SMSTS or SSSTS: which CITB course do you need?

SMSTS and SSSTS are the two CITB site safety courses people ask us about most, and the names don't help: one letter apart, both about safety on site, both with a five-year certificate. The difference is the job each one is written for. SSSTS is for the people who supervise the work. SMSTS is for the people who manage the site.

The short answer

• SSSTS (Site Supervision Safety Training Scheme) is for supervisors, foremen, charge hands and anyone about to take on supervisory duties. It runs over two days.
• SMSTS (Site Management Safety Training Scheme) is for site managers, project managers, site agents and owners of smaller firms who run their own jobs. It runs over five days.

If you're responsible for a team or a section of the work, SSSTS is usually right. If you're responsible for the whole site, its plan and its subcontractors, you need SMSTS.

What SSSTS covers

SSSTS gives first-line supervisors what they need to run their part of the job safely, and to understand where their responsibilities start and stop. It covers:

• the health and safety law that applies to supervisors, including the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015)
• reading, explaining and briefing risk assessments and method statements
• running toolbox talks and site inductions
• carrying out inspections and spotting hazards before they cause harm
• high-risk activities such as work at height, excavations and working near plant

There's an exam at the end. Attend the whole course and pass the exam, and CITB issues your certificate.

What SMSTS covers

SMSTS goes further, because a site manager's decisions shape the whole job. Alongside the law, it covers planning and organising the work, managing subcontractors, monitoring standards across the site and investigating accidents. You'll look in detail at the duties CDM 2015 places on contractors and on the principal contractor: planning, managing and monitoring the construction phase so the work is carried out without risks to health and safety.

Expect group exercises during the week and a final exam. It's a demanding five days, and it's meant to be.

Why the right one matters

Neither course is named in law. What the law requires is that people with supervisory and management duties have the skills, knowledge and experience to carry them out. In practice, most principal contractors treat SSSTS and SMSTS as the standard way to show that, and many won't let a supervisor or manager start on site without the right certificate.

Booking the wrong one causes problems both ways. A site manager with only SSSTS may be turned away from a site that asks for SMSTS. A new supervisor sent on SMSTS may find much of it is about decisions they don't make yet.

Common situations

"I'm a supervisor stepping up to site manager"

Take SMSTS. You don't need to have done SSSTS first: there's no rule that says you take them in order.

"I run a small firm and manage my own jobs"

SMSTS is written for you as well as for larger contractors' managers. If you're the one planning the work and appointing the trades, it's the right course.

"I'm a working foreman with a small gang"

SSSTS. It's built around the job you already do every day. Supervisors are often asked for SEATS too, CITB's one-day environmental course.

"I'm a trainee or assistant site manager"

This depends on what you're responsible for now. Many people start with SSSTS and move on to SMSTS as their role grows; others are asked for SMSTS from the start. Check what your employer and the principal contractor expect before you book.

Five years, then a refresher

Both certificates are valid for five years. To keep yours current, take the refresher while it's still in date: the SMSTS Refresher is two days and the SSSTS Refresher is one. If your certificate expires first, you'll need to take the full course again. Our guide to renewing SMSTS or SSSTS explains the timing.

The next step: an NVQ and a CSCS card

SMSTS and SSSTS don't count as the qualification for a CSCS card. Supervisors usually go on to the Level 3 NVQ in Occupational Work Supervision for a Gold card, and site managers to the Level 6 NVQ in Construction Site Management for a Black card. See which NVQ leads to which card.

Where to take it in South Yorkshire

Both courses run in the classroom at our Rotherham venue at Bradmarsh Business Park, off the A6178 Sheffield Road and about 20 minutes' drive from Sheffield city centre outside rush hour. Both also run live online with a tutor. You can usually choose between consecutive days, one day a week or weekends: see how the course patterns compare.

See the Rotherham venue and its upcoming dates, read about health and safety courses for Sheffield teams, or browse every course date. Still not sure which one fits? Call us with your job title and what you're responsible for on site, and we'll tell you straight.