From the 26th June 2019, the CITB will be introducing improvements to their Health, Safety and Environment (HS&E) test.
How will the tests be changing?
There are 5 core areas of change that the CITB have identified to improve on the current tests. We have summarised them below –
- Content has been reviewed and updated so it is up to date with current legislation and practice
- Questions in the operative tests have now been ranked in difficulty and distributed to each candidate equally to provide a “Level Playing Field” approach
- The Case Study section from the test has been removed entirely, meaning there will now be a single section and one score to pass
- New questions have been added to all tests, alongside a new “drag and drop” question format to the Managers and Professionals (MAP) test
- Clearer on-screen tutorial for the candidates
What score do I need to pass?
With the introduction of the new single section format, the following are the scores CITB require for a pass result –
- Operatives Test – 45 out of 50
- Specialists Test – 45 out of 50
- Managers and Professionals (MAP) Test – 46 out of 50
What do these changes mean?
Overall the focus for the tests after 26th June 2019 is seemingly on making the test simpler and more user friendly, alongside making sure the information is clear and up to date. These are welcome improvements and if introduced well could help many people undertaking the tests.
It has been confirmed by the CITB that there will not be any change to the booking system, or how long you will have to undertake the test (45 minutes).
From 15th May 2019, the CITB will be selling updated revision material from their online store. In this, the CITB have also confirmed that the revision material for the operatives test has also been improved to make it easier for candidates to prepare.
Not all of the available questions in the test will be included within the revision material, but explanatory text and diagrams will be used so when a worker passes the test it is based off knowledge and practice of safe working rather than memorising answer sets from a book.
If you are completing a HS&E test prior to 26th June 2019 you should still revise from the 2018 revision material available.
Learning more about the changes
You can learn more about these changes directly from the CITB here – https://www.citb.co.uk/courses-and-qualifications/hse-test-and-cards/about-hse-test/planned-changes-to-hse-test/
If you think you need some additional help with Health and Safety, then don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Orchard Compliance Solutions team on 0800 118 1674 or info@orchardcompliance.co.uk. You can find more information on our range of services here.
