Course overview
Running a construction site in Leicester means answering for everything that happens on it. The moment you become the site manager, the risk assessments, the method statements, the temporary works, the subcontractor inductions and the accident book all point back to you. The CITB Site Management Safety Training Scheme (SMSTS) is the five-day qualification the industry expects the person in that position to hold, and it is the course this page is about: a live online SMSTS course you can complete from home or the site office anywhere in Leicester or the wider East Midlands, for £430, leading to the same CITB certificate as any classroom in the country.
There is plenty of work in and around Leicester that needs qualified site managers. The city centre has seen a sustained run of regeneration and refurbishment schemes, from the Waterside area along the River Soar to the steady pipeline of student accommodation serving the city’s two universities. Beyond the ring road, Leicestershire sits squarely inside the logistics “golden triangle”, so the county’s landscape of big-shed distribution parks along the M1 and M69 keeps groundworks, steel-frame and fit-out teams busy year round. Add the housing growth spreading through Loughborough, Hinckley, Coalville, Melton Mowbray and Market Harborough, and the demand for managers who can run those sites safely and legally is constant.
Principal contractors and clients working across Leicester routinely list a current SMSTS as a condition of taking charge of a site. This course is how you meet that requirement. Over five days, a CITB-approved trainer takes you through the law, the planning and the day-to-day management skills a site manager is accountable for, and at the end of the week you sit the CITB exam. Pass it, and you hold a certificate recognised on construction sites from Leicester to anywhere else in the UK for the next five years.
Who the SMSTS course is for
The SMSTS is written for the people who plan, manage and monitor construction work, rather than those who simply carry it out or supervise a single gang. In practice, that means the course is a strong fit if you are:
- A site manager or agent responsible for a whole site or project in Leicester or the surrounding county
- A project manager who needs to understand the health and safety duties sitting behind the programme
- An experienced site supervisor stepping up into a management role and required to hold the SMSTS before taking charge
- A business owner or director who oversees construction sites and wants to understand the legal responsibilities that come with that position
- A self-employed contractor tendering for work where the client or principal contractor asks for SMSTS-qualified management
If your role is supervisory rather than managerial, be aware that CITB runs a shorter course aimed at that level: the two-day SSSTS is designed for supervisors, gangers and team leaders who look after a section of the works. The SMSTS is the senior of the two qualifications. If you run the site, plan the work and carry the legal accountability, the SMSTS is the course that matches your job, and it is the one Leicester’s main contractors will expect to see.
You do not need to hold the SSSTS first, and there is no formal qualification barrier to booking. What you do need is a good standard of spoken and written English, because the course and the exam are delivered in English, along with a reliable internet connection and a suitable device for the online classroom. Some experience of working on site is strongly recommended, as the course assumes you understand how a construction project actually runs; the discussions and case studies land far better when you can relate them to sites you have worked on.
What you’ll learn
The SMSTS syllabus is set by CITB and covers the full breadth of what a site manager is responsible for. Rather than a memory test on regulations, the course is built around what those duties mean in practice: how you plan work so it can be done safely, how you check that plan is being followed, and what you do when it is not.
Across the five days you will work through the legal framework that governs UK construction, including the Health and Safety at Work Act and the CDM Regulations, and what they demand of the person managing the site. You will spend significant time on risk assessments and method statements, not just reading them but developing, reviewing and communicating them, because that paperwork is the backbone of how a manager controls risk. The course then moves through the high-risk activities that cause the industry’s most serious accidents, including work at height, excavations, demolition, confined spaces, temporary works and scaffolding, and examines the manager’s role in planning and monitoring each one.
Alongside the technical content, the SMSTS gives real weight to the human side of running a site: behavioural safety, building a culture where people report problems rather than hide them, occupational health, and the wellbeing of the workforce. A full breakdown of the modules appears further down this page, but the short version is this: by Friday you should be able to look at any activity on a Leicester site and know what the law expects of you, what good practice looks like, and how to check the gap between the two.
The learning itself is interactive. Sessions run as discussions, group exercises and case studies rather than a week of one-way lectures, and delegates are encouraged to bring situations from their own sites into the room. With managers joining from projects across the country, the range of experience in a typical class is one of the most valuable parts of the week.
How the course runs
Our SMSTS course runs over five consecutive midweek days, Monday to Friday, from 8:30am to 5:00pm. Attendance on all five days is required by CITB, so you should treat the week as fully committed before you book; missing a session means you cannot sit the exam.
