The Construction Industry Training Board have published a number of changes to their Site Safety Plus courses that they will be implementing from January 2018. Many of the changes are only relevant to training providers but we'd like to discuss some of the more important points for those booking onto these courses and those planning to run private in-house CITB courses.
So far, the revisions published to the scheme rules only affect the four primary Site Safety Plus courses:
- Health & Safety Awareness (HSA)
- Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS)
- Site Management Safety Training Scheme (SMSTS)
- Director's Role for Health and Safety (DRHS)
Main Changes to Site Safety Plus Scheme Rules
- Exam pass rates have been increased to 80% (20 out of 25).
- If a delegate fails the written exam, they can resit it the same day, as long as a different exam paper is used.
- Minimum attendance numbers have been reduced to four delegates (three delegates for the HSA and DRHS one-day courses).
HSA Course Changes
- Exam papers now include three safety critical questions which need to be answered correctly to pass the exam.
- Course content covering mental health awareness.
- Course content covering environmental awareness.
SSSTS Course Changes
- Exam papers now include four safety critical questions which need to be answered correctly to pass the exam.
- New exam questions go beyond the traditional 20 multiple-choice questions, including image and written questions.
- New scenario-based case study exercise including a method statement and risk assessment which will be assessed by the trainer.
- Course content covering stress and mental health awareness.
- Course content covering environmental issues.
SMSTS Course Changes
- Exam papers now include five safety critical questions which need to be answered correctly to pass the exam.
- Exam papers now include 20 multiple-choice questions and five written questions.
- Course content covering stress and mental health awareness.
DRHS Course Changes
- A two-part scenario exercise has been introduced that will be assessed by the trainer.
- Each delegate will take away a bespoke action plan and skills matrix, specific to their business, to improve their own site safety.
- A new CITB publication will be given to all delegates attending the course.
- Revised and updated exam papers.
