City and Guilds 0039-33 Felling and Processing Medium Trees, 380mm to 760mm: what the handbook says

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. The pages used are the City and Guilds NPTC handbook for the award and the 2026 City and Guilds list. The award is the middle of the three tree-size steps in the City and Guilds felling ladder, between small trees up to 380mm and large trees over 760mm. The guide on chainsaw and tree work tickets by country carries its number in a table. This page reports the handbook.

At a glance

Item	What the official source says
Awarding body	City and Guilds, under the NPTC name
Title	Level 3 Certificate of Competence in Felling and Processing Medium Trees Over 380mm and up to 760mm
City and Guilds number	0039-33
Ofqual number	603/7646/6
Guided learning hours	24, with a total qualification time of 28 (handbook version 1.5, March 2025)
Age	16 or over
Grading	Met or not met
Status in the 2026 list	Open to certification, registration expiry December 31, 2027, certification expiry December 31, 2030

What the handbook says it covers

The handbook says the award is for people who fell and process medium size trees over 380mm and up to 760mm as part of work in arboriculture, forestry or other industries. It lists the content as hazards, risks, controls, emergency procedures, legislation, industry good practice, and felling and processing trees in that size band.

The unit text, number 304, points to two industry guides for the felling and windblown content: the Forest Industry Safety Accord guidance and the Forestry Commission technical guide on winching operations in forestry. It names the conditions that can change the felling method: double stems, hanging branches, long limbs, cavities, backward weighted trees and standing stems. For each one it lists assisted or mechanical felling as an option, and it states a safe working distance of two tree lengths. The unit also lists the site preparation items, pre-start checks on the saw and the preparing of trees for felling.

Entry requirements

The handbook says candidates must hold 0039-20 and 0039-21, or equivalent versions, and meet the minimum age of 16. The handbook names the Level 3 award for large trees over 760mm, 0039-34, as a next step. The handbooks for 0039-34 and 0039-35 list 0039-33 as an entry requirement.

Assessment

The handbook describes one assessment type: a one to one practical assessment with oral questioning by an approved City and Guilds NPTC assessor. Grading is met or not met. The handbook says assessments should take no longer than 1.5 to 3 hours. Candidates have to finish within 24 months of the date of initial registration, and the handbook says registration is valid for two years. The assessor has to hold a current First Aid at Work certificate, according to the unit text.

Refresher and renewal

The Health and Safety Executive leaflet Chainsaws at work (INDG317) says all chainsaw operators should do regular refresher or update training. It suggests every two to three years for occasional users and every five years for full-time users. FISA's training guide 805, updated August 2025, says INDG317 recommends three to five years. It gives its own recommendation of recorded refresher or update training at least every five years for most machinery work, chainsaw and aerial tree work included. The two documents word the interval differently, and both are recommendations.

City and Guilds runs a CPD module for this award, 0041-14, Level 3 CPD Module in Felling and Processing Medium Trees over 380mm and up to 760mm, Ofqual number 610/6061/6. The 2026 list shows it open to certification, with registration expiry January 8, 2027 and certification expiry January 8, 2030. The NPTC page for the CPD modules says they are for qualified operators who hold the matching certificate of competence.

The handbook for this award gives no expiry period for the certificate. Its two-year figure is the length of a registration to take the assessment.

Old codes

The City and Guilds NPTC factsheet lists a single older award for trees over 380mm, the Level 3 Award in Felling and Processing Trees Over 380mm (0021-01 and 0021-11, Ofqual number 600/6163/7, 19 guided learning hours), with the code CS32. The 2026 list has no row for those two numbers. It has separate rows for 0039-33 (380mm to 760mm) and 0039-34 (over 760mm). No page read states that either 0039 award replaces the older one. See old NPTC chainsaw codes and the awards that replaced them.

The Lantra Awards award

Lantra Awards has a single Level 3 Award in Felling and Processing Trees over 380mm, Ofqual number 600/5704/X, with no size split. Its specification gives 21 guided learning hours, a total qualification time of 32, and names the Level 2 felling award as the prerequisite.

Contains public sector information published by the Health and Safety Executive and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.