Qualsafe Level 3 Award | Three-Day Course

Develop the knowledge, practical competence and confidence required to manage a broad range of workplace injuries, illnesses and medical emergencies.

The Qualsafe Level 3 Award in First Aid at Work (RQF) is a comprehensive, regulated workplace first-aid qualification delivered over three days. It is designed for employees who are appointed to act as qualified first aiders, particularly in workplaces where a first-aid needs assessment identifies higher risks or the need for more extensive first-aid provision.

A First Aid at Work-qualified first aider can provide the emergency assistance covered by Emergency First Aid at Work while also responding to a wider range of specific injuries and illnesses. Employers should determine the appropriate level of training through their workplace first-aid needs assessment.

What You Will Learn

During the course, candidates learn how to:

• Understand the role and responsibilities of a workplace first aider

• Assess an emergency scene safely

• Protect themselves, the casualty and bystanders

• Carry out a structured casualty assessment

• Recognise and manage an unresponsive casualty

• Open and maintain the airway

• Perform effective adult cardiopulmonary resuscitation

• Use an automated external defibrillator safely

• Place a breathing casualty in the recovery position

• Recognise and manage choking

• Control minor and severe external bleeding

• Recognise and manage shock

• Respond appropriately to seizures

• Recognise and manage suspected spinal injuries

• Manage fractures, dislocations, sprains and strains

• Respond to head, chest and abdominal injuries

• Manage burns and scalds

• Respond to eye injuries

• Recognise poisoning and provide appropriate first aid

• Manage anaphylaxis and severe allergic reactions

• Recognise and respond to heart attacks

• Recognise and respond to strokes

• Manage asthma attacks

• Respond to diabetic emergencies

• Recognise and manage fainting

• Respond to hypothermia and heat-related illness

• Provide safe casualty monitoring and handover

• Record and report workplace incidents appropriately

Course Content

The Role of the First Aider

Candidates learn about:

• Responsibilities and limitations of a workplace first aider

• Maintaining personal and casualty safety

• Infection-prevention measures

• Consent and respectful casualty communication

• Prioritising treatment

• Contacting emergency services

• Accident reporting and record keeping

• First-aid equipment and workplace arrangements

Assessing an Emergency

Candidates practise a structured approach to:

• Identifying hazards

• Checking for danger

• Assessing responsiveness

• Opening the airway

• Checking breathing

• Identifying life-threatening conditions

• Calling for appropriate assistance

• Monitoring the casualty until help arrives

CPR and AED

Candidates develop practical competence in:

• Recognising cardiac arrest

• Performing high-quality chest compressions

• Delivering rescue breaths

• Minimising interruptions to CPR

• Preparing and operating an AED

• Positioning AED pads correctly

• Delivering a shock safely

• Resuming CPR promptly

• Following AED prompts until emergency help takes over

Unresponsive Casualty

Candidates learn how to:

• Manage an unresponsive breathing casualty

• Use the recovery position

• Protect the airway

• Monitor breathing continuously

• Respond to vomiting or regurgitation

• Recognise deterioration requiring CPR

Choking

Training covers:

• Recognition of mild and severe choking

• Encouraging effective coughing

• Back blows

• Abdominal thrusts

• Management of an unresponsive choking casualty

• Arranging appropriate medical follow-up

Bleeding, Wounds and Shock

Candidates practise:

• Applying direct pressure

• Using dressings safely

• Managing embedded objects

• Recognising life-threatening bleeding

• Preventing deterioration

• Recognising the signs and symptoms of shock

• Reassuring and monitoring the casualty

• Calling for urgent emergency assistance

Injuries to Bones, Muscles and Joints

Candidates learn how to recognise and manage:

• Fractures

• Dislocations

• Sprains

• Strains

• Suspected spinal injuries

• Head injuries

• Chest injuries

• Abdominal injuries

The course emphasises avoiding unnecessary movement and arranging appropriate emergency care.

Burns, Scalds and Eye Injuries

Training includes the immediate management of:

• Thermal burns

• Chemical burns

• Electrical burns

• Scalds

• Contamination of the eye

• Foreign objects in the eye

• Serious eye injuries

Medical Emergencies

Candidates learn to recognise and respond to common workplace medical emergencies, including:

• Heart attack

• Stroke

• Seizure

• Asthma attack

• Diabetic emergency

• Anaphylaxis

• Fainting

• Poisoning

• Heat exhaustion and heatstroke

• Hypothermia

Who Is This Course For?

This qualification may be suitable for:

• Employees appointed as workplace first aiders

• Construction and engineering staff

• Manufacturing and warehouse teams

• Care-home and healthcare support staff

• School and education employees

• Hospitality and retail teams

• Security personnel

• Sports and leisure staff

• Transport and logistics workers

• Office employees in larger organisations

• Supervisors and managers

• Employees working in higher-risk environments

• Self-employed professionals

• Volunteers with first-aid responsibilities

Employers are responsible for completing a workplace first-aid needs assessment and deciding whether the three-day First Aid at Work qualification is appropriate for their organisation.

Course Format

The course is normally delivered over a minimum of three days and combines instructor-led learning with practical training and assessment. HSE guidance permits delivery over a longer period, provided the full course is completed within the applicable timeframe.

