The majority of the UKs construction industry has adopted the CSCS Card as a reliable indicator of worker competence and qualification. Currently about 80% of British construction sites now require a CSCS card. Having an up to date card shows that you have passed the right version of the CSCS Health, Safety & Environment Test, that you can do your job competently and with as little risk as possible to your self and others.

There are 13 types of CSCS Health, Safety & Environment Test available in London and the rest of Britain, each one covering the areas of skills associated with a different type of job.

Generally speaking they are categorised according to the level of responsibility and risk associated with each job. A regular site operative or crafts person will be required to take the operative Health, Safety & Environment Test. An operative with special skills will need to take the test that covers their area of expertise, for example a roofer would need to take the working at heights version of the test.

Before CSCS cards and the Health, Safety & Environment Tests recruitment in the construction industry could be a hit and miss process. Some of the best and most experienced workers could be passed over for men who had got there first. The introduction of the test means that anyone working on a site can be sure that everyone there has passed a Health, Safety and Environment Test and they should have the knowledge to do the task they are doing without putting themselves of anyone else at unnecessary risk.