Emergency First Aid at Work + Life-Threatening Bleeding
Emergency First Aid at Work with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control delivered at your workplace. One full day. The complete EFAW qualification plus hands-on training in tourniquet use, wound packing, and improvised bleeding control for the emergencies that are most deadly.
| QUALIFICATION: Emergency First Aid at Work with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control | ||
| DURATION: 1 full day / 6 learning hours | DELIVERY: Face-to-face only | GROUP SIZE: Max 12 learners |
| CERTIFICATE: Accredited EFAW with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control | VALIDITY: 3 years / Annual refresher recommended | AWARDING BODIES: Worksafe / FAIB / Nuco |
| Meets Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 and HSE Approved Code of Practice L74. All content reflects the Resuscitation Council UK 2025 Resuscitation Guidelines and First Aid Guidelines 2025 | ||
Course Overview
Most workplace first aid training prepares people for the most likely emergencies. This course prepares them for the emergencies that are most deadly.
Life-threatening bleeding is not common. But when it happens, the window for effective intervention is measured in minutes, not hours. Uncontrolled haemorrhage is one of the leading causes of preventable death following traumatic injury in the UK. The actions taken in the first few minutes, before any ambulance arrives, determine whether someone survives.
Emergency First Aid at Work with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control gives learners everything covered in a standard EFAW qualification, including CPR, AED use, choking, and casualty management, plus a dedicated, practical extension covering the recognition and control of life-threatening bleeding. Learners practise with real tourniquets and haemostatic dressings, work through simulated wound packing scenarios, and learn what to do when none of that equipment is available. The course reflects the Resuscitation Council UK 2025 Resuscitation Guidelines and the First Aid Guidelines 2025, and aligns with the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 and the HSE Approved Code of Practice L74.
Course Details
- Duration: 1 full day (6 learning hours)
- Delivery: Face-to-face only, at your workplace or chosen venue
- Certificate: Accredited Emergency First Aid at Work with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control
- Awarding organisations: Worksafe, FAIB, Nuco
- Validity: 3 years. Annual refresher strongly recommended.
- Group size: Maximum 12 learners per trainer
Who This Course Is For
This course is right for any organisation where staff may encounter a medical emergency or a serious bleeding incident, which includes far more workplaces than most employers realise.
- Construction, manufacturing, engineering, and warehousing environments where machinery and tool injuries carry serious haemorrhage risk
- Security teams, door staff, and event personnel working in public-facing high-risk settings
- Schools, colleges, and education providers have a duty of care for large numbers of people
- Healthcare and social care staff who may encounter serious injury or trauma
- Offices, retail, hospitality, and professional services where workplace or public incidents can occur without warning
- Remote, lone, and mobile workers who may be first on scene without immediate backup
- Anyone appointed as a workplace first aider or emergency responder whose role requires them to act when something serious happens
No previous first aid experience is required. Learners who need the standard EFAW without the bleeding extension should see our Emergency First Aid at Work course instead.
Not sure which is right for your team? Get in touch, and we’ll help you work it out before you commit.
The Legal Requirement
Under the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981, every UK employer has a legal duty to make adequate and appropriate first aid provision for their employees. The HSE Approved Code of Practice L74 sets out how employers meet that duty. It requires a first aid needs assessment to determine the right level of provision, and this course meets the L74 standard, where a one-day qualification that includes life-threatening bleeding control is the appropriate outcome of that assessment.
The Resuscitation Council UK 2025 First Aid Guidelines reflect the current evidence base on life-threatening bleeding control in a first aid context. They are clear that early intervention, including the appropriate use of tourniquets and wound packing where equipment is available, and effective improvisation where it is not, significantly improves survival outcomes. The most important bleeding control tool is knowledge of what to do, not the equipment you happen to have with you.
Online-only first aid training does not meet the legal requirement. Practical competencies must be physically assessed. For further details on what the HSE expects, see our Workplace First Aid UK Guide.
