PSC - Professional Safety Certified
For occupational health and safety professionals seeking recognition of professional safety competence.
PSC Professional Certification
PSC is a professional occupational health and safety certification focused on demonstrating professional safety competence in roles where health and safety forms a substantial part of professional responsibility.
How it works
Passing the examination does not by itself guarantee certification. Certification is subject to the certification decision process.
Who the certification is for
PSC is intended for experienced practitioners who carry significant occupational health and safety duties and need to demonstrate professional safety competence without positioning the certification as a senior safety-management credential.
Professional focus
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Applying professional health and safety knowledge in workplace practice.
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Recognising and supporting effective risk-control arrangements.
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Using professional judgement when carrying substantial safety responsibilities.
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Maintaining professional conduct and continued competence in occupational health and safety practice.
Eligibility
| Eligibility | Route 1 | Route 2 | Route 3 |
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| Route | Route 1 | Route 2 | Route 3 |
| Qualification | Relevant degree or equivalent qualification | Relevant diploma or closely related qualification | A recognised secondary education qualification or equivalent, plus a minimum of 5 years relevant occupational health and safety or related industry experience. |
| Minimum relevant experience | 3 years relevant occupational health and safety or related industry experience. | 4 years relevant occupational health and safety or related industry experience. | 5 years relevant occupational health and safety or related industry experience. |
All routes require at least 50% of professional duties to involve occupational health and safety responsibilities.
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You must meet one route in full. Requirements from different routes are not combined.
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Applicants must provide verifiable evidence of their education, employment history and relevant duties. Pro Class may request additional evidence where necessary.
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Minimum age: 18.
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Government-issued photo identification.
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Verifiable qualifications.
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CV / professional history.
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Verifiable employment or occupational experience.
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Job description or duty evidence where required.
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Candidate declaration.
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Acceptance of the Pro Class Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.
Once an applicant is approved as eligible to sit the examination, eligibility remains valid for 12 months.
Application & Certification Process
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Application
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Eligibility Review
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Payment
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Examination Booking
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Examination
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Examination Result
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Certification Decision
Once Pro Class has confirmed your eligibility you pay the examination fee, and you can then book your examination. Payment comes before booking. Payment is an administrative step: it does not approve eligibility, pass the examination or grant certification.
Passing the examination does not itself constitute final certification. Pro Class completes the formal certification decision before the credential becomes active.
PSC Fees
| Application / eligibility review | £50 |
| First examination + certification decision processing | £139 |
| Retake examination | £49.99 |
| Annual maintenance | £10/year |
| Five-year recertification | £99 |
| Replacement digital certificate | £30 |
| Optional printed replacement certificate | £25 + delivery/postage |
Once Pro Class has confirmed your eligibility you pay the examination fee, and you can then book your examination. Payment comes before booking. Payment is an administrative step: it does not approve eligibility, pass the examination or grant certification.
The £139 includes the first examination attempt, certification-decision processing and a digital professional certificate if certification is granted. One payment covers one examination attempt.
Payment does not guarantee certification. A passing examination result alone does not automatically mean certification has been granted.
Certification Validity & Annual Maintenance
| Certification validity | 5 years |
| Annual maintenance | Annual declaration plus £10 annual maintenance fee |
| Professional activity | At least 2 years of relevant professional activity during the five-year certification cycle |
| Continued competence | Evidence of continued professional competence is required |
PSC certificants maintain the credential by completing the annual declaration, paying the annual maintenance fee and continuing to meet Pro Class certification requirements.
CPD & Continued Professional Competence
| Mandatory annual CPD | A minimum of 20 CPD hours in each annual maintenance period |
| Five-year minimum | 100 CPD hours over five years |
| Ethics / professional conduct | Minimum 2 CPD hours over the five-year cycle |
PSC continued competence should reflect ongoing occupational health and safety practice. A minimum of 20 CPD hours is mandatory in each annual maintenance period, giving a five-year minimum of 100 CPD hours, and at least 2 of those hours must be in ethics or professional conduct.
Recertification
| Recertification cycle | Every 5 years |
| Recertification fee | £99 |
PSC recertification considers continued occupational health and safety competence, relevant professional activity, compliance with certification requirements and the applicable CPD evidence.
Recertification requires evidence of continued competence, professional activity, compliance with certification requirements and completion of the applicable CPD requirements. Completing 100 CPD hours alone does not guarantee recertification.
