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The TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills (RQF) is an Ofqual-regulated qualification, number 601/7815/2, that teaches the core counselling skills used in helping relationships: active listening, reflecting, questioning, boundaries and endings, together with an introduction to counselling theory, ethics and diversity, and your own personal development. It is 16 credits, 120 guided learning hours and four mandatory units, assessed by a portfolio of written work and a recorded skills practice, with no exams and no placement. Study online with a named UK tutor in 3 to 6 months, from £39.99 a month after a 7-day free trial. It does not qualify you to practise as a counsellor; it is the recognised first step towards the Level 3 and Level 4 training that does.
This is the TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills, on the Ofqual register at Level 2. You learn to listen properly, to reflect and summarise, to ask questions that help rather than lead, and to hold boundaries and end conversations well, then practise those skills in recorded sessions that your tutor assesses. Alongside the skills you cover the three main counselling theories, the ethical framework and anti-discriminatory practice, and the self-awareness work that every counselling course begins with. There are no exams and no placement. Most learners finish in 3 to 6 months and use the certificate in care, support, education and voluntary roles, or as the first step towards Level 3 and the Level 4 practitioner training.
| Qualification | TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills (RQF) |
|---|---|
| Level | Level 2 |
| Awarding body | TQUK (Training Qualifications UK) |
| Qualification number | 601/7815/2 |
| Exams | Portfolio and recorded practice, no exams |
| Price | £39.99 a month, or £407.99 in total |
| Typical duration | 3 to 6 months |
| Age | 16 or over |
| Who it suits | Want to find out whether counselling is for you, with a regulated qualification at the end rather than a short course certificate |
Counselling skills are used in far more jobs than counselling. These are the two ends of the route: the helping roles that use the skills now, and the counsellor role that Level 4 training leads to.
Qualified counsellors hold a Level 4 or higher practice qualification with supervised placement hours and are usually registered with BACP, NCPS or UKCP. This Level 2 certificate is the first step on that route, not the practice qualification.
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No placement and no workplace. The skills units are assessed through recorded practice sessions in which a friend, family member or fellow learner plays the helpee, so you can complete the whole certificate from home.
Start with the short course if you want to try the skills first, or go straight to the regulated certificate. Level 3 and Level 4 come after it.
What counselling skills are and how to listen well, in about 4 hours. A CPD short course, not a qualification.
Level 2Level 2 Certificate in Counselling SkillsThe TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills (RQF): core skills, theory, ethics and self-awareness. 16 credits, no placement.
From £39.99/moFour mandatory units, taken in order. Each unit is assessed by written tasks, and the skills units by recorded practice as well. There are no optional units.
Why counselling training starts with you: your values, beliefs and motives for helping; the blocks to listening; giving and receiving feedback; your strengths and development needs; the support a helper needs, including supervision and self-care; and self-reflection. 4 credits, 30 guided learning hours.
The core skills in practice: active listening, attending, reflecting, paraphrasing, summarising, open questions and silence; the boundaries and objectives of a new helping relationship; using the skills, then discussing how effective they were; and ending a helping interaction well. The practical criterion is assessed by recorded practice sessions. 4 credits, 30 guided learning hours.
The key elements of psychodynamic, person-centred and cognitive behavioural theory, the differences between them, and how counselling theory underpins the use of counselling skills. 4 credits, 30 guided learning hours.
An ethical framework, such as the BACP Ethical Framework, and how it informs your own use of counselling skills; how people experience discrimination; the key legal aspects of anti-discriminatory practice; and how diversity affects, and is addressed in, counselling skills practice. 4 credits, 30 guided learning hours.
Portfolio of evidence: written tasks for each unit and recorded skills practice sessions in which you use the core counselling skills with a volunteer helpee. Internally set and marked by your named UK tutor, internally quality assured by Lift College and externally quality assured by TQUK. All learning outcomes must be met. Grading is pass only, and you resubmit at no extra cost until every criterion is met.
Work through the unit online with worked examples, recorded demonstrations and your named UK tutor on hand.
Use the skills in a recorded practice session with a volunteer helpee, then reflect on it in writing.
Marked in 5 to 7 working days. Pass or refer. Resubmit until every criterion is met. Your certificate is issued by TQUK.
Training Qualifications UK issues the certificate. Lift College teaches the course and TQUK awards it.