The programme includes:

• Interactive classroom teaching

• Practical demonstrations

• Individual and group exercises

• CPR and AED practice

• Recovery-position practice

• Choking-management exercises

• Bleeding-control techniques

• Injury-management scenarios

• Medical-emergency scenarios

• Practical assessments

• Theory assessments

• Structured instructor feedback

Candidates must attend and participate fully on all three course days.

Assessment

Candidates are assessed throughout the course through practical demonstrations, ongoing observation and required theory assessments.

To successfully complete the qualification, candidates must demonstrate that they can:

• Assess incidents safely

• Prioritise casualty care

• Manage an unresponsive casualty

• Perform effective CPR

• Use an AED safely

• Manage choking

• Control bleeding

• Recognise and manage shock

• Respond appropriately to injuries

• Recognise and manage common medical emergencies

• Communicate effectively and arrange appropriate help

Booking and attendance do not automatically guarantee successful completion.

Certification

Successful candidates receive the Qualsafe Level 3 Award in First Aid at Work (RQF).

First Aid at Work certificates are valid for three years. Before the certificate expires, the first aider must complete an appropriate requalification course to obtain a new certificate. Once a certificate has expired, the individual is no longer regarded as currently competent to act as a workplace first aider for regulatory purposes.

Regular refresher training is recommended to help candidates maintain their practical skills, knowledge and confidence between formal qualifications.

First Aid at Work or Emergency First Aid at Work?

The one-day Emergency First Aid at Work course focuses on essential emergency response skills.

The three-day First Aid at Work course covers those emergency skills while providing broader training in the management of workplace injuries and medical conditions.

The appropriate qualification depends on factors such as:

• Workplace hazards

• Number of employees

• Accident history

• Distance from emergency medical services

• Working patterns and shifts

• Employees with particular health risks

• Members of the public present

• Lone or remote working

Why Train With PLAB Guide Training Centre?

PLAB Guide Training Centre provides professional, practical and supportive first-aid training at our Manchester centre.

Candidates benefit from:

• Qualified and experienced instructors

• Practical, scenario-based learning

• Modern CPR and AED training equipment

• Workplace-focused emergency simulations

• Structured instructor feedback

• A professional and inclusive learning environment

• Limited free on-site parking, plus free on-street parking nearby (first come, first served)

• Convenient access by road and public transport

• Individual and organisational booking options

Our aim is to ensure that successful candidates leave with the competence and confidence required to respond effectively to workplace injuries and medical emergencies.

Book First Aid at Work Training in Manchester

Gain a nationally regulated workplace first-aid qualification through comprehensive three-day training.

Book your Qualsafe Level 3 First Aid at Work course in Manchester with PLAB Guide Training Centre.

Individual bookings and private group courses are available for businesses, healthcare organisations, schools, care providers, construction companies and community organisations.

Paediatric First Aid: Blended Learning

Qualsafe Level 3 Award in Paediatric First Aid (RQF) | Online learning + one classroom day

This is the blended format of our full paediatric first aid course. You complete six hours of online learning first, then attend one classroom day at our Levenshulme centre for hands-on practice and all of your assessments. It leads to the same qualification as our two-day classroom course.

The Qualsafe Level 3 Award in Paediatric First Aid (RQF) is designed to meet the paediatric first aid training requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework in England. It suits nursery practitioners, childminders, nannies, early years staff, teaching assistants and anyone responsible for infants and children.

How blended learning works

• After you book, we enrol you on Qualsafe's online learning platform.
• You complete six hours of online learning there before your classroom day. You cannot attend the classroom day until it is finished.
• You must provide the evidence of completion we ask for before the classroom day.
• The classroom day covers practical skills and all of the assessments, which take place face to face.
• The online learning on its own does not lead to the qualification.
• Blended learning reduces the time you spend in the classroom, not the total training: the full course is still at least 12 hours.

What you will learn

• The role of the paediatric first aider, assessing an emergency and calling for help
• Infant and child CPR and safe use of an AED
• Choking, the unresponsive infant and child, seizures, bleeding and shock
• Fractures, sprains, and head and spinal injuries
• Asthma, allergic reactions, anaphylaxis, meningitis, febrile convulsions and hypoglycaemia
• Burns and scalds, electric shock, poisoning, extremes of temperature, and eye, ear and nose conditions

Assessment and certification

On your classroom day your trainer observes seven practical assessments, and you complete two multiple-choice theory papers. When you pass every assessment you receive the Qualsafe Level 3 Award in Paediatric First Aid (RQF), valid for three years. Qualsafe recommends annual refresher training.

Your classroom day

Classroom days run from 09:00 to 17:00 on the Wednesday after the first Friday of each month at PLAB Guide Training Centre, First Floor, 308 Moseley Road, Levenshulme, Manchester M19 2LH. The training rooms are on the first and second floors and can be reached by stairs only. Please contact us before booking if you have accessibility, learning-support or practical-assessment needs.

Bring photo ID in the same name as your booking, and wear comfortable clothing and flat shoes.

Price

£75 + VAT. The price includes access to the online learning, tuition, course reference materials, assessment and your Qualsafe certificate.

Prefer to learn everything in the classroom? Compare our two-day course. Booking for a team? Request a group booking.

Questions: firstaid@plabguide.co.uk, 0161 564 6162 or 07447 183842.