Where continued competence is uncertain, Pro Class may request further supporting evidence, a professional-practice review, interview, targeted assessment or re-examination where justified.
Pro Class may audit submitted CPD records and professional-practice evidence as part of recertification.
Code of Ethics
PSC applicants and certificants must comply with the Pro Class Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.
Read the Code of Ethics →Complaints, Appeals & Reasonable Adjustments
Apply for PSC
If PSC matches your professional safety experience and responsibilities, use the current enquiry route to start an application enquiry.
PSC Examination
| Questions | 200 scored questions |
| Duration | 180 minutes (3 hours) |
| Pass requirement | Minimum passing score: 70% |
| Delivery | Computer-based |
| Reference conditions | Closed-book |
| Language | English |
| Invigilation | Mandatory proctoring / invigilation |
| Examination platform | Hosted and administered by Pro Class through its controlled online examination platform |
| Delivery arrangements | Approved controlled remote delivery, or an approved physical examination location under controlled invigilation |
Minimum passing score: 70%. This is the current provisional pass mark for PSC, pending completion of final standard-setting and technical validation. The PSC examination has not completed final validation.
The examination covers nine professional-practice domains, weighted as follows:
| Domain | Practice domain | Percentage |
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| 1 | Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment | 16% |
| 2 | Health & Safety Legal and Compliance Practice | 10% |
| 3 | Safety Management Systems & Organisational Controls | 12% |
| 4 | Incident Prevention, Investigation & Corrective Action | 13% |
| 5 | Occupational Health & Workplace Risk | 10% |
| 6 | Emergency Preparedness & Response | 8% |
| 7 | Inspection, Monitoring & Performance Evaluation | 10% |
| 8 | Communication, Consultation & Safety Culture | 9% |
| 9 | Professional Ethics & Safety Judgement | 12% |
Retake Rules
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One examination payment covers one examination attempt.
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A retake requires a new examination booking and a new examination payment.
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Minimum 2-week waiting period before a retake.
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Maximum 3 attempts within 12 months.
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After three failed attempts, the candidate must wait 12 months.
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After that waiting period, a new application is required.
Examination result and certification decision
Passing the PSC examination does not itself constitute certification. Pro Class completes the formal certification decision before the credential becomes active.
Once Pro Class has confirmed your eligibility you pay the examination fee, and you can then book your examination. Payment comes before booking. Payment is an administrative step: it does not approve eligibility, pass the examination or grant certification.
Why Pro Class
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Certification decisions are made by Pro Class and are kept separate from training. An Approved Training Centre may deliver training and support candidates, but cannot approve eligibility or make a certification decision.
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Eligibility is reviewed against published routes and evidence requirements before any examination access is granted.
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Examinations are administered and proctored under Pro Class control, using the same published format for every candidate.
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The examination result and the certification decision are separate steps, so a pass is confirmed through a controlled decision rather than issued automatically.
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Certification status stays under Pro Class control for the whole credential lifecycle, including annual maintenance and five-year recertification.
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Complaints, appeals and reasonable-adjustment routes are published and open to every applicant and certificant.
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A published Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct applies to applicants and certificants, and a published Statement of Impartiality covers how certification decisions are protected.
Security Features
Identity verification
Candidate identity is verified by the proctor / invigilator before the examination session is released and is monitored during the session.
Controlled examination access
An examination can only be booked after Pro Class has confirmed eligibility and the required examination payment is complete. One payment covers one attempt.
Supervised delivery
Every PSC examination is delivered under mandatory proctoring / invigilation, on the Pro Class controlled online examination platform.
Closed-book conditions
PSC is a closed-book examination. Prohibited assistance and unauthorised material are not permitted during the session.
Examination content control
PSC examination content is controlled by Pro Class and is not published. Candidates receive the published format and syllabus information only.
Reviewed integrity records
Examination incidents are recorded and reviewed by authorised Pro Class personnel. An automated integrity flag does not by itself establish misconduct — material cases require human review and a documented decision.
Certificate status controls
Each credential carries a certificate reference that is used when a certification status is checked. The controlled public certification statuses are:
The public certificate-verification route is published at Track / Verify a Certificate. The production verification connection is not yet enabled, and no sample or invented certification record is shown in the meantime.
Ready to explore PSC certification?
Review the requirements above, then use the current enquiry route when you are ready to take the next step.