YTA Training

Liz Spider

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Why should you choose only accredited centres for construction training?

The critical importance to the nation of the highest standard of construction skills and expertise only makes it all the more vital for the sector to have the right training partners by its side.

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) is the Industry Training Board for the construction sector in England, Scotland and Wales, providing the support and funding necessary for companies to bolster the skills of their workers, maximise their competitiveness and reduce on-site costs. NOCN delivers construction products and services through the well recognised and respected brand Cskills Awards. Previously part of CITB, Cskills Awards is now a core part of the NOCN Awarding Organisation, regulated by Ofqual

Why is all of the above especially relevant to those with an interest in learning a trade in the UK? Well, here at YTA, we are proud to say that most of our courses are now NOCN Cskills accredited.

A truly reputable multi-skill centre

If you have been searching online for accredited centres for construction training, you’ll be pleased to learn that YTA takes pride in ensuring the highest standards in every aspect of the training experience. Our programmes are flexible to fit in with almost every possible working scenario, while we also keep class sizes small and provide specialist areas on our premises for each individual trade.

However, it is also our accreditation itself that should give you particular reassurance. We can provide a wide range of nationally recognised NOCN Cskills qualifications, covering such popular trades as wall and floor tiling, carpentry and joinery, plastering and bricklaying.

All of the full level 1 NOCN Cskills certificates that we presently offer can be acquired over 10 days of training with us, or – in the case of our multi-trade activities course – from 10 days up to 30 days.

In keeping with our reputation for providing training of the utmost flexibility in accordance with students’ needs, you also have the option of selecting individual Cskills units when you enrol with us. Currently available units include in construction health and safety, working and communicating effectively in construction trades, plastering a floor, building a brick wall and much more.

Contact us now about your training needs

With the right NOCN Cskills qualification potentially enabling you to make the next big step in your chosen trade – not least by showing potential employers or customers your competence in a given skill – YTA should be your first choice among accredited centres for construction training.

Simply contact our team now, by calling 01274 682199 or 07400 922788, or emailing info@ytatraining.com, to find out more about the NOCN Cskills qualification framework and how one or more of our courses could help to transform your career in 2019.

 

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You could gain a lot of confidence and capability from one of our multi-skill courses

As their name indicates, our multi-skill courses here at YTA draw upon several of our areas of construction training specialism. Furthermore, unlike some of our other programmes, they are not necessarily aimed purely at those looking to develop or further a career in the sector.

Your route to greater skill and success with your DIY projects

We receive many enquiries from DIY enthusiasts, for example, about our 5-day multi-skill course, which has been conceived very much with their requirements in mind.

You may take on our 5-day multi-skill course if you wish to equip yourself with additional skills or even just reassure yourself prior to handling a major project.

However, the range of plumbing, tiling and plastering topics that this course covers also makes it potentially suitable for school or college caretakers, trades apprentices and first-time homeowners, which are all categories of students to have been previously represented on the programme.

Whether you wish to learn how to fit kitchen sink taps, plumb in a kitchen sink, prepare and prime a surface for tiling and/or plaster a wall or ceiling, you can do it all – and so much more – as a student on this well-reviewed 5-day multi-skill course.

Train over 10 days, 15 days… or even four weeks

With our other multi-skill courses lasting longer, there’s plenty of scope within them to plough deeper into a particular area of specialism or even become better-versed in a broader assortment of construction disciplines.

This is demonstrated by our 10-day multi-skill bathroom fitter course that will give you the skills and confidence to undertake bathroom projects, covering various aspects of plumbing, tiling and plastering.

It is also shown by a 15-day course that effectively consists of three separate five-day courses – so for example, our five-day intensive tiling course, five-day intensive plastering course and five-day intensive plumbing course – plus a fourth week, free of charge.

Nor do you necessarily have to take on all of these three weeks’ worth of courses in one go, as they can be split in accordance with whatever is convenient for you.

Another four-week multi-skill course route here at YTA enables you to pick from any combination of four five-day courses, including either first or second-week courses.

