All heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration operatives are required to complete the CSCS Health, Safety & Environment Test for HVAC before qualifying for their correct level of CSCS Card. The HVAC Health, Safety & Environment Test is designed to ensure that all HVAC employees in the United Kingdom are trained to the same level of care. As a heating, ventilation, air conditioning or refrigeration worker, your Health, Safety & Environment Test will qualify you to design, install, maintain and repair systems in a range of environments.
Why CSCS for Health and Safety?
The CSCS Health, Safety & Environment Test has been adopted by the whole construction industry, which means that your trade specific qualifications can be stored alongside your health and safety qualifications in the CSCS Smart Card. The Card is now required by around 80% of British building sites, which operate a “No Card, No Work” policy.
You can’t get the right CSCS Card for your trade and level of competence without first passing the correct Health, Safety & Environment Test. Once you have passed the CSCS HVAC Health, Safety & Environment Test you will be eligible for the correct Card. You can book your CSCS Health, Safety & Environment Test, and any official revision materials you may need, from Construction Site Skills.
Why CSCS for My Industry?
CSCS Cards are designed to show that you have a measurable level of competence in the trade you practice. For an HVAC worker that means that you have achieved a recognised NVQ or SVQ Level. The CSCS Smart Card you are awarded will denote the Level of NVQ or SVQ you have achieved. You will be awarded a Red Card as a new recruit to the HVAC professions; a Blue Card if you have achieved NVQ or SVQ Level 2; a Gold Card for Level 3; and a Black Manager Card for Levels 4 or higher.
How Does the CSCS Card Prove I am HVAC?
The CSCS Card comes with a chip, which is loaded with all your current qualification information. The Card works exactly like a Chip and PIN bank card – it is inserted into a reader, which calls the information your site supervisor needs up on a screen. Your card proves that you are who you say you are – and that you have both the health and safety and industry qualifications necessary to do the job.
In the past there has been some confusion about the attention that sites have paid to levels of CSCS Smart Card, with reports that a basic CSCS Card has been enough to gain working access to some. The chip-stored information in the newer Smart Card is intended to prevent oversights of this nature. As a period of consultation within CSCS has progressed, more and more UK sites have been augmenting their “No Card, No Work” signage with “Incorrect Card – No Work”. If you want to be sure that your site supervisor will let you on to do the work you need to do, then you will need to be sure that you have achieved the correct CSCS Smart Card.