What the Day Covers
All content reflects the Resuscitation Council UK 2025 Resuscitation Guidelines and First Aid Guidelines 2025, and current HSE guidance throughout. The day covers two integrated modules:
Life-Threatening Bleeding Control
- What life-threatening bleeding is, why it is dangerous, and how quickly it becomes fatal without intervention
- The body’s response to blood loss: understanding shock and why early action matters
- Direct pressure: correct technique, body weight application, and how long to hold
- Haemostatic dressings: what they are, how they work, and when to use them
- Tourniquet application: safe and appropriate use, evidence behind the technique, and common misconceptions
- Simulated wound packing: when it is indicated and how it is performed
- Improvised bleeding control: using clothing, belts, and other available materials when no equipment is present
- Monitoring a casualty with life-threatening bleeding and handing over to emergency services
Emergency First Aid at Work
- Emergency action planning and scene safety
- The role and responsibilities of the workplace first aider
- Primary survey and casualty assessment
- Cardiac arrest versus heart attack: recognition and response
- CPR technique and AED use, including correct defibrillator pad placement
- Choking: partial and complete obstruction in adults
- Severe bleeding and shock
- Seizures, sudden illness, burns, scalds, and anaphylaxis
- Minor workplace injuries
- Post-incident responsibilities and documentation
Every course is also built to include your industry-specific common risks and your organisation’s incident reporting systems as standard.
How the Course Is Delivered
This course is delivered face-to-face only. That is not a preference. It is a requirement. The HSE is clear that practical first aid competencies must be physically assessed. And for life-threatening bleeding control specifically, the difference between knowing a technique and being able to apply it under pressure is built through practice, not through watching a video.
Groups are capped at 12 to ensure every learner gets sufficient hands-on time. Every session is built around your working environment, your sector’s risks, and your internal reporting procedures. We also design each course to incorporate your specific workplace hazards, your organisation’s layout, and the findings of your first aid needs assessment. If you haven’t carried out a needs assessment yet, we can guide you through what’s involved during the enquiry process.
Delivery includes:
- Hands-on practice with tourniquets and haemostatic dressings
- Simulated wound packing scenarios
- Improvised bleeding control exercises using non-specialist materials
- Hands-on CPR practice on training manikins with direct trainer feedback
- Practical AED training with training defibrillators
- Scenario-based learning covering life-threatening bleeding, cardiac arrest, choking, and other serious emergencies
- Individual assessment of practical competencies throughout the day
EFAW or EFAW with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control?
Both courses meet the requirements of the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981. The right choice depends on your first aid needs assessment.
Standard EFAW is appropriate for most lower-risk workplaces where the primary first aid risk is medical emergency rather than traumatic injury: offices, retail, hospitality, care settings, and similar environments.
EFAW with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control is the right choice where the risk profile includes a higher likelihood of traumatic injury and serious haemorrhage: construction, manufacturing, security, events, and any setting where machinery, tools, or physical conflict are factors. It is also appropriate where an employer simply wants their first aiders equipped to handle the most serious emergencies, wherever they occur.
We don’t make that determination for employers; the responsibility sits with you. But we do provide guidance throughout the enquiry process.
Certification and Validity
On completion, learners receive an accredited Emergency First Aid at Work with Life-Threatening Bleeding Control qualification, valid for 3 years, delivered through Worksafe, FAIB, or Nuco.
Annual refresher training is strongly recommended by the HSE. CPR technique and bleeding control skills both deteriorate without regular practice.
Our Basic Life Support and AED Training provides a focused annual skills update for qualified first aiders between full requalification cycles.
Why Organisations Book With Prima Cura
Most training providers arrive with a course. We arrive with yours.
Before the day, we gather information about your workplace: your incident reporting forms, your internal procedures, the specific hazards your team actually faces. On the day, your trainer works that into every scenario, every discussion, every practical exercise. If your staff work in a care home, they’re not practising on hypothetical office workers. If your team are lone workers, that context shapes how the session runs.
It means the training lands. Not because it was well-delivered in a generic sense, but because it was relevant to the people in the room and the situations they’ll actually encounter.
A few other things that matter to the organisations that book with us:
- 98.9% learner satisfaction across all Prima Cura courses
- All trainers hold Enhanced DBS certificates and maintain ongoing CPD
- We advise honestly on the qualification level at the enquiry stage. If a different course is a better fit for your workforce, we’ll say so before you book, not after
We respond to all enquiries within one working day.
Where We Deliver
We deliver in-house training at your workplace or chosen venue across Manchester, Greater Manchester, and the wider North West. We also deliver nationally across England, including North England, South England, London, and Surrey.