With both first and second-week courses available, this specific route opens up the possibility of you spending 10 days on one particular discipline – for example, bricklaying, due to combining a five-day bricklaying course (the first week of the course) with a five-day advanced bricklaying course (which effectively constitutes the second week of the same course).

If you have any questions, it couldn’t be simpler to get in touch

Feel free to browse the section of our site dedicated to multi-skill courses to find out more about these various routes and the difference that they could make to your career or ability to take on all manner of construction projects, whether as a professional or amateur.

Then, enquire to the YTA team to have any of your questions answered when you are attempting to determine the course route – whether a four-week, 15-day, 10-day or 5-day multi-skill course – that is likely to represent the best match to your requirements.

 

 

 

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We’re the people to turn to for a broad range of tiling courses

You might have read our blog post from a few months ago on the subject of the tiling trade, including its importance within construction and whether it could be the right career path for you. But what about the sheer breadth and depth of our tiling courses themselves?

You’ll find courses on offer for every level of experience

Whether you’ve only just started to consider a tiling career and would therefore simply like to ‘have a go’ in a supportive environment, or you are seeking a more specialised course in relation to such a discipline as floor tiling or bathroom tiling, we can bring you the ideal course for your needs.

Our one-day taster course, for instance, is presently priced at just £90 including VAT, and gives you the opportunity to tile a small kitchen or wall while making use of professional tools and equipment. These taster tiling courses are usually available at our training centre on any day of the working week, and if you wish, we could always show you around and introduce you to students already doing the course before you book.

Other invaluable courses and assessments that can be taken at YTA include – but are not restricted to – our Cskills level 1 tiling 10 day course plus our NVQ level 2 in wall and floor tiling for the purposes of the Experienced Worker Practical Assessment (EWPA).

Our intensive five-day wall and floor tiling course, for instance, can be taken by a wide range of individuals, including complete beginners, DIY enthusiasts and non-tiling tradespersons with an interest in entering the tiling industry. It is geared towards equipping you with sufficient skills, information and confidence to commence and thrive in a professional tiling career.

Get in touch with us now about booking any of our tiling courses

We are an established and recognised training centre for those wishing to start or take the next step in any of a broad variety of construction trades, including not only tiling but also such key fields as plumbing, plastering, kitchen fitting, bricklaying, joinery and carpentry.

Why not enquire today about the help that we could give you to realise your ambitions in the construction industry in 2019? Simply give us a call now on 01274 682199 or 07400 922788, or email info@ytatraining.com for more information.

 

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Prepare for a new life as a carpenter with the help of our specialised courses

Carpentry primarily involves building materials being cut, shaped and installed during a construction project. However, you might understandably be uncertain what differentiates carpentry from joinery.

Carpentry and joinery are similar and associated fields, to the extent that here at YTA, we allow you to learn skills associated with both trades as part of a single course. We also give you the opportunity to refine your skills by taking on successive, increasingly advanced courses.

The key differences between carpentry and joinery

Joinery is its own practice, whereby wood is used to create a range of fixtures, fittings and other elements for eventual use in a home or office. Carpenters, meanwhile, take joiner-created wooden objects and install them on a construction site where a whole new building is taking shape.

One can therefore regard joinery and carpentry as strongly complementary areas of work. A joiner typically produces wooden ornamental pieces like doors and bookcases, while a carpenter will commonly work on expanses like floors and roofs.

How can you work towards becoming a carpenter?

If a carpentry career interests you, it isn’t just the basic entry requirements that you should carefully consider, but also whether this area of work is truly suited to you. If, for instance, you have already worked successfully on-site as a joiner’s ‘mate’ or labourer, you could be well-placed to move into professional carpentry.

Your chances of securing work in carpentry may strongly depend on your base of relevant knowledge and practical skills. Taking a course in carpentry could therefore enable you to prepare for such a line of work while also maximising the attractiveness and relevance of your CV.

Indeed, to work on a building site, you will require a Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) card – and to obtain that, you could take your pick from our current carpentry & joinery NVQ Level 2 courses. We offer a fast track assessment route that could allow you to get qualified quickly.

