Maths

Are employers asking for qualifications you don't have? If you need a maths qualification to improve your CV or boost your confidence, our nationally recognised maths qualifications from City & Guilds are a great way to show you can apply your maths skills in a practical way. Brushing up on your maths skills will help you to:

  • calculate sums
  • keep on top of a budget
  • manage your time
  • use tables and charts

We'll help you gain the essential skills you need to solve number problems easily at work and at home, and get a qualification too.

Is this qualification right for you?

We offer qualifications at entry level 3, level 1 and level 2. You can do different sized qualifications at each level, depending on your learning needs. Here's a simple guide to our different levels of qualifications. But don't worry, we're here to help advise which qualification is best for you before you begin.

Before you start, we'll check which level you should be working towards. We'll also see what skills you already have in the different areas of the qualification, so you don't cover what you already know.

How will you learn?

You will complete your qualification in a learndirect centre with face to face support from our friendly centre staff. Once you have got started you can also carry on your learning at home or wherever you have internet access

Your tutor will be there to give you advice, and you'll have regular progress reviews to keep you on track. For each course, you'll do tasks and activities to show how you can apply your new skills, and build up a folder of your learning work.

Getting your qualification

The great thing about our maths qualifications is that there's no test! Once you've finished all your courses and completed your tasks and activities, your work will be reviewed by City & Guilds to gain your qualification.

How much will it cost?

Thanks to Government funding your courses and qualification could be free. We'll confirm this with you before you start.

What do you learn?

We'll put together the right courses from each area to suit your needs and the type of qualification you want to gain. Depending on the level, type and size of qualification you're working towards, you'll do a variety of online courses, along with some paper tasks too. Your maths qualification could be made up of the following subject areas:

Whole numbers

A lack of everyday maths skills can really hold you back. This area of your maths qualification takes you back to basics by working with whole numbers - a great first step to number confidence. You'll learn:

  • how to write numbers down and put them in the right order
  • simple sums like adding and subtracting
  • how to work with negative numbers
  • how to multiply and divide larger numbers
  • what things like ratios, factors and prime numbers are

Fractions, decimals and percentages

Sharing the bill at an office party, dividing work equally between your team, or working out a 20% discount in the sales - all these use parts of numbers like fractions and percentages. We'll give you confidence to make your numbers add up. You'll learn how to:

  • find quarters, halves, fractions and percentages of amounts, measurements and shapes
  • convert between fractions, percentages and decimals
  • understand and work out probability in percentages
  • estimate answers and use rounding
  • collect, organise and represent data in charts
  • work out percentages using a calculator

Shape and space

If you work with plans and diagrams, a good understanding of space and shape will make the task easier. Shape skills can help with everything from using space effectively when you're packing, to stacking shelves or planning a new room layout. In this part of your maths qualification, you'll learn about:

  • different types of shapes and how to identify them
  • describing where something is
  • creating a bird's eye or plan view
  • how to combine these views together to create a 3D object

Common measure

We all need to measure things every day. From organising your office space, working with money, keeping track of time to measuring food for a recipe, you could learn how to:

  • measure length, width, height and distance in metres and centimetres
  • measure weight and temperature
  • measure capacity, perimeter, area and volume
  • keep track of money and time
  • work with different types of money, budgeting, banking and financial records

Handling data

If you need to read data from bar charts, tables or maps, or get information from a timetable, we can help you develop skills to understand and use data, and create data displays of your own. You'll learn how to:

  • read a recipe, timetables and information about the weather
  • read and use a simple spreadsheet
  • use data to plan visits, journeys and make appointments
  • use information in lists, tables, plans, diagrams, maps, charts, scales and speedometers
  • understand and calculate averages, mean, range and probability
  • work out the probability of combined or independent events

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In order to study to become a nurse, I needed to achieve my maths level 2 qualification. I did all my learning online, and had a fantastic tutor who was available at the end of a phone if I needed him.

Richard Slater
56
Halesowen

Getting started

To get started please contact your local learndirectcentre.

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  • Meet other learners and make new friends

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