hot water supply pipe" as just one example, is not one of them.

On another note, there is one key thing that comes from on site training and experience, and that's basic handyman skills. This guy doesn't have them.
 
I’d agree that courses are woefully inadequate, even at some of the colleges. Lots of reasons. One of my major bugbears is that exams in general in all subjects rely too much on computer multiple choice exams which are forumulaic and if you are good at working through books and mock tests are quite easy to pass.
Where do they teach how to approach a 50 year old installation with antiquated equipment, techniques for planning and rewiring a premises that may have been designed an built before electricity was invented.
Some of us take pride in our work and know their limitations. Unfortunately there are quite a few out there who don’t on both counts !
 
Clearly that contractor skipped the week where they mentioned professionalism. A course can teach you all you like but you have to care about what you're leaving behind.

I whole heartedly agree John, but professionalism cannot be taught, you’ve either got it or you haven’t.

It’s the same with attitude and common sense. My own perfectionalism (probably OCD) would never allow me to even think about doing it that way. The half a dozen jobs or so I’ve done so far have all taken longer than I quoted for as I take pride in my work, even to the point that the spirit levels bubble HAS to be exactly between the 2 lines evenly, even when clipping cables behind cabinets and plasterboard, it has to be perfectly straight and level, with perfect curves as well, even though it’s never gonna be seen. Over time I know I’ll get quicker and get the job completed within the quoted time. But I’ll only leave the site once the work is completed to a standard I would expect in my own home.
 
Someone who leaves any job looking like that obviously couldn't give a flying ----. Those pictures are a result of character defecits or just plain bone-idle laziness. Anyone who's so devoid of personal traits like job pride and customer empathy is going to do a shoddy job like that regardless of what qualifications or electrical knowledge they have.
 
So for a bit of balance (as requested by @happyhippydad ) and because I'm a little tired of short coursers being blamed for all things bad in the industry (it's not like there aren't time served apprenticed sparks out there doing bad work is it?)... I'm a short courser, here's a few examples of some of my work.

From this...
Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20171112_095229345 - EletriciansForums.net
To this...
Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20171112_143519258 - EletriciansForums.net

New kitchen appliance supply (the original plan was somewhat ambiguous so a 10mm cable was installed, when the plan was finalised this was split as required for the new appliances - 3 x 16A supplies)
Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180306_141210757 - EletriciansForums.net

Sub board in a swimming pool plant room
Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180410_164808661 - EletriciansForums.net

Selection of photos from a rewire (all surface due to asbestos in the Artex - yes I cut the openings in the ceiling as I'm authorised to carry out non-licensed works)
Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180406_112958663 - EletriciansForums.net Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180525_085200461 - EletriciansForums.net Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180614_135457630 - EletriciansForums.net Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180614_170015808 - EletriciansForums.net Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180614_152915499 - EletriciansForums.net

And something a little different (no I didn't lay the fibre conduits in the trench... I'm the one driving the mini excavator - and yes, I did hit a cable which WPD didn't know about that didn't show up when I scanned the route with a locator - found and manually dug out the live supply cable)
Quality work by a electrical trainee..... IMG_20180503_153505100 - EletriciansForums.net

Enjoy and feel free to offer constructive criticism or ask questions.
 
I suppose in fairness, the courses are designed as a starting point. In the same way as a driving test is designed to check the fundamental abilities of a driver. It's not going to deliver a seasoned driver..

I'm sure there must be benefits for someone taking on an apprentice if they have done a course and at least have their head around the theory, even if their experience of real life work is zero.

To stick with the driving test analogy, when I passed my test I assumed I was a confirmed driving god and was subsequently invincible. Looking back and recalling a few 'incidents', I can see now that wasn't the case :)
 
The problem is a combination of the courses and the attitude of the people taking them.

I did a 5week course. It wasn't an intensive course though. It was spread over 18 months but only 5 weeks of actual training. On my course some of the students were just waiting to finish and then going alone doing installs. The tutors didn't talk sense into them. None of us were experienced enough for that.

I thought a competent person as someone with sufficient technical knowledge and experience. The latter lacking in a Electrical Trainee
 
I suppose in fairness, the courses are designed as a starting point. In the same way as a driving test is designed to check the fundamental abilities of a driver. It's not going to deliver a seasoned driver..

I'm sure there must be benefits for someone taking on an apprentice if they have done a course and at least have their head around the theory, even if their experience of real life work is zero.

To stick with the driving test analogy, when I passed my test I assumed I was a confirmed driving god and was subsequently invincible. Looking back and recalling a few 'incidents', I can see now that wasn't the case :)
Trouble is Deuce the courses you talk of give you the qualifications that allow you to become qualified, and as such allow you to do electrical work with very little experience and only classroom and workshop knowledge.
 

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