Gas Training Diary Training diary of an apprentice gas heating engineer

Retraining for a Gas Safety Qualification

When I recently lost my job I decided to look at it as an opportunity to retrain. I wanted to find something which was not office based and which could lead to me starting my own business within 3 years. I found several courses which fitted the bill but decided on the gas engineers course at my local city and guilds accredited college.

The main reasons I chose this course were to satisfy my own personal interests and in no small part the number of times id heard people say how hard it was to find a good Gas man who would turn up when they said they would!

My next step was to look for funding. I discovered several options through my local council, the job centre and city and guilds themselves. This was difficult for me as I already have a degree and had taken the funding that time around. For others though, retraining grants and such may be an option. (I have discovered this is especially true for members of the armed forces)

The course can cost around £4750 and takes 6 months to complete, so working out your finances is important.

The college I attend runs this course every month so you can pretty much decide when you want to start.

One other thing to consider is that even though the course is 6 months long it may take up to 6 weeks before you receive your registration with CORGI/ Gas safe. Remember you cannot work until you are registered with the relevant regulatory body.

It is also worth mentioning that this course is only 6 months long. There are other routes to go down to become qualified which are much longer (ie 3 years). For me this was not an option as I could not afford to pay the mortgage for that length of time whilst not working. The short and condensed nature of the course means its pretty full on!! You really cannot afford to miss any days and the exams come thick and fast!