PHW
PHW · plant and forklift operator training

Operator training your site can check for itself.

Assessed on your machines, on your site. Every operator leaves with a certificate, theory and practical records, and a site evidence statement, plus a live verification page and QR code a site manager can scan at the gate. Forklift categories sit inside this pack, alongside excavators, dumpers, MEWPs, lorry loaders and slinger/signaller duties.

12machine categories covered
QRverified, scan at the gate
On siteyour machines, your yard

The machine categories

Construction firms, yards, plant hire, agriculture, waste and warehouses. Assessed operator training and evidence for the machines your people actually run.

Forklift, inside this pack

Telescopic handler

ACOP L117, and LOLER 1998 where it lifts.

Myth buster →
Counterbalance forklift

ACOP L117, and LOLER 1998 where it lifts.

Myth buster →
Rough terrain forklift

ACOP L117, and LOLER 1998 where it lifts.

Myth buster →
Reach truck

ACOP L117, and LOLER 1998 where it lifts. Refresher course.

Myth buster →

Plant

360 excavator

ACOP L22, LOLER 1998 where it lifts, quick hitch and exclusion zone.

Myth buster →
180 excavator (backhoe loader)

ACOP L22, LOLER 1998 where it lifts, HSG144 as it travels on the road.

Myth buster →
Lorry loader (HIAB)

ACOP L113, LOLER 1998, stabilisers and overhead lines from the highway.

Myth buster →
Forward tipping dumper

ROPS, seat belt and PUWER 1998. Covers the articulated dumper refresher.

Myth buster →
Ride-on roller

ROPS, seat belt and whole-body vibration under the 2005 Vibration Regulations.

Myth buster →
MEWP: scissor (3a)

Work at Height Regulations 2005 and LOLER 1998.

Myth buster →
MEWP: boom (3b)

Work at Height Regulations 2005 and LOLER 1998.

Myth buster →
Slinger and signaller

ACOP L113, LOLER 1998, lift planning and the signal system.

Myth buster →
Abrasive wheels

The exception: training to mount a wheel is required by regulation.

Myth buster →
The legal position

No UK government body issues a licence to operate plant or a forklift, and no statute requires one. The duty to train and assess competence sits with the employer, under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 section 2(2)(c) and the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 regulation 9. This training is structured operator training with formal theory and practical assessment, which the employer can rely on as evidence when meeting that duty. It does not by itself discharge the employer's duty under regulation 9; the employer still holds that duty and relies on the evidence this training produces. Sites set their own entry requirements, and an operator should check with the site before attending.

What the operator and the employer receive

The same evidence structure across every machine category, so a site can check any operator the same way.

  1. Award and Unit Credit certificates — issued per qualification, carrying the ACOP reference the training was assessed against
  2. Theory test record — the candidate's own paper, marked and kept on file
  3. Practical assessment record — completed on the machine, on site
  4. Site evidence statement — a short written record for site management: basis of assessment, theory result, practical result, decision and units covered
  5. Live verification page — one page per operator at verify.phwltd.com showing the certificates, records and statement
  6. QR code — printed on the certificate and the operator's card, resolving straight to that verification page
Be clear about what this is

This evidence supports the employer's duty under PUWER 1998 regulation 9; it is not a substitute for it. The employer still decides whether an operator is authorised to use a particular machine on a particular site, and this training's job is to give that decision something solid to stand on.

See a real sample

A live, working example so you can see exactly what an operator's evidence looks like before you book anyone.

Sample operator

Fred Bloggs, a SAMPLE record covering twelve qualifications: certificates, theory and practical records, site evidence statements and QR codes. Marked SAMPLE throughout, so it can be shared freely before any real assessment is booked.

Open the sample verification page

On-site assessment

Assessed on your machines, on your site, which is what familiarisation training requires anyway. No travel time built in, no lost day sending operators elsewhere.

Priced per job: tell us the machines, the number of operators and the site, and we will come back with a price and dates.

Get a quote

Tell us the machines and the numbers, and we will come back with a price and dates.

Straight answers

Is there a licence for plant or forklift operation?

No. No UK government body issues one, and no statute requires one. The duty sits with the employer under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and PUWER 1998 regulation 9.

Does the certificate satisfy our legal duty?

No. It is evidence the employer relies on to meet the duty under PUWER 1998 regulation 9, not a replacement for the employer's own decision to authorise an operator on a particular machine and site.

Do you assess on our site, or do we travel to you?

On your machines, on your site. That is what the familiarisation stage of the ACOP requires in any case.

Is forklift a separate product from the plant pack?

No. Telescopic handler, counterbalance forklift, rough terrain forklift and reach truck sit inside the same on-site pack as the other machine categories.

How do we check an operator's paperwork before letting them on site?

Every certificate carries a QR code that resolves to a live verification page at verify.phwltd.com, showing the certificates, records and site evidence statement for that operator.

What if we need a machine category not listed here?

Get in touch through the form above with the machine and the numbers, and we will confirm what can be arranged.