Delivery is live online via Zoom video link. This is not a set of pre-recorded videos or an e-learning package you click through alone. You join a real class at 8:30 each morning, led in real time by a CITB-approved trainer with a construction management background. You can see and hear the tutor, ask questions the moment they occur to you, work through exercises in groups with other delegates, and take part in the discussions that make up much of the course. Breaks are scheduled through the day, and the trainer checks understanding continually rather than saving everything for the exam.
To take part you need a laptop or desktop computer with a webcam and microphone, and a stable internet connection. If you have ever sat on a video call from the site office, you already have everything the course requires, and we send clear joining instructions before your start date so there are no surprises on the Monday morning. Digital course materials are provided for reference during the week and revision before the exam.
Because the class is live and delegate numbers are managed, the online format keeps the same discipline as a physical classroom: cameras on, participation expected, and a tutor who knows your name by the first coffee break. Delegates regularly tell us the week is more engaging than they expected precisely because it is a real class, just one you attend from Leicester rather than after a drive to a training centre.
Assessment and the SMSTS exam
The SMSTS is assessed at the end of the course by an exam consisting of multiple-choice, multi-response and short written-answer questions. The paper lasts approximately 30 minutes and the pass mark is 81%. Alongside the final exam, CITB requires full attendance across all five days and participation in the exercises and case studies that run through the week.
The pass mark sounds demanding on paper, but the course is structured so that the exam confirms what you have already learned rather than ambushing you. Daily recaps and knowledge checks mean weak spots get found and fixed during the week, not discovered in the exam. Our delegates achieve a 98.7% pass rate on the SMSTS, which reflects both the quality of the teaching and the fact that live, tutor-led training gives you five full days to ask about anything you are unsure of.
If you want to see the style of questions before you commit, or check your readiness during the course, we publish a free SMSTS mock test you can take online. It is a genuinely useful gauge of where you stand, and many Leicester delegates run through it in the evenings during course week as revision.
Why train online from Leicester
We deliver this course by live video link rather than from a training centre, and for a five-day management course that format has real advantages. We will be straight with you about what that means: there is no physical SMSTS venue in Leicester to travel to. You attend the full course online, and the certificate you earn is identical to the one issued after a classroom course, because CITB approves the training, the syllabus and the exam in exactly the same way.
For most Leicester site managers, that trade works heavily in their favour. Five consecutive days is a serious commitment, and adding a daily commute across the city, or a drive down the M1 or M69 to wherever a classroom happens to be running, turns a demanding week into an exhausting one. Training online means no travel time, no city-centre parking, no fuel or accommodation costs, and no evenings lost to the road. You log in at 8:25, and at 5:00pm you are already home, or a few steps from the site office if something on the project needs your attention.
The format also solves a problem that catchment-based classroom courses never could: dates. Because delegates join from anywhere, courses run frequently, and you choose a week that fits your programme rather than waiting for a local classroom to fill. Managers from Leicester, Loughborough, Wigston, Oadby, Syston, Shepshed and right across the East Midlands sit alongside delegates from the rest of the UK, which makes for broader discussion and, for employers, means several managers from the same firm can be trained in the same week without anyone leaving their patch.
None of this dilutes the qualification. The trainer is CITB-approved, the syllabus is the full five-day SMSTS syllabus, the exam is the CITB exam, and the certificate carries the same recognition on a Leicester site as any other. The only thing you give up is the commute.
Certification and five-year validity
Pass the course and you receive the official CITB SMSTS certificate, recognised across the UK construction industry. It is the standard evidence that a site manager has been trained to manage health and safety, and it is what principal contractors, clients and local authorities across Leicester and Leicestershire will ask to see before you take charge of their sites.
The certificate is valid for five years from the date of issue. Before it expires, you keep the qualification current by completing the shorter CITB SMSTS refresher course rather than sitting the full five days again. It is worth putting the expiry date in your calendar the day the certificate arrives: if you let it lapse, CITB requires you to retake the full course, which is an expensive way to lose a week. The refresher route only remains open while your existing certificate is in date.
CITB grant funding
The SMSTS is grant-claimable through CITB. If your employer is registered with the CITB Levy, the business may be eligible to claim a CITB grant towards the cost of the course, which meaningfully reduces the net price of getting a manager qualified. The grant is claimed by the employer rather than the delegate, and is paid once the course has been successfully completed.
If you are unsure whether your company qualifies, or you are an employer in Leicester planning to put several managers through the SMSTS and want to understand what support is available, call our team before you book and we will talk you through the process.
How to book your SMSTS course in Leicester
Booking takes a few minutes. You can view upcoming SMSTS course dates and book online, choosing a Monday-to-Friday week that fits around your project commitments. The course fee is £430.
