Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps Competition

The Refrigeration, Air Conditioning & Heat Pumps (RACHP) competition helps new talent develop confidence, knowledge and strong practical abilities in a rapidly growing engineering field. Competitors complete an online, one‑hour Entry Stage test focused on core knowledge before progressing to practical Regional Qualifiers and National Finals involving fault‑finding, fabrication, refrigerant handling and assembling high‑quality system components.

The skill reflects a vital UK industry supporting food safety, healthcare, data centres and sustainable heating and cooling.

Clear guidance, structured tasks and pre competition resources support all learning styles, including neurodivergent entrants, and financial support is available to remove participation barriers.

The competition assesses a blend of technical skills, knowledge and professional behaviours listed in skills you need to demonstrate.

The skills you need to demonstrate

Fault finding and diagnostics for control circuits finding and diagnostics for control circuits
Brazing, fabrication and pipework installation
Pressure testing, evacuation and refrigerant charging
Safe handling and recovery of refrigerants
Interpreting technical drawings and schematics
System operation and performance
Compliance with environmental and F-Gas legislation
Energy efficient and sustainable engineering practices
Safe working
Precision and attention to detail
Problem solving
Organisation and professionalism

Useful resources

Prepare for competition success

Our library of endorsed local skills competition briefs ‘benchmarking assessments’ helps prepare learners to build technical skills, productivity, and mindset competencies for national competition success, including employability progression pathways.

Paired with the benchmarking tracker, educators can record progress, identifying strengths and target areas for improvement. Together, they offer a reliable, standards-led framework, creating a sustainable model for skills development that supports educators to empower learners to be competition ready.

Access on the Learning Lab

Entry criteria

Competitors must be at least 16 years old.
Must be employed and either working toward or have completed a recognised RACHP qualification, within the last 12 months.
Must hold (or be due to hold before June 23rd) F‑Gas Category 1 certification.
Must have no more than 3 years industry experience, excluding apprenticeship duration.
Suitable for learners in “Second year” of level 2 and Level 3 apprentices, or equivalent qualification and competencies.
Competition format: Individual competition (not team‑based).
Number of entrants: No organisational cap, but we prioritise quality over quantity.

How it works

1. Register

Registrations open on Monday 2 March 2026, 9am and will close Friday 27 March 2026, midnight.

2. Entry Stage

Entry Stage will be released on Monday 2 March 2026 with a final deadline of Friday 24 April 2026.

3. National Qualifiers

Qualifiers will take place from Tuesday 23 June to Friday 26 June 2026 at InstallerSHOW, NEC Birmingham.

4. Announcement of finalists

Scores are quality assured and Finalists are announced

5. Training and development

To help finalists prepare ahead of the UK Final, we will provide relevant technical training and share mindset development techniques, to support them to remain focused on achieving success.

Prepare students and apprentices by engaging with our benchmarking resources to master their skills and mindset masterclasses to build confidence and resilience on the WorldSkills UK Learning Lab.

6. National Finals

The National Finals are scheduled to take place in Wales during the week commencing 16 November 2026.

7. Squad UK

Competitors who are age eligible and have achieved the benchmark score will be invited to opt into Squad UK for the WorldSkills 2028 cycle, subject to the skill progressing to the international competition cycle.