Locksmith Guilds

[Nick656]

Gents,
I am after advice about which Locksmith Guild to join. I know it's a must for buisness. I would prefer to join a free guild if any of you Guru's could point me in the right direction.
Cheers

Nick

[EmCee]

Hi Nick

Who told you it was a 'must' for business? There is no requirement that you have to belong to a 'guild' - nor any other legal requirements come to that - in order to be a locksmith in the UK. If you join a locksmith association it might give potential customers more confidence, but to be honest it's a pretty mixed bag.

There are several 'associations', which are regarded with greater or lesser favour by practising locksmiths. I don't think any are free to join (why would they be, when you think about it), and the more highly regarded ones have certain criteria that must be met, including examinations and proof of trading over a period, before you can use your membership of the association for any advertising.

Cheers..

[Nick656]

EmCee,
Hi, I have been lead to belive that if you stand a chance of getting work from estate agents, Police, Baliffs etc it is advisable to join a guild. I can see the sense in this as it would prove that,
A, your credible
B, your qualified
However thanks for replying to the post

Nick

[amlwchlocksmiths]

EmCee,
Hi, I have been lead to belive that if you stand a chance of getting work from estate agents, Police, Baliffs etc it is advisable to join a guild. I can see the sense in this as it would prove that,
A, your credible
B, your qualified
However thanks for replying to the post

Nick

hi i own my own bussiness in the uk,i dont belong to anything i know what im doing,iv got insureance and im not paying anyone.as far as i know,its the work you have done and word of mouth that gives you the best bussiness

[Nick656]

amlwchlocksmiths,

Thanks for the reply.

Nick

[79commando]

Don't be taken in by anyone telling you that it is beneficial to be a member of any Guild etc. Most are knocked up by someone in their bedroom as a means to make money and convince people to do their training. As has been said many times over on forums there are no recognised qualifications in locksmithing in the UK regardless what the brochures tell you. City and Guilds is a Mickey Mouse certificate and only good if you run out of toilet paper.

If a customer is locked out they just want in. They don't hold interviews to see who is the most qualified etc. Most estate agents etc have their own contracts and use their own tradesmen. Where it is not a large company they tend to use local tradesmen that they have had on their books for years. The Police are not allowed to use any Locksmiths or recommend any Locksmith they use a third party currently Boing who if you pay them they will put you on the books.

Speak to your resettlement office and don't take any bull from them. Ask for names of those that they have recommended locksmith courses to and find out how many are still trading after a year as the market is saturated. From experience they bang you on a course wish you well then tick the box to say they have successfully trained someone. Nothing about the course being no good or the individual not having a hope in hell of making a living as there's already 50 locksmiths, joiners, glaziers, maintenance companies and general handymen offering the same service in their area.

Do your homework before parting with your cash on a course. Just because they are recommended by the ressettlement mob doesn't mean it's any good. And don't go on any course that sells a qualification, 24hr help line and promises of earning £1000 per week and working your own hours.

[Nick656]

Don't be taken in by anyone telling you that it is beneficial to be a member of any Guild etc. Most are knocked up by someone in their bedroom as a means to make money and convince people to do their training. As has been said many times over on forums there are no recognised qualifications in locksmithing in the UK regardless what the brochures tell you. City and Guilds is a Mickey Mouse certificate and only good if you run out of toilet paper.

If a customer is locked out they just want in. They don't hold interviews to see who is the most qualified etc. Most estate agents etc have their own contracts and use their own tradesmen. Where it is not a large company they tend to use local tradesmen that they have had on their books for years. The Police are not allowed to use any Locksmiths or recommend any Locksmith they use a third party currently Boing who if you pay them they will put you on the books.

Speak to your resettlement office and don't take any bull from them. Ask for names of those that they have recommended locksmith courses to and find out how many are still trading after a year as the market is saturated. From experience they bang you on a course wish you well then tick the box to say they have successfully trained someone. Nothing about the course being no good or the individual not having a hope in hell of making a living as there's already 50 locksmiths, joiners, glaziers, maintenance companies and general handymen offering the same service in their area.

Do your homework before parting with your cash on a course. Just because they are recommended by the ressettlement mob doesn't mean it's any good. And don't go on any course that sells a qualification, 24hr help line and promises of earning £1000 per week and working your own hours.

79COMMANDO,thanks for the reply. I have looked into it and researched it massively (after getting ripped off by Anvil and getting my City and Guilds after 2 days)
I got retrained by A1 Safe and Secure in Hereford and a NCFE qualification after 3 weeks. Course content and standard of instruction was great as is the back up if i get a problem. I have recently completed a 2 day UPVC window and door fitting course also with A1 to also give me another string to my bow.
I release that it will be a struggle when l leave but am confident that i can make a decent wage.

Thanks for the advice

[79commando]

A1 Safe are one of the better ones. Anvil as you say speaks for itself. A very good move getting into the UPVC side as the locksmith trade has changed vastly in the last 5 years over here. You will probably find very little call for gain entries nowadays as that side of the market is swamped with Nationals and you'll never beat them for advertising budget.

Most established guys make their money doing upgrades and repairs so a good understanding of the mechanics of locking systems and joinery skills is a must. You will find it an uphill struggle in todays amrket as every street corner has a budding locksmith and if they don't get the work they can always set up a training school.

Do a google search of locksmiths, maintenance guys, glaziers, joiners etc in the area that you are looking to settle in as some of the lads that have done the ressettlement courses are lucky to receive 2 jobs per week. You will find that the majority of new starts are ex forces that rely on their pension to tide them by.