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 Licence course, starting with a Teams kickoff meeting on Wednesday 2 September 2026, culminating in an exam on Saturday 28 November
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.
The Foundation course is run every year in the spring, and each autumn the club alternates between running Intermediate and Full licence courses.
| Spring 2026 | Foundation |
| Autumn 2026 | Full |
| Spring 2027 | Foundation |
| Autumn 2027 | Intermediate |
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
- The Full Licence is the most demanding of the three levels, and our course format reflects that. Starting from Autumn 2026, we are introducing a new blended approach that combines guided self-study with face-to-face teaching, designed to give candidates the best possible preparation for the exam. See the Full Licence course page for further details.
- 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 a large pool of experienced instructors with many years’ experience. All course modules are taught by our 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 Foundation licence training candidates who are not currently members 50 percent off their first year of club membership.
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
- Foundation licence course – £65.00
- Intermediate licence course – £70.00
- Full licence course – £95.00
Fees include RSGB exam registration & course refreshments – please bring a packed lunch.