Nonetheless, whichever of our courses interest you, we urge you to carefully read the relevant information on our site before proceeding. It’s vital to ensure you are looking at the right course – and by calling our Bradford office on 01274 682199, you can receive further guidance as to which route could be most advantageous for you.

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What is the Experienced Worker Practical Assessment?

As a seasoned tradesperson, you may have heard of the Experienced Worker Practical Assessment (EWPA), also sometimes referred to as the Experienced Worker Practical Assessment Route (EWPAR), and wondered what it is, and how it could help to enhance your career.

The first thing to make clear about the EWPA is that it is not a training course. What it is instead, is a fast-track assessment route for workers in any of a number of trades wishing to achieve an NVQ Level 2 qualification, as they can do here at the YTA premises in West Yorkshire in just a day or two.

The EWPA plays a vital role in raising worker standards

The Experienced Worker Practical Assessment route was set up by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) to give those who have been working in a certain trade for at least five years a quick, simple and convenient means of verifying that their skills and capabilities are of NVQ Level 2 standard. This is determined on the basis of their past experience.

As you might expect, the CITB wishes to ensure that everyone working in the construction sector is capable of meeting certain standards in the work they do. This was precisely why the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) was introduced in the first place.

However, there are still tens of thousands of tradespersons working in the UK who are frequently carrying out great work, but who haven’t had their skills formally assessed. This is where the simple, fuss-free assessment route that is the EWPA proves invaluable.

For which trades do we offer EWPA routes?

If, from reading the above, you suspect you could benefit from undergoing the Experienced Worker Practical Assessment process to acquire your NVQ Level 2 qualifications, you may be pleased to learn that we offer this route for the four trades of wall and floor tiling, bricklaying, site carpentry and plastering.

With an NVQ Level 2 certificate or diploma acquired through the EWPA route also enabling you to attain the blue skilled worker CSCS card that will help you to gain construction site work, the one or two days for which you join us at our assessment centre could prove extremely well-spent for your career going forward.

Simply give the YTA team a call today, on 01274 682199, to have all of your questions answered about the Experienced Worker Practical Assessment, so that you can ascertain its applicability and suitability for you – as well as, of course, make your booking.

 

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Plastering isn’t necessarily the profession that you think it is

When most of us picture what life must be like as a plasterer, we are immediately put in mind of the actual process of mixing and skimming plaster onto the interior surfaces of buildings. We don’t necessarily think of certain other aspects of how the UK’s approximately 40,000 plasterers work, but which are vital to appreciate if you are considering entering this career yourself.

Some elements of the job are more predictable than others

First of all, let’s confront the obvious: if plastering looks like the kind of job that requires considerable dexterity and speed, that’s because it is. However, the role doesn’t just involve the coating of internal walls and ceilings with different types of plaster in readiness for decoration, as plasterers may also be called upon to coat external surfaces with materials such as sand or cement.

The handiwork aspect of plastering should certainly not be underestimated. Indeed, the physical nature of the job is one reason why there are still many more male plasterers than female plasterers, although efforts have been made to encourage more women into the industry.

However, mathematical skill is also required to work out how much plaster needs to be mixed up for a given assignment, as well as the quantity that must be ordered to maintain the correct levels of work in a specific project. After all, it’s crucial for no aspect of a project to be held up.

You might be a little more surprised to hear that plasterers often need to be creative, too, when it comes to all manner of fibrous plastering and decorative work.

As for the working hours, about 39 hours a week from Monday to Friday is typical, although weekend and evening work may be necessary when projects are to be completed to tight deadlines.

A more interesting and rewarding role than you might have ever imagined  

With those starting out in plastering able to command salaries of between £14,000 and £18,000, rising to between £18,000 and £25,000 once they have acquired more experience – up to as much as £30,000 at the highest experience levels – a plastering career can be satisfying in more ways than just the work itself.

So, why not enquire today about our intensive plastering courses in the UK here at YTA, running for five or 10 days and covering all of the hands-on essentials for both beginner and more experienced tradespersons – including health and safety, skimming to plasterboard, the setting of finishing beads, the repair of plastering and so much more?

Call 01274 682 199 or 07400 922 788 to book any of our intensive plastering courses in the UK, or to receive more information.