Hi folks. New to this forum, looking for some guidance

[roccoamber]

Hi there,

I have been an office guy sitting on my bum for years but I have decided to look for a change in construction. I am 38yrs old, and not getting any younger. My main aim is as follows :

1a - Get qualified in the following plumbing
CG level 2 (6129)
CG NVQ (6089)

This takes 2 months home study and 8wks pratical at trg centre

1b - EAL domestic electrical installer course inc. Part P (5 days practical) and some home study
- 17th edition CG 2382-10 (1 day course)

1c - Solar Photovoltaic (some home study & 3 days practical). THE FUTURES GREEN !

Okay, now for the debating part. Total cost for this is £7135 through OLCI trg. Looking at the forums, a lot of people seem to have had bad experiences with this outfit. However could this sometimes be down to the students in a lot of cases i.e two sides to every story, or is a company really as bad as some people say ?

Before i start parting with my ill gotten gains, can you please help me with the following questions :

a - Are OLCI good at what they do ?
b - Is £7135 a reasonable amount to pay. I am based in west lothian Scotland and have to take into account travel/food/accommadation to trg centres in England
c - This is obviously a fast track course, what is the best way to get started as a plumbers mate in Scotland. Would anyone companies touch a newly qualified fast track
d- Is plumbing still a good trade to have in this day in age ?
e- Any suggestions

p.s I am not currently working, this is why fast track is really the only option for me I THINK !

All your feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

[GQuigley67]

i wouldnt reccommend it, SVQ level 3 is the minimum requirement in scoltand to be considered a qualified plumber which takes 3-4 years. Most guys I've spoked to don't touch fast trackers, they have too much of a bad reputation and not enough experience.

 

[roccoamber]

Thanks GQuigley
Understand what you are saying. Problem I have though is I that I do not have 3-4 yrs as I need to earn a.s.a.p.
After qualification Level 2, would my best bet be trying to get a job as a plumbers mate to gain experience. My ultimate gain is to focus on the solar PV and solar thermal market, as this is where I see the money to be in the future.
Thanks
Dan

 

[GQuigley67]

http://www.ukplumbersforums.co.uk/plumbing-courses/19241-info-people-considering-fast-tracking.html

read this post, that following course your thinking of taking is not a recognised qualification, and 8 weeks practical is not enough

 

[Barry98]

plumbing is highly overrated and everyone wants to get in on it cos off bull mess advertising from the government , colleges etc.

it is not an easy trade

it will not make you 55k per annum

it will not get you a holiday home abroad

it will not give you holidays when you want them

 

[roccoamber]

GQuigley67 - Lisbon lion ?, Thanks for the thread. Man, are fast trackers getting it tight. However at 38yrs what other way is there to break into the industry? No way the govt will
give me an apprenticeship to get my SVQ, so to enter the industry I really have to get fast track. If there are any other ways please let me know

Bod - Understand what you are saying. Previously I worked as a logistics mgr, but with no qualifications.
My main aim is to get a trade, to assist me emigrating to Australia, Canada to get out of the UK's crumbling economy. Hopefully 5 yrs time.

 

[GQuigley67]

aye mate lisbon lions ! I went to college with 2 guys at 40+ they worked as plumbers though without the qualifications, then went to college. We had a heating engineers mate with us at our old firm had no quals but was a great grafter, i would suggest trying to get a job as plumbers mate then work your way from there and when times are a bit better try and get sent to college.

These qualifications the fast track courses are advertising are not worth the price you pay, to go to college and get a SVQ3 is about the same price although you have to be working for a firm.

I would suggest going to canada, great way of life, harsh winters though ! and they are friendly ! not heard the same about the aussies though my mate is over there and said they are nuts, racist and not very welcome lol

 

[roccoamber]

Thanks Quigley - After much deliberation, soul searching, nagging from the wife, I have decided to give the fast track a miss. If I decide to move forward, I will go down the SVQ3 route. Hail Hail !

 

[Alpha man]

Hello.

 

[PlumbBobBob]

hi welcome along

 

[roccoamber]

Hi, - well after a lot of thought and checking stuff out - i.e 7.5k trg costs and great possibility of not getting a job after fast track, I have decided to forget the plumbing trade. From what I can gather you cannot get anywhere without an SVQ in Scotland, and to get this you need to be employed by a company. Not much chance of that at the moment, in this climate. Well, I will need to think of some other trade/trg. Any suggestions anyone??? It is a fecking minefield. I have about 8k to spare. Do not want to flush it down the pan. Onwards and upwards - DAN

 

[Barry98]

i think your doing the right thing and another trade does seem your best option , is it in the construction industry you want to move into or just become self employed ?

 

[dontknowitall]

Hi Roccoamber (if you're returning to read your updated thread!)

It might interest you to know that various people come on to this forum asking very similar questions. Many here try to hint that it's not all a bed of roses but generally the advice is ignored. So these people then go off to do their course at vast expense and sometimes start out on the self employment route as there are no plumbing vacancies around (the positions all require experience when you're over about 23 years old).

Then a month or so later, we never hear from these people again so assume they've spent their £6,000 only to return to their old career or find a totally different job.

It's not impossible to venture into plumbing but it is very difficult. Most of us would, hand on heart, suggest the plumbing industry has too many plumbers at the moment and say that the likelihood of coming off a course and into a job or become successfully self employed is very limited. In two or so years I've read about two people who have secured jobs.

Whatever you decide, best of luck.

 

[roccoamber]

Hi Bod,

Ultimate goal is to be self employed. It does not have to be in contruction. I have spent approx 1 year thinking about exactly what, but nothing lighting my fire as of yet. Hopefully it will come !! If not, I will have to go back into the corporate world of B S and backstabbing, which is what I want to get away from

 

[roccoamber]

Thanks Dontknowitall, take on board your comments. Understand a lot of guys will go into this with their blinkers on. This is why I think experienced opinioins from guys on this thread like yourself are so important to take into account, before making any decisions. My decision though, is not to move forward with the plumbing and to find something else.

 

[Barry98]

i think if you enjoy what job your doing its easier to work. so like do you have a serious hobby you could turn into a profession

 

[dontknowitall]

Thanks Dontknowitall, take on board your comments. Understand a lot of guys will go into this with their blinkers on. This is why I think experienced opinioins from guys on this thread like yourself are so important to take into account, before making any decisions. My decision though, is not to move forward with the plumbing and to find something else.

You could explore the other forums and find out other avenues. For example if you became an electrician, later on you could do the heating aspect of plumbing and might be able to find a niche there as circulating pumps, zone valves, immersion heaters, room stats, etc all require electricity. In addition, solar PV and solar thermal are electricity (former) and plumbing (latter).

Alternatively, finding good tilers at a good value price is not easy.

A different avenue could be the administration part of the MCS stuff. You'll get some flak from me and one or two others on this forum about this, but it does seem to be a growing industry.

Just some ideas.

 

[roccoamber]

Thanks again for your comments Guys

 

[GQuigley67]

its easier to become a tiler or plasterer, and their profit margins are high

 

[fuzzy]

7 grand and most of it home study!!!!!!!!!!!