The three units of competency that describe the skills required for manual tree felling are being revised to remove barriers to training while still supporting the need for safety and competence of learners. 

The draft units have been updated following a thorough review of all feedback received at the broad consultation phase of this project. The final draft units and User Guide are now available for validation and comment. 

The units specify the number of trees a learner is required to fell with a chainsaw at a basic, intermediate and advanced level. The final drafts of the units retain the number of trees proposed at Broad Consultation, with three for the basic, four for the intermediate and six for the advanced.  Further adjustments have been made to support the safety and competence of learners, including:

  • The skill statement in the Application section of each unit has been revised to provide greater clarity and relevance to the prior skills and experience required at basic, intermediate, and advanced levels.
  • The phrase ‘a minimum of’ has been included before the specified number of trees in the Performance Evidence, to allow assessors the flexibility to evaluate competency on more trees as necessary.
  • The User Guide has been updated to recommend documented evidence and rationale for decisions around a learner’s competence. 
  • New criteria has been added to the advanced unit regarding tree types to demonstrate skill at an advanced level.
  • Changes to the basic and intermediate units requiring learners to demonstrate additional skills required for tree felling.

You can provide validation and comment on the final draft units on the project page

Register for an online information session

You are welcome to register for one of two online information sessions, at which we will offer further details about updates to the units following feedback from broad consultations, how to provide validation input and what’s next as we move towards finalisation stages. 

Friday 8 DecemberMonday 11 December