Training and Awarding Organisations

Training Organisations can get you qualified to teach First Aid. Trade Bodies and Awarding Organisations help you with your Certification.

When delivering courses there is a hierarchy of Organisations that you can choose to work through, however you can also self-certify your own qualifications. The Certificates can be equally valid for the qualification, however some Clients will insist on Accredited or Regulated Certificates as that way they know that what they are getting will be Nationally recognised. If you self-certify you may have to prove to your client that your certificate is equally valid. your Client will have to run due diligence on you to ensure that you are competent. If they obtain an Accredited or Regulated qualification that work is done for them.


Training Organisations

Training Organisations are available to provide ‘Train the Trainer’ courses. These allow you to become qualified to deliver First Aid Training to others. Sometimes the Training Organisations deliver First Aid qualifications in their own right or they choose to just deliver training courses.


Hierarchy of Training Bodies

Regulators

Regulators regulate qualifications, examinations and assessments. They do not interact directly with Training Organisations, but use Awarding Organisations as an intermediary. The exception being if a complaint has not been resolved by an Awarding Organisation (assessment decisions themselves will not get referred as far as a Regulator)

Ofqual

The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. This Government Organisation regulates qualifications, examinations and assessments in England.

Qualifications Wales

Qualifications Wales is the independent organisation responsible for regulating general and vocational qualifications in Wales.

SQA

The Scottish Qualifications Authority is the independent organisation responsible for regulating general and vocational qualifications in Scotland.

Awarding Organisations (AO)

Awarding Organisations act as an intermediary between a Regulator and a Training Company. An AO has a number of roles:

  • Create and have approved (by one or more Regulators) Regulated courses. These courses (e.g. First Aid at Work) are delivered and assessed to a defined standard and the Certificates can have the AO and the Regulator’s Logo on as a stamp of Approval
  • Approve a Training Company and its staff to deliver these courses. Approval entails ensuring that the Training Company has various Procedures (complaints, equality, privacy for example) in place and that they are current. It ensures that the Trainers are qualified & updated to deliver the courses and that the Training Company is insured and complies with current Standards.
  • Deal with complaints that cannot be resolved internally within the Training Organisation. It can refer upwards to the Regulator if it cannot resolve it, however Assessment decisions will not be referred.
  • Monitor the Training Company by audit of paperwork and visits to training courses (announced or unannounced)

Trade Bodies

Trade Bodies sit in the gap between Awarding Organisations and Training Companies. They provide an intermediary service that can be less onerous that getting a Regulated course delivered and assessed. Usually you can also obtain Regulated qualifications through them as they liaise with an Awarding Organisation.

For a list of Training Organisations, Trade Bodies and Awarding Organisations, click here

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