CITB help gain convictions in health & safety training cheating operation

Three people have been convicted at Snaresbrook Crown Court, London, as part of an investigation into fraud in construction health, safety and environment (HS&E) tests.

The guilty parties, identified by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), assisted some people taking the HS&E tests in London and Leeds by taking payments to give them Bluetooth devices and providing them with answers to questions to help them cheat and pass the tests.

One of the convicted individuals, a test facilitator, pleaded guilty to eight offences of conspiracy to defraud and was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment. The other two individuals, who respectively played a minor role and witnessed cheating without reporting it, were sentenced to Community Order for 18 months and placed on a curfew for six weeks respectively.

The convictions are the latest in CITB’s Operation Dobson, aiming to put a halt to cheating in HS&E tests. CITB’s dedicated counter fraud team works closely with law enforcement agencies and key stakeholders to detect, investigate and prevent maladministration, malpractice and fraud, helping to prevent untrained and unqualified people working on construction sites.

Over the past three years, more than 1,700 fraud incidents have been reported to or dealt with by the CITB counter fraud team. In addition, 10 test centres have been terminated and 2,210 HS&E tests revoked.

CITB is also working collaboratively with industry partners in pursuit of fraudsters. More than 1,100 CSCS cards have been revoked following referrals to CITB from law enforcement agencies.

Chris Simpson, Head of CITB Quality & Standards department said: “It’s vital that we ensure the construction workforce is well-trained and competent, and this means ensuring our training methods are robust and everyone is completing courses to the standard expected.

“These latest convictions are part of our dedication to delivering a competent workforce and demonstrate our commitment to stamping out any kind of cheating or deception affecting our products and services.

“Falsifying health and safety qualifications means that the holder has not demonstrated the professional competence and awareness of health and safety legislation that is required for them to work safely in the construction industry. We are committed to ensuring that colleagues and members of the public are kept safe, with an industry that they can rely on.”

Construction employers can use a range of services provided by Awarding Organisations and Card Schemes, including CITB and CSCS card checkers, to establish the legitimacy of any cards, certificates, and qualifications.

Alternatively, people can report matters confidentially via report.it@citb.co.uk.