Foundation Engineering
Foundation Engineering is a two-year Entry Level to Level 1 work-related qualification for learners in Years 10 and 11 who want a practical introduction to engineering, with a route on to VCSE Engineering. Unit 1 covers the engineering sector, tools, processes and safety, and Unit 2 is hands-on workshop making by hand: marking out, sawing, filing, drilling and thread cutting to set tolerances. Both units are portfolios marked in the centre. Digital demand is low because there is no CAD, CAM or computer controlled machining. Digital work sits in recording measurements in tables or inspection sheets, planning the steps of a task, reading technical charts, and optional Unit 1 tasks such as web quests, blogs, vlogs and presentations. All portfolio evidence must be submitted digitally.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Entry Level and Level 1
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- Low
- 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 Evaluating and improving digital content
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Presenting engineering knowledge with digital tools
Unit 1 example tasks include drag-and-drop matching games, a blog on the impacts of engineering, a presentation, a vlog interview and an interactive timeline of health and safety legislation. Learners choose and use software to present what they know about engineering, its job roles and safe working.
DCF: Creating digital content, Evaluating and improving digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils make a three slide PowerPoint on workshop safety signs, with an image and a one line caption for each sign.
- Year 8
- Pupils build a drag and drop matching activity in PowerPoint or Forms that matches workshop tools to their uses, and test it on a partner.
- Year 9
- Pupils create a short blog post or recorded vlog explaining how one engineering product has changed daily life, with images, headings and a short video clip.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 1, example tasks, pages 23, 25 and 27
“the learner creates a blog with the main different types of impacts of engineering”
Progression step 3
I can use a range of software to select, produce and edit a range of multimedia components for a purpose, such as:
- text and images, e.g. format text (bold, underline, italics, highlight); insert and edit text boxes; columns; use refine tools (spellchecker, find and replace); word wrap; crop; alter size and shape; alter images; add effects; trim and split sound and video clips; transitions; onion skin
- presentation, e.g. page orientation; animations; transitions; remove and alter images; use background; use action buttons to create hyperlink; embed objects.
I can use software tools to enhance the outcomes for specific audiences.
I can ensure my output is appropriate for specific purposes.
Progression step 4
I can select and use a variety of appropriate software, tools and techniques to create, modify and combine multimedia components for a range of audiences and purposes, such as:
- text and images, e.g. explore and use effectively image manipulation techniques; explore and use appropriately the many aspects of document layout; use animation, video and audio effects such as echo, tempo, envelope, layering, frame rate, key frames
- presentation, e.g. use design tools; adapt themes and colours to suit the purpose; create master templates.
Good to know
- There is no examination. Both units are a "Portfolio of evidence" that is "Assessed in centre and moderated by WJEC" (Summary of assessment, page 5), and the tasks are teacher-set, with example tasks that "are not mandatory" (Section 2.1, page 9).
- All evidence goes to WJEC digitally: "All evidence must be submitted digitally." Paper work or physical evidence "should be scanned, photographed or filmed" (Section 3.3, page 47).
- The making is all by hand. Unit 2 asks learners to "Use a range of hand fitting methods to cut and shape" materials (Section 2.3.3, page 32), and the specification names no CAD, CAM, laser cutter, 3D printer or software package. Unit 1 has "no specific requirements for assessment" (page 12).
- Every digital Unit 1 activity, such as the web quest, blog, vlog, drag-and-drop games and interactive timeline, appears only in the example tasks (pages 23 to 27), so a centre can evidence the same outcomes on paper or orally.
- Evidence can be digital media: the list of evidence types includes "photographic evidence" and "video/audio recordings" (Section 3.3, page 47), and Entry 1 learners may need "use of symbols, or assistive technology" (Section 3.4, page 48).
- AI use is not mentioned. Work is supervised, "Learners must be supervised by a teacher while completing assessment activities." (Section 3.5, page 48), and malpractice rules apply (Section 3.8, page 50).
- Appendix A (page 57) maps nothing to Citizenship, maps Interacting and collaborating and Producing to Unit 2 planning (2.2.1) and recording outcomes (2.4.3), and maps Data and computational thinking to 1.3.1, 1.3.2 and every section of Unit 2.
Links with other qualifications
Foundation Engineering is the step below VCSE Engineering, which the specification names as a progression route. Both share marking out, hand fitting, measuring with vernier callipers and micrometers, planning a task with a risk assessment, checking work against tolerances and recording the results. VCSE Engineering steps these up digitally: CAD and CAM, laser cutting, 3D printing and CNC machining with machine settings, a scored risk assessment that suits a spreadsheet, inspection records judged against drawing tolerances, research into the engineering sector in Wales, and digital submission of every NEA unit. Measurement tables and reading technical charts also link with GCSE Design and Technology and GCSE Mathematics and Numeracy.
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).