EFAW, FAW, PFA: What the Training Acronyms Actually Mean
Workplace training runs on initials. What each one means, which qualification is which, and the three pairs that cause the most expensive confusion.
Enquire about this training
Tell us what you need and we will come back with dates and a price.
Or call 0845 838 4643
Quick answer
EFAW stands for Emergency First Aid at Work, the one-day qualification. FAW is First Aid at Work, the three-day one. PFA is Paediatric First Aid and EPFA its shorter emergency version. Workplace training runs on initials, and the ones below are the ones you will actually meet on a quote, a certificate or an inspection report, each with what it means and whether it matters to you.
First aid qualifications
| Initials | Stands for | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| EFAW | Emergency First Aid at Work | The one-day course, six contact hours, certificate valid three years. Suits lower-hazard workplaces |
| FAW | First Aid at Work | The three-day course, eighteen contact hours, also three years. For higher-hazard workplaces and anyone with overall charge of first aid |
| FAW-R or FAW Requal | First Aid at Work Requalification | The two-day renewal, twelve hours, open to people whose certificate has not long expired |
| PFA | Paediatric First Aid | The full twelve-hour course the Early Years framework requires, taught with the trainer physically present |
| EPFA | Emergency Paediatric First Aid | Roughly half of PFA, covering the immediate life-threatening emergencies only. Not interchangeable with the full course |
| MHFA | Mental Health First Aid | The two-day course that qualifies someone as a Mental Health First Aider, awarded by MHFA England |
| AP | Appointed Person | Not a qualification. Someone who takes charge of first aid arrangements and calls the ambulance. Needs no training, which surprises people |
Which of the first two you need is not a budget decision. It comes out of your first aid needs assessment, and we compare them directly in First Aid at Work: one day or three?
Clinical initials
| Initials | Stands for | What it means in practice |
|---|---|---|
| CPR | Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation | Chest compressions and rescue breaths. In adults compressions come first; in children five rescue breaths come first |
| AED | Automated External Defibrillator | A device that analyses the heart’s rhythm and will only shock one that needs it. No qualification is needed to use one |
| BLS | Basic Life Support | The core sequence of recognising an arrest, calling for help, compressions, breaths and a defibrillator |
| PBLS | Paediatric Basic Life Support | The same for infants and children, where the ratio is 15:2 if you are trained in it and 30:2 if not |
| ABCDE | Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure | The assessment order Resuscitation Council UK’s 2025 guidance uses to structure what you look at first |
| ROSC | Return of Spontaneous Circulation | The heart restarting. You will hear it from paramedics rather than use it yourself |
| RCUK | Resuscitation Council UK | The body that publishes the UK resuscitation guidelines. The current set is the 2025 guidelines |
Health and safety initials
| Initials | Stands for | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| HSE | Health and Safety Executive | The regulator. Note that HSE stopped approving first aid training providers in 2013, so nobody is “HSE approved” |
| HSWA | Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 | The parent legislation, source of the duty to provide information, instruction, training and supervision |
| MHSWR | Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 | Where the duty to make a suitable and sufficient risk assessment comes from, written down at five or more employees |
| COSHH | Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 | Prevent exposure to hazardous substances, or adequately control it where prevention is not reasonably practicable |
| MHOR | Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 | Avoid hazardous manual handling where reasonably practicable, assess what you cannot avoid, reduce the risk |
| RIDDOR | Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 | What you must report to HSE, and when. Specified injuries, over-seven-day absences and dangerous occurrences |
| PUWER | Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 | Equipment must be suitable, maintained, and people must have adequate instruction. It is why providing a defibrillator carries duties |
| PPE | Personal Protective Equipment | The last resort in any control hierarchy, not the first answer |
| DSE | Display Screen Equipment | The regulations behind workstation assessments for regular screen users |
| SDS | Safety Data Sheet | The document a supplier provides on a hazardous substance. The starting point for a COSHH assessment, not the assessment itself |
Food safety initials
| Initials | Stands for | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| HACCP | Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point | Every food business must have permanent procedures based on these principles. A duty on the business, not on individual staff |
| SFBB | Safer Food, Better Business | The Food Standards Agency’s free pack that lets smaller caterers meet the HACCP duty without building a system from scratch |
| FSA | Food Standards Agency | The regulator for food safety in England, Wales and Northern Ireland |
| FHRS | Food Hygiene Rating Scheme | The 5-to-0 rating. Inspectors assess food handling, the condition of the premises, and how you manage food safety |
| EHO | Environmental Health Officer | The local authority officer who inspects and gives you that rating |
| CCP | Critical Control Point | A step in your process where control is essential to prevent a hazard. Cooking temperature is the classic one |
Whether you need a certificate at all is a more interesting question than most providers admit, and we answer it in do I need a Level 2 food hygiene certificate?
