The Requirements for the S.C.A.UK

The GMLUK's S.C.A.UK membership scheme offers an all-inclusive health and safety, insurance regulations, legal and business ethics solution designed to meet our unique needs as locksmiths who the public can trust. By becoming a S.C.A.UK member during your training, you gain access to professional advice, training courses in both business, locksmith and regulations in home and business insurance, fire rated law, consumer law and more along with regular updates on regulation and changes to the UK law.

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Our aim is to help your locksmith business build and maintain high standard, putting you in a strong position to gain accreditations like Safe Contractor Approved membership once you complete the training program and pass the final exams.

We are doing everything we can to protect the public and to make it harder for rogue locksmiths to operate in the UK. We only work with locksmiths willing to go through our S.C.A.UK checking and validation procedures. If you are undertaking a locksmith course with an accredited LTTA training school or instructor then they will include this in their business package. 

Once all the legal documents are verified for the locksmith and business and we undertake appropriate background checks, such as DBS etc and meet the S.C.A.UK’s and the GMLUK’s strict criteria ensures you can make a more informed choice, reducing your risk of using a scam locksmith.

Each locksmith that has gone through a LTTA accredited training facility or instructor will have also undertaken a full 15 week business management program that covers everything from health and safety, Data Protection to home and insurance regulations along with many other training courses in accounting and bookkeeping, customer care and safe marketing to risk assessment and so on. As part of their locksmith training they will have studied and trained for 36 weeks which is the longest in the UK for time under training. Each member will have a level 4 GMLUK award which is assessed by examination and tests. They will meet our criteria to be able to carry a GMLUK badge and once they have been background checked and have all the relevant insurances in place along with their training accreditation they will then receive the S.C.A.UK badge which you the public can trust.

As part of the Terms & Conditions of becoming part of the S.C.A.UK, all members agree to our code of conduct and criteria.

S.C.A.UK Criteria: 

• You must have undergone BMTA (Business Management Training Award) course through one of our LTTA accredited trainers. Which is all of the courses required in the program, such as health and safety, risk assessment training, customer care, marketing training and have the correct policies and procedures in place for your business along with business insurance, public liability insurance cover and be DBS /CRB background checked which needs to be verified and checked before they can train as a locksmith. The business must also be registered with the company's house and have the correct Data Protection in place and have been fully trained in DPA. All of this and much more is carried out during the BMT 15 week program.

• To achieve the S.C.A.UK badge each locksmith has undergone a detailed verification – verifying both their identity and trading address, insurance and certification of insurance.

• They are fully trained in consumer law and how it applies to contracts made in your home or on your doorstep for quoted work.

• They are fully insured, to industrial and legal standards – verified by the relevant documents from the insurance provider.

• Have up to date professional qualifications and accreditations – verified by relevant documents and our own records. The only people that can carry the S.C.A.UK badge will have gone through their entire training process under the GMLUK advisory and LTTA trainer. 

• We check their reviews to make sure that they are meeting a high standard, that they are not paying for reviews in any way. We will also contact the reviewers to make sure the locksmith meets our ethics and practices. 

• They are willing to be checked by our Business Ombudsman who will carry out checks or complaints into S.C.A.UK registered locksmiths.

• We also work with a 3rd party company with over 40 years of service in the door and window industry. If there has been a complaint against a locksmith's work and S.C.A.UK badge holder then we will pay to have the 3rd party investigator look into the work that has been carried out and assess the issue and further action will be taken if needed. 

• Each badge holder understands the weight that this badge now carries. To be able to earn it takes time, takes training and study. It's not just a case of handing over some documents to be checked, vetted and signing some terms and conditions and paying a fee. It's about education and earning the right to hold this badge and certification for completion of the S.C.A.UK award. It's a badge and award that is earned and the locksmith has to undertake multiple exams.