Qualification Update – Construction and Building Crafts

Following the Open Awards Validity Panel meeting in December 2021, our Construction and Building Crafts Level 1 and Level 2 qualifications have been reviewed and extended until 31/08/2027 with the following amendments:

The Rules of Combination and Unit Groupings have been changed to provide a range of Endorsed Pathway routes in the qualifications.

Level One

The Level 1 Award in Exploring Construction and Building Crafts is a three unit, 9 credit award.  All units must be achieved to gain the generic Open Awards Level 1 Award in Construction and Building Crafts (RQF).

The Level 1 Certificate and Diploma in Exploring Construction and Building Crafts (RQF) have both been amended to include Endorsed Pathways in:

• Brick and Blocklaying
• Carpentry and Joinery
• Kitchen and Bathroom Fitting
• Painting and Decorating
• Plastering and Finishing

To achieve a Level 1 Certificate in Exploring Construction and Building Crafts (RQF), learners need to achieve the 9 credits from Mandatory Group A, and 14 credits from any combination of units in the Pathway groups.

In order to gain an Endorsed Pathway Certificate, learners must achieve the 9 mandatory credits, along with 14 credits from ONE of the Pathway groups.

Learners will then gain:

Open Awards Level 1 Certificate in Construction and Building Crafts (Endorsed Pathway) (RQF) and the relevant pathway title (as above) will appear on the learner Certificate.

To achieve the Level 1 Diploma in Exploring Construction and Building Crafts (RQF) learners need to achieve the 9 credits from Mandatory Group A, and 30 credits from any combination of units in the Pathway groups.

In order to gain an Endorsed Pathway Diploma, learners must achieve the Mandatory Group A units, then a minimum of 14 credits from one Pathway group, with the remaining 16 credits coming from any combination of units in other Pathway groups.

Learners will then gain:

Open Awards Level 1 Diploma in Construction and Building Crafts (Endorsed Pathway) (RQF) and the relevant Pathway title (as above) will appear on the learner Certificate.

Level Two

In order to achieve the generic Level 2 Award in Construction and Building Crafts (RQF) learners must achieve the 5 credits from Mandatory Group A, a minimum of 3 credits from any units in Optional Group B and a minimum of 4 credits from any combination of units in Pathway Groups C1 – C5.

The Level 2 Certificate in Construction and Building Crafts (RQF) have been amended to include Endorsed Pathways in:

• Brick and Blocklaying
• Carpentry and Joinery
• Kitchen and Bathroom Fitting
• Painting and Decorating
• Plastering and Finishing

To achieve a generic Level 2 Certificate in Construction and Building Crafts (RQF), learners need to achieve the 5 credits from Mandatory Group A, 3 credits from Optional Group B, and 8 credits from any combination of units in the Pathway groups.

In order to gain an Endorsed Pathway Certificate, learners must achieve the 5 credits from Mandatory Group A, 3 credits from Optional Group B and 8 credits from ONE of the Pathway groups.

Learners will then gain:

Open Awards Level 2 Certificate in Construction and Building Crafts (Endorsed Pathway) (RQF) and the relevant Pathway title (as above) will appear on the learner Certificate.

To achieve the Level 2 Diploma in Construction and Building Crafts (RQF) learners need to achieve the 5 credits from Mandatory Group A, 10 credits from Optional Group B, and a minimum of 22 credits from any combination of units in the Pathway groups.

In order to gain an Endorsed Pathway Diploma, learners must achieve the Mandatory Group A units, then learners must achieve a minimum of 22 credits from ONE of the Pathway groups.

Learners will then gain:

Open Awards Level 2 Diploma in Construction and Building Crafts (Endorsed Pathway) (RQF) and the relevant Pathway title (as above) will appear on the learner Certificate.

All other details regarding these qualifications such as total credit value, TQT and GLH remain unchanged.

Updated qualification guides will be available to download from our website in due course. We hope that you found this information helpful and please do not hesitate to get in touch with us on 0151 494 2072 or by email enquiries@openawards.org.uk if you have any queries.