What to Revise for CSCS Operatives Test

Passing your Health, Safety and Environment Test for Operatives isn’t as straightforward and easy as some people may lead you to believe. To pass, you’ll need a very good understanding of several health and safety topics.

If you’re new to the test or if you haven’t taken it in a while you might be wondering “what to revise for CSCS operatives test“?

The article below will highlight all the topics you’ll need to revise to pass your CSCS operatives test, there’s also a link within the article that takes you to the page where you can watch the “Setting Out” video. You must watch it to be able to answer the Behavioural Case Study questions.

Behavioural Case Study Questions

The behavioural case study questions will be the first thing you encounter on your test day. You’ll have to answer 3 case study questions about a fictitious character, each question will have 4 linked questions so you’ll have to answer 12 questions in total. These questions were designed to test your response to safety-related situations as they arise on a construction site.

The questions are all based on the main principles established in the Setting Out film – here’s the link to the Setting Out video.

Core Knowledge Questions

When revising you’ll come across the term “Core Knowledge Questions”, this refers to the first 4 sections of the CSCS test revision book. All the core knowledge question topics are listed in the table below. You’re going to get 38 questions from these. Here are the core knowledge questions by section:

Section A: Working Environment
General Responsibilities The questions in this section focus on what both you and your employer need to do to ensure your worksite is safe for everyone. See revision notes here.
Accident Reporting and Recording The questions in this section focus on how, when and why accidents on-site should be reported. See revision notes here.
First Aid and Emergency Procedures These questions are based on what you should do in case there’s an emergency and it also questions you on what your employer must make available.
Personal Protective Equipment This section focuses on the importance of PPE and who is responsible for providing it.
Environmental Awareness and Waste Control
These questions are based on what you should do to help minimize waste on-site and your responsibilities when it comes to waste management and energy conservation.
Section B: Occupational Health
Health and Welfare These questions are based on health issues commonly associated with work-sites and how you can avoid them.
Dust and Fumes (Respiratory Hazards) This section focuses on how you should protect yourself and others from exposure to respiratory hazards while working, and the health conditions associated with exposure to dust and fumes.
Noise and Vibration This section focuses on how and why you should protect yourself and others from exposure to noise and vibration at work.
Manual Handling
This section focuses on the importance of safe manual handling techniques and it highlights key areas you should be aware of when handling loads.
Section C: General Safety
Safety Signs
These questions are based on the common types of safety signs you’ll find on a construction site and their meanings.
Fire Prevention and Control
These questions are based on what you should do in case there’s a fire on-site and the types of fire extinguishers you should use for each type of fire.
Electrical Safety, Tools and Equipment
This section focuses on the importance of inspecting your tools before work and how to work with your tools safely.
Section D: High-Risk Activities
Site Transport Safety and Lifting Operations
This section focuses on how pedestrians and vehicles on-site should work together to ensure a safe working environment.
Working at Height
These questions are based on the types of equipment you’ll need to work safely at height and how you must use them. See revision notes here.
Excavations and Confined Spaces
These questions are based on what you should do if you have to work in a confined space or excavation and the types of hazards associated with working in these conditions.
Hazardous Substances
These questions are based on what you should do to protect yourself and others while using chemicals and other hazardous substances.

Frequently Asked Questions

1.  How many questions do I need to get right to pass the CSCS operatives test?

You will need to score 45 out of 50 to pass the CSCS test for operatives.

2. Should I revise the entire CSCS test revision book?

No, you’ll only need to revise up to Section D and watch the Setting Out video which helps with answering the behavioural case study questions.

3. How many questions do I need to answer?

The operatives test has 50 questions, the first 12 you’ll face are the behavioural case study questions followed by the 38 core knowledge questions taken from the topics in the table above.

4. Can I revise for the test in another language?

If you want to revise for the test in other languages you can buy the CSCS test revision DVD which has voiceovers in Polish, Punjabi, Bulgarian, Romanian, Czech, French, German, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.

5. What happens if I fail the test?

If you fail the test you’ll get a score report which highlights the area or areas where you didn’t do well. It will not say exactly which questions you got wrong – just the areas where you got the questions wrong. You’ll need to wait at least 48 hours after that to retake the test.

Don’t forget to check out our latest CSCS mock test for operatives here. All the questions have been updated for the 2024 version of the test.

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