Qualifications and awarding initials
| Initials | Stands for | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| AO | Awarding Organisation | The body that awards a qualification. A training centre is approved by an AO; it cannot accredit itself |
| RQF | Regulated Qualifications Framework | The framework regulated qualifications sit on in England, which is what “Level 2” and “Level 3” refer to |
| Ofqual | Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation | The regulator that recognises awarding organisations in England |
| EYFS | Early Years Foundation Stage | The framework that sets paediatric first aid requirements for early years settings |
| IOSH | Institution of Occupational Safety and Health | A professional body that also issues its own well-known safety certificates |
| CIEH | Chartered Institute of Environmental Health | A professional body. It surrendered its recognition as a regulated awarding organisation in 2017, so a CIEH certificate is not a regulated qualification |
The three that cause the most confusion
EFAW against FAW. One day against three. People assume the shorter one is a cut-down version for small businesses, but the decision is about the injuries you could reasonably expect, not the size of the company. A two-person engineering workshop may well need FAW while a hundred-desk office needs EFAW.
PFA against EPFA. These are not a long and short version of the same thing for the purposes of the Early Years framework. If a certificate is being relied on to count someone in required ratios, the full twelve-hour course is the safe answer.
What the law actually requires of an employer, rather than what the initials mean, is set out in workplace first aid requirements.
Appointed Person against first aider. An appointed person needs no training at all. They take charge of the arrangements and call for help. Treating that role as a cheap substitute for a trained first aider is one of the commonest ways a workplace ends up under-provided.
Frequently asked questions
What does EFAW stand for?
Emergency First Aid at Work. It is the one-day workplace first aid qualification, six contact hours, with a certificate valid for three years.
What does FAW stand for?
First Aid at Work. The three-day qualification, eighteen contact hours, certificate valid three years. It covers a much wider range of injuries and illnesses than EFAW and includes an individual practical assessment.
What is the difference between EFAW and FAW?
Six hours against eighteen. FAW adds spinal and head injuries, poisoning, asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, heart conditions, fractures and amputations. Which you need comes out of your first aid needs assessment rather than your budget.
What does PFA stand for?
Paediatric First Aid, the full twelve-hour course the Early Years Foundation Stage framework requires. EPFA is Emergency Paediatric First Aid, roughly half the length and covering immediate emergencies only.
What does AED stand for?
Automated External Defibrillator. It analyses the heart’s rhythm and will not deliver a shock to a rhythm that does not need one, so no qualification is required to use one.
What does COSHH stand for?
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health, from the 2002 regulations of that name. The duty is to prevent exposure to hazardous substances, or adequately control it where prevention is not reasonably practicable.
What does HACCP stand for?
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point. Every food business must have permanent procedures based on HACCP principles, which is a duty on the business rather than on individual food handlers.
What does RIDDOR stand for?
The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013. It sets out which workplace incidents must be reported to HSE and within what time.
What does MHFA stand for?
Mental Health First Aid. The two-day course qualifies someone as a Mental Health First Aider and is awarded by MHFA England. There is no law requiring one.
What is an appointed person?
Someone who takes charge of first aid arrangements and calls the emergency services. It is not a qualification and requires no training, which is exactly why it should not be treated as a substitute for a trained first aider.
Does 'HSE approved' mean anything?
No. HSE stopped approving first aid training providers in October 2013. Checking that a provider is competent is the employer’s own responsibility, and it takes about ten minutes.
If you have a quote in front of you with initials on it and you are not sure what you are being sold, read it out to us on 0845 838 4643. We will tell you what it is and whether you need it.
Book this training for your team
At your own premises across Greater Manchester and the North West, open course places in Bolton, or online.