Skills for Work: Customer Service
Customer service is a Pearson Skills for Work unit about good customer service in work contexts such as retail, hospitality and public services, and the communication skills to put it into practice and deal with problems. It is one 20 hour unit that learners combine with others into a Pearson Skills for Work Award, Certificate or Diploma, achieved at one level from Entry 1 to Level 2. Literacy is the heart of the unit: learners name and explain customer service skills, Level 2 learners explain principles using linking words, and every level speaks and listens to customers in a role play or real activity. Numeracy demand is low, as no criterion asks for any calculation.
- Awarding body
- Pearson
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- High
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): One assessment criterion at each of Entry 1, Entry 2 and Entry 3: list familiar examples, outline basic skills, or identify simple skills and their purpose, and take part in a customer service activity, from a simple supported activity at Entry 1 to contributing to a role play or real activity at Entry 3. There are no mandatory evidence requirements; the centre sets and marks the assessment and Pearson quality assures it through standards verification. 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 and Level 2: One assessment criterion at each of Level 1 and Level 2: describe the importance of customer service in at least two work contexts and demonstrate at least three appropriate skills in practical situations (Level 1), or explain its principles across at least three contexts and deliver effective customer service, adapting to different situations and customer needs (Level 2). The centre sets and marks the assessment and Pearson quality assures it through standards verification. 20 guided learning hours.
Skills that use Clarity and vocabulary
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Naming customer service skills and their purpose
Entry 1 learners list familiar behaviours such as smiling, greeting and saying thank you, Entry 2 learners outline skills such as politeness and listening, and Entry 3 learners identify at least three practices and know their purpose. This builds the vocabulary of customer service and is required by the Entry assessment criteria.
Literacy: Vocabulary, spelling, grammar, Clarity and vocabulary
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils sort word cards such as greeting, patience, eye contact and listening into a customer service word bank and use three of them in sentences.
- Year 8
- Pupils watch a short clip of a shop assistant and write a list of the customer service skills they saw, saying what each one is for.
- Year 9
- Pupils write a glossary of eight customer service terms for new staff, giving a definition and a workplace example for each.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit SfW 12, assessment criteria Entry 1 to Entry 3, page 63; Essential information for assessment decisions, page 64
“outline simple customer service skills, such as politeness and listening”
Progression step 3
I can use varied, appropriate and precise vocabulary including area of learning and experience/discipline-specific words for different purposes.
I can express issues and ideas clearly using area of learning and experience/discipline-specific vocabulary and examples.
Progression step 4
I have experienced a range of area of learning and experience/discipline-specific and general academic vocabulary, and can use them in my own communication.
I have experienced a range of area of learning and experience/discipline-specific and general academic vocabulary, and can use them in my own communication.
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Speaking with customers in role play and real situations
Every level takes part in a customer service activity, from a simple supported activity at Entry 1 to contributing to a role play or real activity at Entry 3; Level 1 learners demonstrate at least three skills such as clear communication and helpfulness, and Level 2 learners deliver effective customer service. This is required by the assessment criteria and needs an observation record or similar evidence.
Literacy: Clarity and vocabulary, Collaborative talk
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils role play greeting a visitor at the school reception, practising a clear greeting, eye contact and a polite close.
- Year 8
- Pupils role play a café order in pairs, taking turns as customer and server, and get feedback from a third pupil on clarity and tone.
- Year 9
- Pupils serve real visitors at a school event such as a parents' evening refreshment stall, using a checklist of customer service skills they are observed against.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit SfW 12, assessment criteria, page 63; Essential information for assessment decisions, page 64; Levels of supervision and support, page 65
“demonstrate at least three appropriate customer service skills, e.g. clear communication,”
Progression step 3
I can speak clearly, recognising the appropriate language for different audiences and purposes, and varying my expression, vocabulary, tone and gestures to engage the audience.
I have experienced speaking with different people in a variety of authentic contexts.
Progression step 4
I can speak clearly, selecting and adapting my language appropriately for a range of audiences and purposes, conveying meaning effectively to the audience.
I have experienced speaking with different people in a variety of authentic contexts.
Good to know
- The unit is Unit SfW 12 and the unit summary lists it at 20 GLH (Unit summary, page 5), the same size as the WJEC Customer service unit.
- A unit counts once: "Learners can only achieve each unit once, at a single level" (Rules of Combination, page 6).
- The Level 2 guidance names a specific literacy feature: learners explain "by using words that link such as 'this means that', 'this results in' etc." (Essential information for assessment decisions, page 64).
- Spoken performance needs a record: "achievement cannot be inferred from performance", and evidence can include "observation records, witness testimony, and products of learners' work" (Assessment requirements, page 9).
- Pearson maps the unit to Languages, Literacy and Communication: "Expressing ourselves through languages is key to communication" (Statements of 'what matters' mapping, page 66).
- Pearson's Annexe C lists "income, profit" as numeracy links (page 120), but no assessment criterion asks for any number work, so numeracy is not mapped here.
- AI must be acknowledged: "If AI is used, the final submission must be in the learner's own words and reflect their own effort" (page 65).
- The Level 1 guidance contains a slip, "in least two different contexts" (page 64), which should read at least.
Links with other qualifications
Compared with the WJEC Customer service unit, which is also 20 GLH and rated high for literacy, Pearson's version has one assessment criterion per level and no separate criteria on teamwork or complaints, but asks Level 2 learners to explain principles with linking words across three contexts and to adapt to different customers. Speaking, listening and explaining in a work setting build the skills of GCSE English Language and Literature, and role play links with GCSE Drama. The unit links closely with the WJEC VCSE and Foundation in Retail and Customer Service, and Pearson's contexts of hospitality and public services link it to the WJEC VCSE in Hospitality and Catering and the VCSE in Public Services. GCSE Business covers why customer service matters.
Source: Pearson Entry Level 1 to Level 2 Skills for Work Award, Certificate and Diploma Qualifications specification, Issue 1, August 2026, Unit SfW 12: Customer service.