How do I get a CSCS green card? STOP!!! CSCS HAVE SUSPENDED RECOGNITION OF ALL ONLINE OR ELEARNING COURSES FROM FRIDAY 12 MARCH 2017. DO NOT USE AN ONLINE OR ELEARNING COURSE TO TRY AND APPLY FOR A CSCS CARD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
This is a question we are often asked here at Commodious, along with how much will it cost? And how long will it take? So, we will attempt to answer these 3 questions here.
First, we should state who and what CSCS are and why they introduced the ‘new’ CSCS labourers green card (and other coloured cards for different occupations).
The prime objective of the CSCS is to keep a data base confirming that individuals working on construction sites have the required training and qualifications for the type of work they carry out. CSCS or Construction Skills Certification Scheme was set up in the 1990s by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). The CITB is a Government sponsored organisation that works with construction companies to help improve construction skills and improve the safety record of the industry.
More information about CSCS cards is available on CSCS web site
The CRO (Construction Related Occupation) card was introduced by CSCS in 2005 and was intended for those occupations for which there were no nationally recognised qualifications and more than 300,000 CRO cards have since been issued. However in July 2014 the ‘new’ green CSCS Labourer card was introduced that required a Level 1 Award qualification and replaced the ‘old’ CRS green card which did not require any qualification. Immediately CRO card applications ‘rocketed’. It was obvious that many workers were using the CRO card as the quickest way to access construction sites because no qualifications were required and only the CITB Health, Safety and Environment test needed to be passed to get a card. This was not the intention, the introduction of the Green CSCS Labourer card was meant to improve training and safety standards not create a by-pass and so from 1st October 2015 new measures were introduced to scrap the CRO card.
So all CRO cards issued from 1st October 2015 will expire on 30th September 2017 and are not renewable.
CSCS will stop issuing CRO cards from 31st March 2017.
Existing CRO cards issued before 1st October 2015 that expire after 30th September 2017 will remain valid until their expiry date.
From now on anybody applying for a CRO type card, will be checked by CSCS to see if their occupation is covered by a nationally recognised construction related qualification and whether they hold that qualification. On submission of the necessary evidence CRO cardholders who have the required qualifications for their occupation will be issued with the appropriate skilled card. Different colours will be used for the different occupations.
To find the correct card for you, you can use the card finder tool on the CSCS website. Put your current occupation and it will show you which qualifications are accepted and the correct CSCS card to apply for.
So, to summarise, CSCS are withdrawing the CRO card because it is not ‘fit for purpose’ and labourers and site operatives will usually need a Green CSCS labourers card to gain access to construction sites.
So, how do you apply for and get a Green CSCS labourers card?
As we have already seen, you must have a Qualification equivalent to a Level 1 Award in Health and Safety in a Construction Environment or an IOSH Working Safely Certificate passed in the last 3 years. See the CSCS web site page for confirmation.
This is a screen shot of the CSCS web site more details are available here
The really great thing about the IOSH working safely certificate is that it is so much more than just a route to getting a CSCS green card. It is a qualification in its own right that anybody can be proud of achieving. IOSH operate in over 99 countries worldwide and as such the IOSH working safely certificate is internationally recognised. So gaining your IOSH working safely certificate and qualification with us at Commodious is fantastic value – not only will it help get your CSCS Green card it is also a good thing to have on your CV anyway and it looks good
What else is good about doing the IOSH Working Safely course with us at Commodious? If you check out the CSCS web site and other sites offering Level 1 Awards in Health and Safety in a Construction Environment, a typical price is £125 or more + VAT and you have to take a day off work as they are classroom based – our cost is just £65 + VAT and it is all done online. You do the course and the assessment all in your own time and at your own pace. Our pass rate is over 99% - and we let you have 2 attempts for free, and if there has been any problems with the internet or other stuff beyond your control; we will re-set the course and assessment for free. So, no worries about wasting your money. We are a recommended, registered and approved supplier of online and e-learning courses by IOSH and are listed on their web site for the provision of the IOSH Working Safely Course. We have helped more than 300 people get their IOSH Working Safely Certificates in the last few months and the majority of these also then successfully applied for their CSCS green cards – we can do ‘rush job’ applications for IOSH working safely certificates and CSCS cards and have an agreement with IOSH whereby they will send an e-mail rather than wait for the certificate to be printed and posted. CSCS have also agreed with us that this is satisfactory for them as proof and they will issue the green card as soon as the e-mail is received. The quickest we have ever done this is 2 working days!!! Most other course providers and training organisations take up to 3 or 4 weeks! So, not only are we the best value for money we are by far the quickest.
Screen shot of IOSH web site showing Commodious as leading provider of e-learning online provider of IOSH Working Safely Course more details here
The course and the assessment are all done Online, which means that you can work at your own pace and in your own time. You can also break off from the course and return to where you were or start again, you have up to 3 months before you must take the assessment. The assessment must be done in one go and takes less than 30 minutes. Currently our pass rate is 100% and should you fail the assessment remember you get an extra attempt for free.
So to get your CSCS green labourers card the standard process is as follows:
1 Purchase the course Online, 24/7, you will immediately receive log in details to start the course and a confirmation e-mail that we have started the enrolment process.
2 Enrol yourself and get started as soon as you want, our system will enrol you with IOSH and you will receive another e-mail informing you of this.
3 IOSH will process your application within 5 working days (sometimes less) and we will pay your IOSH registration fees. You will receive another e-mail confirming this has occurred.
4 You pass the assessment (can be the same day you enrolled) your results are sent automatically to IOSH you receive an e-mail informing you that this has been done and instructions of what to do if you need your IOSH certificate urgently for CSCS.
5 IOSH process your results within 5 working days (sometimes less).
6 IOSH print your certificate and send it on to us for forwarding to you to the address you have given us when you enrolled. We send you a pdf copy by e-mail as soon as we receive the certificate and then post it on to you. This usually takes 10 working days from when you passed the assessment - probably the fastest of any Online or e-learning provider.
We are often asked how long the course takes, there is no definite answer to this, if you have NEVER done any sort of health, safety or environmental awareness training then allow 6 hours to do the course. Remember you can break off whenever you want, the system will ask you when you log back in if you want to carry on from where you were or start again. If you have already done compliance training and health and safety training then it will probably take less than 2 hours including the assessment, the average time taken by most of our candidates is 2 hours 30mins.
Once you have your IOSH working safely certificate, then you can contact CSCS. You must also have passed their CITB Health, Safety and Environment Operatives Test this costs £19.50 and can be booked at a centre convenient to you. The CSCS green Labourers card is valid for 5 years and costs £30. Here is a helpful video guide to the application process:
So lets recap all this into easy stages.
- Bricklayers and labourers will all need the new CSCS green labourers card to access housebuilding and construction sites as the CRO card is phased out.
- Do the IOSH working safely online e-learning course and get your Level 1 Award in Health and Safety in a construction environment and gain your IOSH working safely qualification. Buy it now for £65 + VAT and save more than £60 on other types of course plus do it in your own time without having to go to a classroom.
- Book and pay your £19.50 for the CITB Health, Safety and Environment Operatives Test more details here.
- Contact CSCS pay them £30 and get your green card.