Emergency First Aid Open Course

Description

Who this course is for

EFAW suits workplaces where the injuries you can reasonably expect are the everyday ones: cuts, burns, sprains, someone feeling faint, someone choking. Offices, shops, warehouses with ordinary handling risks, salons, small sites.

It is not the course for a workplace where people work at height, use machinery that can amputate, handle hazardous substances or work alone in remote places. Those point towards the three-day First Aid at Work qualification instead.

Which one you need is not a budget decision. It comes out of your first aid needs assessment, and we set out how the two courses differ in First Aid at Work: one day or three?

What the course covers

The six hours are built around doing rather than watching. You will be on the floor with a manikin, and the scenarios are pitched at the kind of workplace you actually come from.

• The law on first aid at work, and what being a first aider does and does not make you responsible for
• Assessing an incident and keeping yourself safe
• An unresponsive casualty: airway, breathing, the recovery position
• CPR and using an automated external defibrillator
• Choking, in an adult
• Serious bleeding, and shock
• Minor injuries: small cuts, grazes, bruises and burns
• Recording an incident and knowing when to call 999

How you are assessed

There is no written exam. Your trainer assesses you by watching you do it and asking you questions as the day goes on, which is how practical first aid competence is supposed to be judged. If something is not right you get told and you try again. Nobody is failed quietly at the end.

Your certificate

You get a certificate valid for three years from the day you complete the course. HSE guidance sets out what a workplace first aid certificate has to show: the training organisation, the name of the qualification, your name, the three-year validity, and that the training was delivered for the purposes of the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981.

The awarding organisation is named on the certificate itself. If you want to know which body sits behind the qualification before you book, ask us and we will tell you. That is a fair question and any provider should answer it without hesitating. We explain what to listen for in how to choose a first aid training provider, and what separates a regulated qualification from a certificate anyone can print in how to check a qualification is accredited.

Open course or group course?

	Open course	Group course
Charged	Per person	Per course
Where	Manchester, Wigan or Bolton	Your premises
When	Published dates	A date that suits you
Best for	One or two people, or replacing a first aider who has left	A team, or anywhere losing people to travel is expensive

The crossover is usually around three or four learners. Below that, open places win. Above it, the group course is normally cheaper per head and nobody loses a day to travelling. We work the arithmetic through in how much does first aid training cost.

Keeping the qualification current

The certificate lasts three years, but HSE strongly recommends annual refresher training in between to keep skills sharp. That is a recommendation, not a legal requirement. What is a legal duty is making sure your first aiders remain competent, and a half-day annual refresher is the usual way employers satisfy themselves of that.

When the three years are up, EFAW is retaken in full as a one-day course. There is no shorter requalification route for it, unlike the three-day First Aid at Work requalification.

Frequently asked questions

How long is an Emergency First Aid at Work course?

One day, six contact hours excluding breaks. HSE guidance sets six hours as the minimum for EFAW, delivered in blocks of no less than two hours and completed within three weeks if it is split.

How long does the EFAW certificate last?

Three years from the date you complete the course. After that you retake the full one-day course. HSE also strongly recommends an annual refresher in between, though that is guidance rather than law.

What is the difference between EFAW and First Aid at Work?

EFAW is one day and six hours; First Aid at Work is three days and eighteen hours and covers a much wider range of injuries and illnesses. EFAW suits lower-hazard workplaces. Your first aid needs assessment decides which you need, not your budget.

Do I need any qualifications or experience first?

No. There are no entry requirements. The course assumes you have never done first aid before.

Is there a written exam?

No. You are assessed by practical demonstration and questioning during the day. HSE’s guidance is that practical first aid skills should be assessed by direct observation, which is why the course is not delivered as an online test.

Can I do Emergency First Aid at Work online?

Not wholly. The practical elements have to be assessed by someone watching you do them. Blended delivery, where theory is done beforehand and the practical is done in the room, is acceptable but needs extra care from the employer. A certificate that does not meet the requirement is not a saving.

Where do your open EFAW courses run?

Manchester, Wigan and Bolton. Available dates are on this page. If you need a date or a location that is not listed, ask, because a group course at your own premises is often the better answer.

How many first aiders does my workplace need?

There is no legal ratio. The number comes from your first aid needs assessment. HSE’s guidance is that where 25 or more people are employed, even in a low-hazard workplace, at least one trained first aider should be provided. Work the number out before you book.

Does the course cover defibrillators?

Yes. Using an AED is part of the CPR element, so you do not need separate defibrillator training on top.

Not sure whether EFAW or the three-day course is right for your workplace? Call 0845 838 4643 or use the enquiry form. If your needs assessment points at the shorter course, we will say so.