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Concrete Sawing NVQ Level 2
Concrete Sawing NVQ Level 2
Wall saws, floor saws, hand saws — cutting structure without cutting what holds it up. Prove your sawing competence with a work-based NVQ assessed on your own jobs, on the typical route to the Blue Skilled Worker CSCS card. It costs £750 fixed with no VAT, typically takes 4–8 weeks with assessment carried out remotely or on site from your normal work — no exams, no classroom, and leads to the Blue Skilled Worker card.
Qualification Overview
Concrete sawyers make structural cuts to order: door and window openings with wall saws, slab cuts and trenches with floor saws, awkward corners by hand — through rebar, near services, sometimes with the cut piece weighing tonnes and needing a lifting plan of its own. This NVQ documents that specialist competence from the cutting work you already do.
A CTG assessor visits your jobs, watches real setup and cutting, and gathers photos, witness statements and professional discussion about temporary works checks, water and dust control and piece removal. No exams, no classroom — assessor visits are included as standard.
You achieve the GQA Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Specialist Concrete Occupations (Construction) — Concrete Drilling and Sawing (qualification code 603/4460/X) through the sawing pathway — the typical qualification route to the Blue Skilled Worker CSCS card.
Qualification Structure
Key information
| Full title | GQA Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Specialist Concrete Occupations (Construction) — Concrete Drilling and Sawing |
| Qualification code | 603/4460/X |
| Pathway | Concrete Sawing |
| Level | 2 |
| Awarding body | GQA |
| Price | £750 — fixed, no VAT |
| Typical completion | 4–8 weeks |
| Assessment | On-site evidence — no exams, no classroom |
| Typical CSCS route | Blue Skilled Worker |
What the Concrete Sawing pathway covers
The sawing pathway covers track/wall sawing, floor sawing and hand sawing in the workplace. Coring and diamond drilling is the separate Concrete Drilling NVQ pathway, and dual-trade operatives may suit the combined route on the parent page: Concrete Drilling and Sawing NVQ. We’ll register the pathway that matches your work.
Who this NVQ is for
Experienced sawing operatives with specialist cutting contractors on refurbishment, demolition and civils jobs. You should be working with minimal supervision. Typical evidence: confirming temporary works and permits before cutting structure, scanning and marking out, mounting track saws and setting cut depths, floor sawing to line with water suppression, controlling and removing cut sections with the lifting team, and blade inspection and changing.
Entry requirements
No formal entry qualifications. You must be sawing at work now, on jobs a CTG assessor can attend. Trainees should build experience first — the NVQ assesses existing competence.
CSCS card route
This Level 2 NVQ is the typical qualification for the Blue Skilled Worker CSCS card, together with the relevant CITB Health, Safety & Environment test. CSCS issues the card, not CTG. See our CSCS cards guide.
Units — mandatory and optional
You achieve the GQA Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Specialist Concrete Occupations (Construction) — Concrete Drilling and Sawing, qualification code 603/4460/X. The unit structure below comes from the official GQA specification — your assessor maps your day-to-day work to these units at enrolment.
Mandatory units
- Conforming to General Health, Safety and Welfare in the Workplace
- Conforming to Productive Working Practices in the Workplace
- Moving, Handling and Storing Resources in the Workplace
- Establishing Work Area Protection and Safety in the Workplace
Concrete Sawing pathway units
- Reshaping using Hand Sawing Techniques in the Workplace
- Forming Saw cuts in Structural Fabric Material in the Workplace
Do both drilling and sawing? A combined Concrete Drilling and Sawing pathway covers all three specialist units — tell us at enrolment.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the Concrete Sawing NVQ take?
Typically 4–8 weeks, following your cutting contractor’s job list.
Track saw, floor saw, ring saw — do all count?
Yes — evidence comes from the sawing methods you genuinely use; range across methods strengthens the portfolio.
Cutting structure sounds like temporary works — whose responsibility is assessed?
Your competence within the system: confirming the engineer’s approval exists before you cut, and executing the cut safely. The unit doesn’t make you the temporary works designer.
Drilling as well as sawing — which route?
The combined pathway exists for genuine dual-trade operatives — one call and we’ll register the honest fit.
Rated by the people we qualify
Live Google reviews from CTG candidates and employers across the UK. Read all 52 reviews.
Entry requirements
You are already doing the work day to day, as an employee or self-employed. There are no entry qualifications and no exams — you are assessed on the job you already do.
To start Level 2 qualification you need:
- A relevant job to be assessed in. This is a competence qualification, so you must have access to real work of the right type while you are registered. No workplace, no evidence.
- Proof of identity — a passport, driving licence or similar, as the awarding body requires.
- A National Insurance number, so we can obtain your Unique Learner Number.
- Enough English to explain your work to your assessor and to talk through your evidence.
- A device with a camera — a phone is fine. Evidence is photos and short videos of your own work, uploaded to your e-portfolio.
You do not need: any prior qualification, any classroom attendance, or to sit an exam. Assessment is entirely in your workplace via a remote e-portfolio, nationwide.
Tell us about any support need, disability or learning difficulty when you enrol and we will arrange reasonable adjustments — it does not affect whether you can take the qualification.
The awarding body sets the final entry criteria for each qualification. If you are not sure whether your current role gives you the right evidence, ask us before you book — we would rather tell you honestly than register you for something you cannot complete.
What card does this NVQ lead to?
Leads to the Blue CSCS Skilled Worker card
On completion you can apply for the Blue CSCS Skilled Worker card, proving competence in your trade.
Your NVQ pathway
- Level 2 Skilled
- Level 3 Advanced
- Level 4 Supervisor
- Level 5 Senior Supervisor
- Level 6 Manager
Your current qualification is highlighted. Progress up the pathway as your career develops.
How the e-portfolio assessment works
- Enrol and be assigned a dedicated occupational assessor.
- Gather workplace evidence — photos, videos, witness statements — via our online portal.
- Complete a professional discussion and observations against the 603/4460/X standards.
- Certification, then apply to CSCS for your card.