The Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) is a British company that runs a training and qualification verification scheme of the same name for the British construction industry. CSCS is the leading skills certification scheme within the UK construction industry and CSCS cards provide proof that individuals working on construction sites have the appropriate training and qualifications for the job they do on site. By ensuring the workforce are appropriately qualified the card plays its part in improving standards and safety on UK construction sites. Holding a CSCS card is not a legislative requirement. It is entirely up to the principal contractor or client whether workers are required to hold a card before they are allowed on site. However, most principal contractors and major house builders require construction workers on their sites to hold a valid card. History The Construction Skills Certification Scheme was founded as a limited company on 21 February 1995. It issues photographic smart cards to construction workers as proof of training and qualification. The original aim of the scheme was to ensure that all construction workers in the UK receive training and achieve qualifications suitable to their role and have a means of proving this. From 1997 the scheme has been administered by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). However in December 2017 the CITB notified CSCS that it no longer wanted the contract and CSCS would need an alternative supplier at the end of the 42 month notification period. In the mid 2000s a spate of deaths in the construction industry led to the threat of government action on major contractors. As a result many of them decided to move to a so-called "100% carded" policy whereby every worker or visitor to site was required to hold a CSCS card as proof of a level of health and safety competence. This was initially welcomed by CSCS as it led to a rapid growth in the number of cards issued. The majority of the new cards were for the "construction site operative" and the "construction related occupation" categories – requiring no qualifications but passing a simple touchscreen health and safety test. New cards were also introduced for workers not covered by existing categories, going so far as to include a specific card for vending machine installers. By 2012 half of all cards issued were in the operative category and 25% were for construction related operations. As these