CITB SMSTS Course

The Site Management Safety Training Scheme, commonly abbreviated to SMSTS, is a 5-day course developed by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) for anyone who manages or is preparing to manage a UK construction site. It sits within the CITB Site Safety Plus scheme alongside SSSTS, the Health and Safety Awareness course, and Temporary Works qualifications (Temporary Works Coordinator and Temporary Works Supervisor).

SMSTS is recognised across the UK construction industry and is required by virtually every main contractor, including Balfour Beatty, Mace, Skanska, Wates, Kier, Laing O'Rourke, Morgan Sindall and BAM, for anyone in a site management or project management role. SMSTS proves the safety knowledge expected of site managers, but it is not itself a CSCS card route: the CSCS Black Manager card is earned through a construction management NVQ at Level 6 or Level 7 plus the CITB Managers and Professionals test.

The course covers the legal responsibilities of site managers under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015), and a wide range of construction-specific legislation including RIDDOR, LOLER, PUWER, COSHH, the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012. The official course reference manual is the CITB GE700 Construction Site Safety, which delegates use throughout the week and can refer to during the final assessment.

The qualification is valid for 5 years, after which you'll need to complete the 2-day SMSTS Refresher to maintain your certification. The SMSTS Refresher course must be completed before your certificate expires.

Construction managers wanting deeper health and safety knowledge often add the NEBOSH Construction Certificate alongside SMSTS.

Those moving into a board level or director role can build on SMSTS with the CITB Director's Role for Health and Safety.