Training for the Amateur Radio Licence at Cray Valley Radio Society
Cray Valley RS has been running amateur radio examination courses since 2006 with great success. During that time, we have achieved a high level of first time passes for our candidates.
The next course to be run by the Society will be a Full course on 2nd, 3rd, 9th, and 16th November 2024.
Within the UK, there are three types of amateur radio licence that can be obtained: the foundation licence, intermediate licence and the full licence. Each of these offers different privileges in a form of incentive licensing through which all new UK radio hams may progress to the full licence.
We believe that the high success rate achieved by candidates taking the Cray Valley RS course is down to the course format –
- Courses are run on a short number of weekends with the following structure:
- Foundation Licence course is on two Saturdays with the exam at the end of the second day
- Intermediate Licence course comprises two evening maths primer sessions lasting 90 minutes, followed by three successive Saturday training days with the exam at the end of the last day
- Full Licence course comprises two evening maths primer sessions lasting 90 minutes, a one-day Intermediate licence revision day followed by a further three full training days held on successive weekends, with the exam a week or so after the last training day.
- For each candidate we assign an experienced radio amateur to act as a one-to-one mentor, to assist with the education and to be a prime contact for any query that the candidate may have.
- Cray Valley RS has eight registered instructors led by Chris Whitmarsh G0FDZ. All course modules are taught by experienced club members and further members are on hand to answer questions, make the tea and generally facilitate a friendly and informative teaching environment.
- Our support for training candidates does not stop when the exam ends: we continue to support the candidates so they can get the maximum out of the hobby. As part of this ongoing support we offer training candidates who are not currently members 50 percent off their first year of club membership following completion of their first course with the club.
Should you wish to know more about the Cray Valley RS amateur radio training programme use the contact form and one of our members will contact you to explain the programme further.
The application form for all three courses can be found on this site here.
Course Fees
- Full licence course – £95.00, Cray Valley RS member: £85.00
Fees include RSGB exam registration & course refreshments – please bring a packed lunch.
Cray Valley RS is one of the founder members of the South East Tutors (SET) group of clubs set up to promote and provide fully taught amateur radio licence training courses in South East London and adjacent areas.
By helping coordinate and publicise courses at all levels, formats and timings run by individual member clubs we hope candidates will find it easier to find a suitable course or courses that meet their requirements.
The SET clubs are:
- Bromley & District Amateur Radio Society
- Cray Valley RS
- Crystal Palace Radio & Electronics Club
- Darenth Valley Radio Society
- Medway Amateur Receiving and Transmitting Society
- North Kent Radio Society
- West Kent Amateur Radio Society
Please feel free to get in touch using the contact form and we will let you know what courses are running in the area.