Which CITB course should I do?

Life is jam packed full of choices these days! Muesli or a fry up for breakfast, cup of coffee or a pint after work? Choice is great, but making the right choice can be a tough decision, especially if that choice costs you money! For example, picking the right CITB course can improve your employment prospects. But how do you decide which is the best one for you?

With such a range available, ensuring you have picked the right CITB course can be a little tricky, but fear not, by reading on, the decision may become a lot clearer.

The key eight CITB courses are as follows: Site Management Safety Training Scheme (SMSTS) , SMSTS refresher, Site Supervisors Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS), the new SSSTS refresher, ABC - Achieving Behavioral Change, Health and Safety Awareness, Site Safety for Shopfitter and Interior Contractors, and Plant Manager Safety Training Scheme (PMSTS).

The CITB course to chose if you are responsible for the management of plant workers and the standards of maintenance carried out on plant machines is the PMSTS course. This five day course is similar in structure to the SMSTS course and includes; training on UK legislation, assessing risk, working with electricity and in confined spaces, at heights and with demolitions. The course is assessed via a short test at the end of the five days, with passing delegates receiving the PMSTS qualification. As it is one of the rarer CITB courses, it may be useful to use an online search facility to locate one in an area near you.

For those construction workers who are not in supervisory or management positions the ABC CITB course or the Health and Safety Awareness course are fantastic options. Both one day courses, costing less than £200 + VAT, are designed as introduction to health and safety within construction. While the ABC course is aimed at improving health and safety by promoting a conscientious attitude, the Health and Safety Awareness course outlines the basic premises of good practice.

The most well known and popular of the CITB courses are the SMSTS and SSSTS course.

The SSSTS is the shorter course running over just two days. Attendees usually include team and gang leaders and site supervisors. The course is designed to deliver knowledge of current UK legislation to the delegates, ensuring they are aware of their responsibilities on site. A development in the SSSTS course is that the CITB will be introducing a refresher in the near future. This means delegates will be able to renew their knowledge without having to complete the full SSSTS course again!


The CITB course that site managers most frequently choose is the SMSTS course. The course is flexible and can be delivered over a day a week, or in a consecutive block, meaning it is very easy to fit in around work and personal schedules. The course addresses how to manage as well as what the responsibilities of a site manager are. The course is teaches what to be aware of when working in dangerous situations such as working at heights, demolition and confined spaces. The SMSTS course also trains managers in how to perform risk assessments.