QCTO Firefighting Skills Programmes Finally Under Development

There is finally progress towards new QCTO firefighting skills programmes, including Basic Firefighter, Fire Warden and Evacuation Warden. In a letter dated 9 October 2026, the Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority (LGSETA) confirmed that it has received approval from the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO) to develop a new occupational qualification and several fire-related skills programmes.

This is particularly welcome news for private training providers offering workplace fire safety training. For several years, the industry has faced uncertainty about the development of QCTO skills programmes to replace the older SETA unit standard-based firefighting courses.

Which QCTO Firefighting Skills Programmes Are Being Developed?

LGSETA has confirmed that QCTO has approved the development of six fire-related skills programmes. These include several programmes directly relevant to workplace occupational health and safety (OHS).

The proposed skills programmes are:

1. Workplace Fire Safety Operative

2. Extinguisher User / Basic Firefighter

3. Fire Warden

4. Evacuation Warden

5. Fire Marshal

6. Evacuation Breathing Apparatus User

Of particular interest are the Extinguisher User / Basic Firefighter, Fire Warden and Evacuation Warden programmes. These are the types of short courses that many private training providers have historically offered to businesses, factories, offices, schools and other workplaces.

These are not yet registered and available QCTO skills programmes. The approval announced by LGSETA is approval to develop the programmes. 

Why This Matters to Workplace Fire Safety Training Providers

Workplace firefighting training is fundamentally different from training professional firefighters. Most businesses do not need employees who can perform the duties of municipal firefighters.

They need employees who understand workplace fire risks and can respond appropriately to an emergency. In short, they want to train employees to put out fires with a fire extinguisher and fire hose, and not a helicopter and the government. 

Fire and first aid training also go hand in hand, and QCTO has a very well-put-together set of first aid skills programmes. Fire is a logical next step. 

The proposed QCTO skills programmes could provide a much-needed replacement pathway for training providers currently relying on older SETA unit standards, 

Whether or not they will adequately serve the workplace training industry will depend on how the curricula are developed.

A Brief History: Why Has This Taken So Long?

For several years, there was uncertainty about which SETA should take responsibility for developing workplace firefighting skills programmes. Many stakeholders initially looked towards HWSETA because workplace fire safety is closely associated with occupational health and safety.

LGSETA was subsequently identified as the SETA responsible for taking the development process forward. This created some concern among industry stakeholders because workplace fire safety training serves a much broader market than local government fire and emergency services.

I previously contacted LGSETA on several occasions to request the development of a QCTO workplace firefighting skills programme. Other industry stakeholders also raised the need for suitable replacement programmes.

The issue was also raised during the development of QCTO occupational health and safety skills programmes through HWSETA. Fire safety repeatedly entered those discussions because it is such an integral part of workplace OHS.

I implore you to get involved!

Don’t Do It!!! Don’t Leave it to Everyone Else and Then Ask for Changes When the Programmes Go Live. 

Without meaningful input from the people who actually deliver these courses, we risk ending up with programmes that are unnecessarily large, impractical and poorly aligned with workplace needs.

Imagine a 40-credit Basic Fire Extinguisher course, complete with workplace experience modules, 8 hours of pre-assessment, and 10 hours of FISA exams, for something that should be a short, practical skills programme over 2-3 days. That is exactly the kind of outcome industry participation can help prevent.

Don’t assume someone else will take care of it. Get involved now, or prepare for the possibility of programmes that are simply unusable for the market they were supposed to serve.

Calling Professional Bodies

This call to get involved now extends to professional bodies. Do not wait until everyone has done the work, and then come in afterwards like a cat amongst the pigeons.

This is what HPCSA attempted to do with First Aid because the word “emergency” was in the curriculum titles. Professional bodies, if you have input, provide it now, do not halt entire industries from training for things like the word “fire” being in a fire program.

Not all professional bodies are created alike – those that are government sanctioned are the ones that absolutely must be involved now because they are the ones who QCTO and LGSETA will halt development for if there are any objections.  Object if you must – but do not do it after all the work is done!

Professional bodies that are not government sanctioned, please also assist.

Infographic for this article

How to Get Involved

LGSETA is hosting a virtual scoping and profiling session on Monday, 19 October 2026, from 09:30 to 16:00 via Microsoft Teams. Training providers, fire safety instructors, OHS practitioners, assessors, moderators, professional bodies and other interested stakeholders are encouraged to participate.

To request the meeting link and get involved, contact Sibulele Anathi Gungqisa, LGSETA Qualifications Development Practitioner, at SibuleleG@lgseta.org.za or 011 456 8579. Please also circulate this invitation to others in the industry. The more practical input received now, the better the chances of developing skills programmes that training providers can actually use.

For Monday 19 October:

https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/383194302925870?p=uNxRCvUHdDVROshyXK

Meeting ID: 383 194 302 925 870

Passcode: wb6BU9AY

If you missed this session contact Sibulele for info about the next session.