Confused about ECS Card.

[NewElectrician]

Hello everybody,
I am 22 and I'm not long out of college (I passed in 2011)
I have recently had to look for a new job due to redundancy and everywhere that i'm looking in around my area is asking for either an ECS or CSCS card, I have looked into an ECS card as this is what my old company recommended of the two.
I currently hold:
NVQ 2330 Level 3 in Electro-technical Services – Electrical Installation (Building and Structures)
AM2 Assessment of Electro-technical Occupational Competence
16[SUP]th[/SUP] to 17[SUP]th [/SUP]BS7671:2008 Edition Update
I am also currently doing a 2391 course
Do I have to take the ECS Health & Safety Assessment?
Also is there anything else I have to do in order to apply for one?
Thank you,
Stuart.

P.S. Sorry if this is in the wrong section.

 

[ezzzekiel]

Think the nvq exempts you from a hs test for 3 years from membership so you got it all covered just complete and send in forms

 

[vernam616]

It actually says 2356 on that cert

You completed a level 3 nvq and didnt even know it

 

[NewElectrician]

Thank you very much for all of your help and patience, I hadn't realised that the NVQ 2356 was separate from the 2330.
I have one last question, I know I'm not quite ready to do the 2391 just yet and want to gain some more experience before I do I have been studying the revision material regardless though, If and when I do the 2391 do I need to wait until I have to renew the card to add onto the card that I have the 2391 or can I add that whenever?
Sorry if this isn't very clear.

 

[Yooj]

If you are not working at the moment, then if I were you, I would not bother with the ECS card right now (though you could still apply for it now), as you will be sitting around for at least 8 weeks waiting for the JIB/ECS to pull their fingers out. My experience of them, is that they are a nightmare.
I would be looking at a way to get to work asap. The agencies are asking for a CSCS/ECS... so the quickest way you can get to work, is to DO the ECS H&S exam, and just make sure that the agencies' clients are happy for you to use the H&S ECS Certificate at the site induction instead of waiting for your card to arrive. If you ring around the ECS H&S exam providers, you should be able to get a test within a week somewhere, and the turnaround for the cert is generally around another week. This way you could be working within a week or two, instead of waiting for two months for the JIB/ECS to pull their fingers out.

In terms of whether sites accept the paper copy of the cert, the answer is yes, as I have done it like this numerous times. Like you, I have an NVQ3 etc... and if I am ever asked to prove qualifications (which I have not yet) then I would just take a copy of the certs.

Yooj

 

[Adam W]

You can add stuff to your card whenever, but you have to pay each time.
I had to wait over a month before I could even sit the ECS test, then a further month before I got my card.
The CSCS on the other hand seems more informal - you get a date a week or so ahead, turn up, press a few buttons and you get your result and certificate straight away.
If you're just looking to get on site I'd get a CSCS card because it's quicker and time is money.

 

[Yooj]

Ringing around some of the approved providers of the ECS exam worked for me. I used Unite. I did the exam within a week of booking, and the cert was on my doorstep 3 days later.

Yooj

 

[Adam W]

I called Unite about sitting an ECS test - after being transferred to 'the correct department' the woman on the phone proudly announced that she'd never heard of it.
By the time she'd gone away and asked someone who knew what they were talking about, I'd downloaded the form, printed it out, written out the cheque, posted it off and walked into town.

 

[Adam W]

... So I did it with the ECA - from the way they'd never heard of an ECS test I figured it would be quicker to do it with someone who had at least heard of it.

 

[Yooj]

I guess it's the same with all these bloated organisations... bit of pot luck really... though my motivation to get it done within the week was that I had 2 months work waiting for me on the basis of having the bit of paper.

Yooj

 

[Adam W]

True, it just seems to me a bit like phoning the DVLA and being told they've never heard of a driving licence.

 

[alarm man]

I called Unite about sitting an ECS test - after being transferred to 'the correct department' the woman on the phone proudly announced that she'd never heard of it.
By the time she'd gone away and asked someone who knew what they were talking about, I'd downloaded the form, printed it out, written out the cheque, posted it off and walked into town.

why would you ring unite when your not a union member.? why then would you slate the union if you were..

 

[Yooj]

why would you ring unite when your not a union member.? why then would you slate the union if you were..

Unite allow you to take the ECS exam even when you are not a member.

Yooj

 

[alarm man]

Unite allow you to take the ECS exam even when you are not a member.

Yooj

should be stopped imo,anti union men taking adavantage of union facilities..

 

[Yooj]

Hardly taking advantage... I paid for the course, which was more than if I were a member.

Who said anything about anti-unions... I am happy to post remarks about NGO's, Commercial organisations and unions alike, if they are useless.

Yooj

 

[alarm man]

Hardly taking advantage... I paid for the course, which was more than if I were a member.

Who said anything about anti-unions... I am happy to post remarks about NGO's, Commercial organisations and unions alike, if they are useless.

Yooj

it wasnt aimed at you..