I have tried searching but cannot find this question has been covered before - if it has my apologies. Although I understand this card is for visitors who do no construction work, I am concerned about the "escorted" bit. Does it mean that the people who hold it have to be shepherded around site by someone with another type of CSCS card? Lucy

We are looking for a replacement for the visitors card (now defunct) for our project managers/installation managers (who just visit sites to carry out surveys/audits but never complete any physical construction work) to use. They really do not need escorting so it sounds as though the escorted visitor card is not right for them. Anyone have any idea what they should be getting?

The CSCS rules say that manager and supervisor cards are only for people who are routinely based on site - they are not for people who are office-based managers who visit site occasionally. It's one of the gaping holes in the CSCS system - we are principally designers, the majority of our workforce are office-based designers, but they visit sites occasionally, and when they get there they might be doing inspection and possibly even a bit of measuring (I hesitate to call it surveying - it is rarely as detailed as that implies). We used to rely on visitor cards, but as Lucy has identified CSCS visitor cards now imply visitors have to be accompanied. Our solution is: Most of our people are chartered engineers in a British institution and thus qualify for a 'PROFESSIONALLY QUALIFIED PERSON' (PQP) card. Most of the remainder are not yet qualified, but are on the career path to that, they have a recognised degree and qualify for an 'ACADEMICALLY QUALIFIED PERSON (AQP)' card. Some of the remainder are currently on courses (day release etc) and they can qualify for a 'TRAINEE (TECHNICAL, SUPERVISORY AND MANAGEMENT)' card. But that still leaves a few, notably some very highly qualified technical experts who are professionally qualified, but not in an institution CSCS recognises, and do have degrees, but they aren't British degrees, and they have to have an 'ESCORTED SITE VISITOR' card. We basically then leave the resolution of that up to the main contractor - if they mandated CSCS cards, and the people that they want us to have on site fall outside the CSCS system and cannot get any other card, then that's a problem for the contractor to resolve. If they really care about it, they can provide a baby-sitter all the time our people are on site.

Thank you very much for your help. Can't say we particularly like the answers but at least we have them now!

As I think you are implying - there's no statutory force so the fact that the card is called 'escorted site visitor' has no real meaning. The health and safety test is no less onerous (nor any less or more meaningful) for an escorted site visitor than for any other operative card. It's only if the main contractor on site decides to ascribe meaning to the name of the card that it matters. Which is why I said "that's a problem for the contractor to resolve. If they really care about it, they can provide a baby-sitter all the time our people are on site". I'm yet to meet a main contractor that does really care about it, but I suppose there may be some.