All sessions are led by experienced Prima Cura Training instructors. Groups are capped at 12 per trainer to protect the quality of hands-on learning.
Our associate network means we can deliver across England. You can meet the team on our Associates page.
FAQs
What is life-threatening bleeding?
Life-threatening bleeding, sometimes referred to as catastrophic haemorrhage, is severe blood loss that cannot be controlled quickly and can lead to shock or death within minutes if not treated. It may present as heavy, continuous bleeding, blood pooling on the floor, clothing becoming rapidly soaked, or bleeding from a major wound or traumatic injury. Recognising these signs early is critical, as immediate intervention significantly improves the chances of survival.
Do learners use real tourniquets and haemostatic dressings?
Yes. Learners handle and apply real tourniquets and haemostatic dressings during the session. They also work through simulated wound packing and practise improvised bleeding control using non-specialist materials. Hands-on practice is central to this course and is exactly what distinguishes it from awareness-level training. The physical experience of applying a tourniquet correctly, with the right tension and in the right location, is what builds the confidence to use one under pressure
What if there is no equipment available when a serious bleeding incident occurs?
This is one of the most important things this course addresses. Life-threatening bleeding does not wait for the right kit. This course teaches learners how to use whatever is available, including clothing and improvised pressure dressings, and builds the confidence to act effectively without specialist equipment. Knowing how to improvise is as important as knowing how to use a tourniquet.
Are tourniquets safe to use in a first aid emergency?
Yes, when used correctly. There are longstanding myths about tourniquet use that this course addresses directly. The evidence base, reflected in the Resuscitation Council UK 2025 First Aid Guidelines, is clear that appropriate tourniquet use in life-threatening limb bleeding saves lives, and the risk of serious harm from correct application is significantly lower than the risk of death from uncontrolled haemorrhage. This course teaches correct technique and gives learners the confidence to act.
Can this course be completed online?
No. The HSE is clear that practical first aid competencies must be physically assessed. Life-threatening bleeding control involves hands-on practice with equipment and simulated scenarios that cannot be assessed remotely. A certificate produced without hands-on practice does not meet the standard set by the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 or the Approved Code of Practice L74. We deliver across Greater Manchester, the wider North West, and nationally.
Further Reading
- Workplace First Aid UK Guide: The complete guide to first aid legal obligations, needs assessments, and qualification levels
- Why First Aid Courses Are Capped at 12 Learners: The evidence behind group size limits and what they mean for the quality of learning
- Resuscitation Council UK 2025 First Aid Guidelines: The current evidence base for life-threatening bleeding control and first aid in the UK
- HSE Approved Code of Practice L74 How employers meet their duty under the First Aid Regulations, including needs assessment
Related Courses
- Emergency First Aid at Work
- First Aid at Work (3-Day)
- Basic Life Support and AED Training
- Health and Safety Awareness
- Risk Assessing
Book or Enquire
Book your training or request a quote
Tell us your team size and your sector. We’ll come back with a quote, the right advice on qualification level, and a straight answer on whether this is the best course for your team.
We respond to all enquiries within one working day.
Our Commitment to Quality and Compliance
At Prima Cura Training, all courses reflect current UK guidance and best practice. All trainers are experienced professionals with relevant qualifications and ongoing CPD. Because many of the organisations we support work with vulnerable individuals, all trainers hold Enhanced DBS checks.
This course is reviewed against updates from the Resuscitation Council UK, the Health and Safety Executive, and current UK legislation, including the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 and the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. All content reflects the Resuscitation Council UK 2025 Resuscitation Guidelines and First Aid Guidelines 2025.
You can read more on our Quality Assurance and Compliance page.
Reviewed by Stephanie Austin – Owner & Lead Trainer, Prima Cura Training | 25+ years in health and social care | 15+ years as a trainer
Last reviewed: June 2026 | Next review: June 2027
This page is for general guidance only and reflects current UK health and safety legislation, HSE guidance, and Resuscitation Council UK 2025 guidelines at the date of review. It does not constitute clinical advice. Techniques taught, including tourniquet application and wound packing, are taught in a first aid context in line with the Resuscitation Council UK 2025 First Aid Guidelines and must only be applied in genuine first aid emergencies while awaiting professional medical assistance. Employers remain responsible for carrying out a first aid needs assessment and ensuring their first aid arrangements comply with the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 and the Approved Code of Practice L74..
