Three days. That is the answer, and most of the confusion comes from mixing FAW up with the one day emergency course.
The Short Version
- First Aid at Work is a three day course with a three year certificate.
- Emergency First Aid at Work is the one day option, around six hours, up to 12 delegates.
- Blended delivery puts the theory online and the practical at your venue, with no change to the qualification.
- Requalification is two days, but only if you book it before the certificate expires.
Aim2Aid Ltd delivers FAIB accredited first aid training with in-house trainers led by Rebecca Sullivan, never outsourced, at your own premises. Whether you need first aid at work or first aid at work services Milton Keynes, we cover the whole area.
Call 07771 680794 to check dates and get your team booked in.
How many days does it take to complete the First Aid at Work course?
The First Aid at Work course takes three days to complete, delivered as three consecutive days at your premises, and the certificate it awards is valid for three years. Emergency First Aid at Work is the shorter one day option, around six hours, so the two are often confused.
Ring Aim2Aid First Aid and Fire Safety Training on 07771 680794 and we will map the three days around your shift pattern.
Three days is the standard, and there is a reason for it
Three days is not padding. FAW covers everything the one day course covers, then adds the injuries and illnesses a workplace first aider is realistically going to meet: fractures, spinal injury, head injury, chest injuries, burns, poisoning, anaphylaxis, diabetic emergencies, seizures and eye injuries, on top of resuscitation, unresponsive casualties, choking, bleeding and shock. That volume of practical assessment does not compress into a day without cutting something a first aider needs.
Employers get this wrong in one direction most often. They book the shorter course because it costs less time, then a risk assessment shows a higher hazard environment, machinery, chemicals or working at height, and the certificate does not match the risk. Health and Safety Executive guidance is clear that your first aid provision follows your needs assessment, not your diary. Get the assessment right and the number of days answers itself.
Whether you need first aid at work or first aid at work in Reading, we cover the whole area, and the three day format runs the same wherever your staff are based.
What each of the three days actually contains
Day one is the emergency content: primary survey, CPR, defibrillator use, recovery position, choking, severe bleeding and shock. Day two moves into injuries, bones, joints, spinal and head trauma, burns and eye injuries. Day three covers medical conditions and secondary care, including asthma, anaphylaxis, diabetes, seizures and heart attack, and closes with assessment.
Assessment is continuous. Delegates are watched throughout, not tested cold at the end, and practical skills are signed off as they are demonstrated. Nobody sits an exam they were not prepared for on the day.
Delegates should come in clothing they can kneel and work in. Three days on manikins is physical, and the sessions are deliberately hands on rather than slide heavy. Our trainers are in-house, never outsourced, with Rebecca Sullivan leading them, and between them they hold over 50 years of combined experience across real workplaces.
Whether you need first aid at work or first aid at work in Windsor, we cover the whole area, and every session is delivered at your own premises rather than a training centre.
Blended delivery can shorten the time your team spends off the floor
Three days out for several staff is a genuine cost for a small team. Blended delivery is the option worth asking about: the theory element is completed online in delegates' own time, and the practical element is then delivered at your venue. The qualification, the FAIB accreditation and the three year certificate are unchanged. What changes is how much continuous classroom time your rota has to absorb.
Emergency First Aid at Work also runs blended: one day, around six hours, up to 12 delegates, three year certificate. If your needs assessment points to EFAW rather than FAW, that is the shape it takes, and our EFAW includes paediatric content at no extra cost, which matters if your workplace has children on site at any point.
Our first aid at work services are booked around your operation, including split groups so a site never runs uncovered. If you are searching for first aid training close to your own premises in Berkshire and surrounding areas, our trainers travel to you rather than the other way round.
Refreshers, expiry dates and keeping the three days from becoming three days again too soon
The certificate lasts three years. Requalification is a two day FAW Requalification course, taken before the certificate expires. Let it lapse and the shortcut goes with it: a lapsed first aider goes back through the full three days. Diary the expiry the week the certificate is issued, not the month it runs out.
HSE also recommends annual refresher training between qualifications, a short session to keep CPR and defibrillator skills sharp. It is not a legal requirement, but skills decay fast, and an hour a year is cheaper than a first aider who freezes.
- FAW: three days, three year certificate, for higher risk workplaces and larger sites.
- EFAW: one day, around six hours, up to 12 delegates, three year certificate.
- Requalification: two days, taken before expiry, not after.
- Blended: online theory plus practical at your venue, same accreditation, same certificate.
Numbers matter too. One trained first aider on a shift pattern is not cover, it is a single point of failure. Count holidays, nights and absence when you decide how many staff go through the three days.
Ring Aim2Aid First Aid and Fire Safety Training on 07771 680794 and we will map the three days around your shift pattern.