LNF Cymru Literacy and numeracy for Wales

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Foundation Engineering

Foundation Engineering is a two-year Entry Level to Level 1 work-related qualification for learners in Years 10 and 11, leading on to VCSE Engineering. Literacy sits mostly in Unit 1, where learners name, outline, describe and explain engineering roles, tools, processes and safety rules through talks, presentations, short reports and matching tasks, and in Unit 2, where they read risk assessments, write a task plan, record results and report faults. Numeracy sits in the Unit 2 workshop: reading dimensions and angles on drawings, marking out, measuring with steel rules, vernier callipers and micrometers, and working to tolerances that tighten from plus or minus 2 mm at Entry 1 to plus or minus 0.8 mm at Level 1. There are no formulae or written tests.

Awarding body
WJEC
Level
Entry Level and Level 1
First taught
September 2027
Amount of literacy work
Medium
Amount of numeracy work
Medium
Specification
Open the specification
Next step up
VCSE Engineering, Level 1 and Level 2
How this qualification is assessed
  • Unit 1: Introduction to Engineering: Centre marked non-examination assessment, portfolio of evidence, maximum assessment time 9 hours (typically 7 to 9 hours), 36 guided learning hours, 48 points of the 112 qualification points, teacher-set tasks assessed in centre and moderated by WJEC, first available summer 2028
  • Unit 2: Producing a Product: Centre marked non-examination assessment, portfolio of evidence, maximum assessment time 21 hours (typically 19 to 21 hours), 84 guided learning hours, 64 points of the 112 qualification points, teacher-set practical workshop tasks assessed in centre and moderated by WJEC, first available summer 2029

Skills that use Strategic competence

  1. Marking out accurately with rules, squares and protractors

    Assessed: In coursework (non-examination assessment, NEA)

    Learners mark out bar stock, flat or sheet materials and round sections, by direct marking with instruments and with templates. They use dividers or trammels, protractors, punches, scribers, squares and steel rules or tape measures.

    Numeracy: Measurement, Angle, Strategic competence

    Getting pupils ready

    Year 7
    Pupils mark out a 60 mm by 40 mm rectangle on card with a steel rule and try square and check each side.
    Year 8
    Pupils mark out a plate with a 30 degree corner using a protractor and a 20 mm radius curve using dividers.
    Year 9
    Pupils mark out a metal plate from a drawing with hole centres, a chamfer and a radius, punching the hole centres and checking every size before cutting.
    Show the specification wording and the LNF statements

    Where it is in the specification: Unit 2, Section 2.3.2, page 31; Unit 2, LO2.3 example tasks, page 41

    “Use a range of marking out equipment including:”
    Progression step 3

    • I can read and interpret scales or divisions on a range of measuring instruments.

    • I can use angle as a measure of rotation.

    Progression step 4

    • I can measure and draw angles.

    • I can identify, measure or obtain required information to complete the task.

  2. Using technical data such as thread sizes and cutting speeds

    Assessed: In coursework (non-examination assessment, NEA)

    Learners interpret technical information including cutting speeds, thread sizes and tolerances from drawings and charts, and use it to complete making tasks. At Level 1 they use technical data such as thread specifications and tolerances to carry out a task or make a decision.

    Numeracy: Interpreting data, Strategic competence

    Getting pupils ready

    Year 7
    Pupils read a drill size chart to find which drill makes a 5 mm hole and which makes a 6.5 mm hole.
    Year 8
    Pupils use a tapping drill table to find the drill size needed before cutting an M6 thread and an M8 thread.
    Year 9
    Pupils use a cutting speed chart to choose drill speeds for mild steel and aluminium at two hole sizes, and explain the pattern they see in the chart.
    Show the specification wording and the LNF statements

    Where it is in the specification: Unit 2, Sections 2.1.2 and 2.1.3, page 30; Unit 2, LO2.1 example tasks, page 39

    “the learner uses technical data, such as thread specifications and tolerances”
    Progression step 3

    • I can extract and interpret information from an increasing range of diagrams, timetables and graphs (including pie charts).

    • I can identify, measure or obtain required information to complete the task.

    Progression step 4

    • I can interpret mathematical information; drawing inferences from graphs, diagrams and data, including discussion on limitations of data.

    • I can identify, measure or obtain required information to complete the task.

Good to know

Links with other qualifications

Foundation Engineering is the step below VCSE Engineering, which the specification names as a progression route. Both ask learners to read drawings, measure with vernier callipers and micrometers, work to tolerances, write a plan and risk assessment, record results and suggest improvements. VCSE Engineering steps these up with closer tolerances judged against full engineering drawings, unit conversions, area, volume and waste, spindle speed and Ohm's law calculations in a one hour written test, and reading a case study on an engineering project in Wales. The measuring and recording work also links with GCSE Mathematics and Numeracy and GCSE Design and Technology, and the talks and reports build on GCSE English Language and Literature skills.

Source: WJEC Entry Level/Level 1 Foundation Engineering specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027, for award from 2029 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).