If you would rather talk it through first, whether that is checking the course is right for your role, arranging places for several delegates, or asking about CITB grant eligibility, call us free on 0808 164 2780 and the team will help you find the right dates. You can also read more about the qualification itself on our main CITB SMSTS course page.
As a CITB-approved training organisation, Skills Training Group delivers the SMSTS through experienced construction trainers who have managed sites themselves, which is a large part of why our pass rate sits at 98.7%. You will be trained by people who have done the job you are being trained for.
Frequently asked questions
Is the online SMSTS certificate accepted on construction sites in Leicester?
Yes. The certificate issued after a live online course is the official CITB SMSTS certificate, identical to one earned in a classroom. CITB approves the training, syllabus and exam in the same way regardless of delivery format, so principal contractors and clients across Leicester, Leicestershire and the rest of the UK accept it without distinction. There is no “online version” of the certificate.
Do I need to travel anywhere in Leicester to attend the course?
No. The course is delivered entirely by live Zoom video link, so there is no venue, classroom or training centre to travel to. You attend all five days from home, the site office or anywhere in the Leicester area with a reliable internet connection, using a computer with a webcam and microphone. Joining instructions are sent before the course starts.
Will Leicester employers and main contractors recognise this qualification?
Yes. The SMSTS is the industry-standard site management safety qualification, and employers and principal contractors working across Leicester and the East Midlands routinely require it before a manager takes charge of a site. Because the certificate is issued by CITB and is the same nationwide, it carries exactly the same weight with a Leicester contractor as it does anywhere else in the UK.
How long does the SMSTS course take?
Five consecutive midweek days, Monday to Friday, running from 8:30am to 5:00pm each day. Full attendance on all five days is a CITB requirement; if you miss a session you cannot sit the exam, so the week should be treated as fully committed before you book.
How much does the SMSTS course cost?
The course costs £430. That covers the five days of live tutor-led training, digital course materials and the end-of-course CITB exam. Employers registered with the CITB Levy may also be able to claim a CITB grant towards the cost, which is paid to the employer once the course is completed.
What is the SMSTS exam like?
The exam is taken at the end of the course and consists of multiple-choice, multi-response and short written-answer questions. It lasts approximately 30 minutes and the pass mark is 81%. The course prepares you thoroughly through daily recaps and knowledge checks, and our delegates achieve a 98.7% pass rate. You can try our free SMSTS mock test online to see the question style in advance.
What is the difference between the SMSTS and the SSSTS, and how long does my certificate last?
The SMSTS is the five-day course for site managers, project managers and those who plan and control an entire site; the SSSTS is a two-day course for supervisors who look after a section of the works. If you run the site, the SMSTS is your course. The certificate is valid for five years, after which you take the shorter SMSTS refresher course to renew it, provided your existing certificate has not expired.
Ready to get qualified? Book your live online SMSTS course today and secure a five-day week that suits your schedule, or call us free on 0808 164 2780 to talk through dates, group bookings or CITB grant funding. From a site in the heart of Leicester to a project anywhere in the East Midlands, the industry’s leading site management qualification is a video link away.
Modules breakdown
Across the five days, your tutor works through the full CITB Site Management Safety Training Scheme syllabus, blending live teaching with group discussions, case studies and daily knowledge checks. Every module is taught with the site manager’s responsibilities in mind, covering the following key areas:
Health and safety legislation
- Health and Safety at Work Act fundamentals and their implications for construction
- Environmental legislation affecting construction sites
- Recent developments and new guidance in safety regulations
- Responsibilities under relevant legislation, and industry best practice beyond the legal minimum
Risk management
- Conducting thorough risk assessments and implementing the necessary control measures
- Ensuring safe working practices across different site activities
- Managing common safety issues on construction sites
- Creating systems for continual safety awareness
Leadership and communication
- Developing a positive safety culture on site
- Techniques for communicating safety protocols effectively
- Engaging the workforce in health and safety initiatives
- Managing subcontractors and supporting site supervisors in their safety responsibilities
Practical site management
- Day-to-day safety management techniques
- Responding to incidents and near misses
- Documentation and record-keeping requirements
- Site inspections, audits, toolbox talks and safety briefings
Special site hazards
- Working at height safety protocols
- Plant and equipment safety
- Excavation and groundworks safety
- Managing hazardous substances
- Electrical safety on construction sites
You attend all five training days, take part in the group activities and knowledge checks, then sit the final exam. On passing, you receive the official CITB SMSTS certificate, valid for five years, which you keep current with the two-day SMSTS Refresher Course before it expires. If you supervise rather than manage a site, the two-day SSSTS course may be the better fit – our team can help you choose.
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