The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has created a family of courses within the Site Safety Plus scheme. These courses are well established, with the SMSTS course being the flagship as it is one of the most commonly attended CITB training courses. SMSTS is a five letter acronym which stands for Site Management Safety Training Scheme. Course prices for the 5 day SMSTS course typically average at around £590 per delegate however, there is variability and course prices may often be reduced to achieve the minimum number of delegates required to run the course.
Who is the SMSTS 5 Day Course Aimed at?
The five day SMSTS course is aimed at existing Site Managers, others involved with Site Management within the Construction Industry and those wishing to become Site Managers; for example, Site Supervisors or others in training to become Site Managers.Whilst this course is not mandatory for Site Managers working on construction sites in the UK, it is highly recommended for those who want to manage sites both competently and safely. The SMSTS qualification is also mandatory for those who want to work as Site Managers on sites for main contractors who are part of the United Kingdom Contractors Group (UKCG); this includes Costain, Skanska and other leading players within the construction industry.
SMSTS Course Structure and Overview
The five day SMSTS course is a tutor led, classroom based training course, which is run through a national network of CITB approved training providers. The course is either run as a public course at a venue provided by the training provider or can alternatively be run at a client’s own venue where there are sufficient delegates to justify a dedicated course. The scheme requires classroom sizes to have a minimum of 6 delegates and a maximum of 20 delegates. Most courses run in a single week over five consecutive working days however, there are also day release versions of the SMSTS course available.
The course content of the Site Management Safety Training Scheme includes:
- The legal background to safe site management and awareness of regulations.
- Safe set-up on site, CDM regulations, assessments of risk and raising method statements.
- Safety considerations in different operational scenarios including scaffolding and working at heights, demolition works, electrical works, excavations and confined spaces.
- Accident reporting and reporting requirements under the RIDDOR regulations.
- Maintaining a positive health and safety culture within the workplace, best practice and communications.
What are the SMSTS Course Outcomes?
To pass the SMSTS course delegates must:
- Complete all of the course days.
- Successfully interact with the class and pass exercises set during the course.
- Complete and pass a multiple choice assessment end of the course.
Candidates that successfully pass the course will achieve a certificate that is valid for 5 years.