Pre-apprenticeship carpentry courses

Start your journey to becoming a carpenter.

Our pre-apprentice programmes deliver great success working with full time students who want to progress into apprenticeships, full time employment and further education. Our full-time courses are condensed into three days to give our learners more flexibility – and you can also start at any point in the year thanks to our roll on/roll off programmes.

Carpentry earning potential

The average Carpenter earns £15,000 – £52,000 per year (uk.jobted.com), and once you’ve gained your qualifications you can either work for a company or become self-employed.

Level 1 Pre-Apprenticeship Site Carpentry

Train as a carpenter. Learn cutting, fixing and mitring techniques, as well as constructing basic joints, frames, architrave, and skirting. You will become proficient in the use of power tools associated with carpentry as well as using hand tools.

On completion of the course, you will receive a Level 1 Diploma in Carpentry & Joinery, and ACE will support you to complete your CSCS test.

You will need to attend our training centre three days per week, Wednesday to Friday. This course usually lasts between 6 and 9 months. On completion, you will have the opportunity to progress onto a Level 2 Apprenticeship.

Our Functional Skills qualifications are designed to be completed while you’re working towards certification in your chosen trade or industry.

These Level 1 and Level 2 courses will teach you to apply core skills to everyday work situations, which in turn will boost your employment potential and give you extra confidence in applying your Maths and English knowledge plus Digital and Employability skills at work and at home.

For those who have not yet achieved a GCSE in Maths or English, there’s no need to worry. At ACE Training, we are committed to helping you secure a recognised qualification in these fundamental subjects. If you received grade 1 or 2 in GCSE Maths and/or English, you will work towards a Functional Skills qualification in these subjects. Our focused sessions are delivered in small groups, ensuring personalised attention and an educational experience that is highly relevant to your specific trade.

If you received a grade 3 at GCSE Maths or English, our tutors will work with you in in small group sessions and set you up to retake your GCSE in these subjects when you are ready.

Cody's story

2nd year Carpentry Pre-Apprentice Cody knew from the age of 13 that he wanted to be a Carpenter. He joined ACE in 2022 and shares why he enjoys his time at the Centre and his future career aspirations.

I have never been the type to sit still well so it was clear quite early on that I would not be suited to a career that was desk based. I wanted to work in something hands on and decided in year 9 that Carpentry could be for me after speaking to a family friend who is in the trade. I initially joined another college and was there for a year but it wasn’t right for me. I joined ACE in September 2022.

For many reasons, firstly we have Sonia our Course Coordinator who is very easy to talk to and caring. She organises fun activities such as football games and laser tag and also coordinates the community work we get involved with. We also get help with travel to and from the training centre which is a huge deal for the students as you don’t have to stress about that.

You spend the majority of your time in a workshop with experienced tutors learning new skills and practising those. I really enjoy getting involved in the community projects. The projects are fun to be involved in but it’s also great experience for us all as it gives you a taste of real work and you have to use your communication skills to sort any challenges.

The tutors are all very supportive especially if you are willing to learn. This isn’t just in the workshops but in the class room too. Dave has been great with us in Functional skills, and the way he delivers the course really sets us in a good position for exams. It doesn’t feel like school which definitely helps us all!

To secure an apprenticeship and enjoy being on the tools and then stay in the industry and try to keep learning and improving my skills.

I definitely would! There is a great vibe in the workshop as ACE have created a good environment to learn in. We also do lots of additional stuff that’s fun that you learn from and all the team are welcoming and understanding. I would recommend anyone interested comes along to one of our open mornings and follows our social feeds as they give a real taste of what we are about.

Contact us to learn more

Got a question? Want to discuss your prospects with a member of our team? Fill out the form on the contact us page and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.