TQUK's stated goal: Be number one in technical education
certificates issued since 2013
qualifications across more than 20 sectors
employers use TQUK for apprenticeship assessment
Figures from tquk.org, September 2026. TQUK, Crossgate House, Sale, Manchester. Recognised by Ofqual, the qualifications regulator for England.
TQUK approves the centre, the tutors who assess you and the way the course is delivered before a single learner is registered.
An external quality assurer from TQUK samples assessed work from Lift College learners. Your result stands because TQUK has agreed it, not just your tutor.
Your certificate is printed by TQUK with a unique number. Any employer or university can confirm it is real on TQUK's certificate verification service. TQUK certificate verification
The same UK tutor supports you from enrolment through to your certificate.
Marked in 5 to 7 working days.
Your dashboard shows what you have completed and what comes next.
If a unit is referred, you resubmit at no extra cost until every criterion is met.
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DianeFunctional Skills English Level 2No. There are no formal entry requirements for the TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills, and you do not need any experience of counselling or a placement. You need to be 16 or over, and Level 1 literacy or equivalent is recommended because the units are assessed through written work and a recorded skills practice.
Yes. You study this Ofqual-regulated TQUK Level 2 certificate online with a named UK tutor. The skills units are assessed through practice sessions that you record at home with a volunteer helpee, so there is no placement, no classroom and no exam.
Yes. The TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills (RQF) is on the Ofqual register at Level 2, qualification number 601/7815/2. It is 16 credits, 120 guided learning hours and 160 hours total qualification time. Training Qualifications UK issues the certificate, and Lift College is a TQUK recognised centre.
Most learners take 3 to 6 months at 4 to 6 hours a week. The qualification is 120 guided learning hours across four units, there is no fixed timetable and no exam date, so you move on as soon as each assignment is marked.
No, and no Level 2 course does. Practising as a counsellor, and registering with BACP, NCPS or UKCP, needs a Level 4 or higher practitioner qualification with supervised placement hours. The Level 2 certificate is the recognised first step on that route: it comes before a Level 3 counselling skills or studies certificate and then the Level 4 diploma. It also stands on its own as trained listening and helping skills for care, support, education and voluntary roles.
This page is for the TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills (RQF), on the Ofqual register at Level 2 (601/7815/2). Employers in care, support, housing, education and the voluntary sector recognise it as evidence of trained listening and helping skills. It does not qualify you to practise as a counsellor: counselling posts and BACP, NCPS or UKCP registration need a Level 4 or higher practitioner qualification with supervised placement hours. Each employer decides what a post needs.
One price covers the full qualification: all four units, a named UK tutor, marking in 5 to 7 working days, AI Study Support, your TQUK registration and your TQUK certificate. There is nothing extra to pay.
The default is a free 7-day trial with your first payment on day 8. If you would rather start now, you pay today instead and every payment is 15% lower for as long as you study. Your 14-day money-back guarantee still applies: change your mind for any reason within 14 days and we refund the full payment.
You need to be 16 or over. No formal entry requirements. TQUK recommends a minimum of Level 1 literacy and numeracy or equivalent, because the units are assessed through written work and a recorded skills practice. Minimum age 16. You do not need a placement, a client or any experience of counselling.
An enhanced DBS check is normally arranged by your employer or placement setting. Your setting may require you to be 18 for an enhanced DBS check or lone working.
Yes. Annual billing saves 15%: £407.99 for the year instead of £39.99 a month. The 7-day free trial and 14-day money back apply either way.
Training Qualifications UK (TQUK) issues the certificate. Lift College is a TQUK recognised centre.
TQUK allows the practical criterion in Using Counselling Skills to be met through roleplay or simulation. You record practice sessions in which you use the core counselling skills with a volunteer helpee: a friend, family member or fellow learner talking about a real but low-risk topic of their choosing. You upload the recording with a written reflection on how effective the skills were, and your tutor assesses it against the unit criteria. A phone or webcam that records video and sound is all you need.
TQUK names the Level 3 Certificate in Counselling Skills as the progression route. After Level 3 comes a Level 4 diploma in counselling, which includes supervised placement hours and is the first qualification that lets you practise. Some learners go on to a Level 5 diploma or a degree. Each step is its own qualification.
Yes. The TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills (601/7815/2) is the same regulated qualification whether it is taught in a college classroom or online with Lift College. The certificate is issued by TQUK either way.
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