At the end of my rope! What should i do??

[AlanWirral]

Right guys...My current situation is getting worse and i'm not sure what i can do.

I'll explain as well as i can to give you a good background.

Ever since i was 18 i was a Lifting Gear Engineer. This invloved working in the entertainment industry on electric chain hoists and then onto building electrical control panels from scratch to operate them.For a few reasons i left this industry and got a temporary job working at a car dealership which with me loving cars was okay but it was really a stop gap until i found what i really wanted to do..this included retraining to be a spark.

At this point i'm 27. I met my old boss on the site as he did all the electrical work. We got talking and he said he needed somone and after looking at my old work and CV he managed to get me on a government scheme so i went to college one day a week(2330) and it was all paid for. He paid me £9 an hour which although was less than what i used to earn i was happy with (thinking qualified i'd be on £15+an hour)

So for the next 2 years we worked together on all sorts of domestic/commercial and some industrial work and my college going well with pretty much distinctions all the way. Then the day came he told me he'd been offered a job offshore for silly money and he just had to take it. With him having 3 kids i wouldn't stop him or make life difficult etc.

Over the next 2 months between myself/my employer and the government agency we tried to find me a new employer in order to finish my adult traineeship with. In June he finally had to let me go as he was knocking big jobs back as he would have to leave on a few days notice if he got the call.

Ever since then i've still been aloud to go to college and have been looking for a new employer. I finish my 2330 in June but haven't done anything towards the NQ3. I also have my 2392 Insoection & Testing Qual. We've used up all our savings..sold my car and are now in debt. And to cap it all off 2 days before i got made redundant we found out my wife is pregnant our girl is due on Valentines day.

I have been doing some temporary work for a couple of companys but getting closer to xmas this is drying up and we have no other money coming in apart from job seekers and my wifes small ish wages to pay the bills. It looks like i'm going to have to LEAVE college even though i'm only a few months from completing the course so i can get a 5 day a week job anywere i can it annoys me so much that cowboys out there are still working and getting paid and lads like me are left in the ####

Life really is crap sometimes!

 

[brucelee]

RE AlanWirral,listen to me carefully, DO NOT GIVE THIS COURSE UP! stick it out at all costs and try and get your 2382 17th edition then you can go on a self cert scheme such as napit, elecsa etc. I dont know if you have been looking at whats goin on but there changing stuff and not all for the better i`m afraid for the more mature students like us. Get signed up for the nvq NOW........dont leave it! It all comes to an end on.....
2330 level 3 enrolment end date:31.3 2011 but funding stops end 2010
award end date:31.12.2013
NVQ 2356 level 3 enrolment end date:31.3.2011
award end date:31.3.2015

hi mate
i found this out recently and i am also a mature student
ad hope to sign up for the end date as like you say this will be CHANGE FOR THE WORSE and will stop adult learners progressing

 

[AlanWirral]

Hi Glen, thanks for that info mate. I'll be doing everything in my power to stay on the course don't you worry! It's all financial though so if I get enough work it will all be fine. It just so happens one of my tutors at college is a Napit area inspector and the other runs the 2382 etc etc courses! The only reason I haven't done the 17th is because money is so tight. Can do it for £150

 

[AlanWirral]

hi mate
i found this out recently and i am also a mature student
ad hope to sign up for the end date as like you say this will be CHANGE FOR THE WORSE and will stop adult learners progressing

Good luck Bruce I hope you get on mate

 

[brucelee]

cheers alan and good luck to you mate
150 is good i paid alot more for this and and few other quals such as 2393 building regs,2377, partp logic full and defined scopes as part of a 6 week rip off
and then i paid 140 for 2391 at bury college got half funded by college and a quarter 150 by leigh skills shop as part of redundancy funding should have cost 455 for 8 week eve and extra 85 for optional day practical
they do 17th also as well as 2377 and have a special price on all there short courses at the minute#
try to get Jobcentre pay for it if you on jsa as they will give upto 300 to help you back into work
and if you push them they will cough up tell them you need it to get work

cheers glennspark
i hope i can get on nvq before the end date or with the new 2357 it will be almost impossible for adult learners

i tried to get on 2330 lv3 but its full and to late
and same with nvq
the only place i know who is left is delta training and its gong to cost over 900 beacause i havent got a apprenticeship or 2330
so i will have to do a knowledge assesment
they dont half make it hard work to get on the courses needed or get any advice on what to do

i am going to try to register with elecsa and set up
but if i could get work free/part time/temp/permanent i would do this to gain more experience and knowledge and also to use as evidence for nvq

 

[brucelee]

hi mate
yes mate got all the necessarry books, megger, fluke voltage tester etc
just need a proving unit,R2 test lead and i am going to have to get a calibration checkbox as my house is all rcd so i have no socketnot rcd protected that i could use for the carrying out a check of earth fault loop set impedence when set to high
I am waiting fpr labc to advise wether i can just carry out the work needed and cert it or if they want to see it for a rip off fee and if they will want to inspect it and test it and them sign for testing
cheers mate

 

[andekoch]

alan,

in your op you said your old boss was knockign back big jobs incase he had to leave. cant you get him to pass the jobs your way and you then walk into a local firm and say you can bring jobs with you if they take you on and pay for the training? i know if someone came to me with that sort of offer I would probably take them, the companies out there just want to know that their costs will be covered at the least so if the jobs you bring in cover your costs they are likely to take you on. have a chat to your old boss, may even keep the door open for him when he comes back if you do it right.

 

[brucelee]

cheers glenn
i will have to get back onto them as they have not replied yet so i will push the matter then if they dont reply then stuff em i tried i will just do it and register then notify through elecsa

on another note my 2391 cert yippee has finally come today its only took them over 5 months our college didnt send the paperwork for the practical part of the exam until 14/10/11 even though i did practical on the 15th of june muppets

 

[DurhamSparky]

At the end of my rope! What should i do??

= TIE A KNOT???


sorry it just seemed so appropriate to say that for some reason! but stick in mate and it will all come good

 

[brucelee]

Hi bruce, Ive heard of em being idle at c&ghq when it comes to sendin out certs to them that studdied and deserv it.... sayin that though me 392 didnt tek em long to send me but wot I really want is me 391 like wot youve got maybe early next year. Been doin parallel resisters n that at tech which is known to come up on 391. Shall be reddy next year trust me..........Still cant get a rite answer out of em at wakefield tech regards 2330 but i asked if i can do year 1 and 2 this year and the lecturer wants me to study about a c theory n all that this week at ome as he`l ask me some questions on it next week to see if av tecken it in n that and if i get em right i think he`l ok it for me to do all ov level 2 in 1 year. Af to wait n see...........

hi glen
good luck with your course wish i had done it but i have only recently found out it was ending and by the time i got hold of a few colleges they are full i was just going to do the 2330 lv3 as its a stand alone qual and then do nvq but not having much luck with any of it
anyway good luck and keep revising matey you will ge there

 

[bigbob1]

with your 2391 you are able too do testing, if you work for a company that is niceic/napitt registered you can sign off test certs. If you get yourself on the books of an agency they are always looking for test engineers.