PAT Testing Course
Southampton

The programme opens with a clear explanation of what Portable Appliance Testing actually is, why it exists, and how it sits within a broader programme of electrical safety management. Standard industry terminology is introduced here, so every term used later in the day is already familiar to you.

You will also be introduced to the full range of electrical equipment categories you are likely to encounter — portable, movable, hand-held, stationary, fixed and IT equipment — together with the equipment classes (Class I, Class II and Class III) that govern the level of protection each appliance provides against electric shock. Grasping these distinctions at the outset is vital, because the class and category of an appliance determine exactly which tests must be applied.

Competent testing starts with understanding the hazards being controlled. This module examines the ways in which electricity causes injury and death — electric shock, burns and fire — and identifies the conditions under which defective equipment becomes genuinely dangerous.

The module then maps out the legal landscape for electrical safety in the workplace. You will study the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) and related statutory duties. A key point addressed here is one that causes widespread confusion: there is no specific legal requirement to PAT test, but duty-holders are legally obliged to ensure electrical equipment is maintained in a safe condition, and inspection and testing is the recognised means of evidencing that. You will understand clearly who bears that duty and what meeting it looks like in day-to-day practice.

The visual inspection is the most powerful tool in the PAT process, catching the large majority of faults before a single meter lead is connected. You will learn how to conduct a thorough, formal visual inspection and how to spot the signs of damage, deterioration and misuse that mean an appliance must be taken out of service.

The module takes you inside the appliance itself: correct plug wiring to BS 1363, appropriate fuse selection, cable and flex condition, strain relief, and the integrity of casings and internal connections. You will also come to understand how an appliance's construction relates to its equipment class, and the important distinction between the routine user checks expected of all staff and the formal visual inspection that must be carried out by a competent person.

This is where the practical element of the day really comes into its own. Working with real PAT testing instruments in the learning zone, you will learn to set up and operate them safely and accurately. The module covers the range of instruments you will encounter in the field, from basic pass/fail units through to advanced models that log and download results.

You will practise connecting appliances correctly, understand why working with calibrated equipment matters, and develop the hands-on familiarity that only comes from repetition. By the close of this module, using a PAT tester will feel entirely natural.

This module walks you through the formal test sequence and shows you how to apply it to different types of appliance. You will cover all the core electrical tests — earth continuity testing, insulation resistance testing, lead and polarity checks, and functional checks — with clear explanation of what each test is actually measuring and what a result tells you.

You will learn precisely how the correct sequence of tests differs between Class I and Class II equipment, so you can always apply the right tests in the right order. Safe working practice is emphasised throughout, ensuring that every test you carry out is conducted properly as well as safely.

Results are only as useful as the decisions they inform. This module explains how to read your results against recognised acceptable limits, make a defensible pass/fail judgement, and respond correctly to a failed appliance. Correct labelling and the maintenance of clear, accurate records are covered in detail.

You will also learn how to set appropriate retest intervals for different items and environments. Following the risk-based methodology adopted in the current edition of the IET Code of Practice — which replaced fixed frequency tables with a more considered, evidence-led approach — you will learn to determine inspection and testing frequencies according to equipment type, operating environment, frequency of use and the people using it. Sound record-keeping and a well-maintained asset register are presented as the foundation of demonstrable compliance and due diligence.

The final module draws together everything covered during the day and places your skills firmly in their regulatory context. You will understand the distinction between statutory requirements — the law as it stands — and non-statutory guidance such as recognised codes of practice, and why both are important to a practising PAT tester.

Central to this module is the IET Code of Practice for In-Service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment, now in its 5th Edition. You will learn what the Code contains, how it supports and gives practical effect to the relevant legislation, and how to use it as your day-to-day reference. You will finish the course knowing exactly what competence means in this field, how to evidence due diligence, and how to carry out PAT testing to a professional, fully defensible standard.