COSHH Regulation and Duties

COSHH Training Requirements

What COSHH Training Staff Need and How to Record It

COSHH requires you to give staff the information, instruction, and training they need to work safely with hazardous substances. It is one of the eight employer duties, and it is the one most often left undone, because a written assessment locked in the office trains nobody. Training does not mean an expensive certificate for every member of staff. For most hospitality businesses it means a short, practical briefing on the chemicals each person uses and clear records that the briefing happened. This article explains what COSHH training must cover, who needs it, and how to keep records that satisfy an inspector.

Key takeaways

COSHH training is a legal duty and the one hospitality businesses most often skip.

Training must cover the hazards, correct use and dilution, protective equipment, storage, and what to do in an incident.

Everyone exposed needs role-appropriate training before they first use a substance, making COSHH part of induction.

A formal certificate is not legally required for most staff; a practical briefing on your own products usually meets the duty better.

Record who was trained, on what, and when, and keep the record current, because untrained-looking staff fail the duty.

What COSHH Training Must Cover

The training duty is about making sure people understand the substances they work with and how to use them safely. As a minimum, staff need to know which products are hazardous, what the hazards are, how to use each product correctly including dilution, what protective equipment to wear, how to store products safely, and what to do if something goes wrong, such as a splash, a spill, or a gas leak. They should know where to find the assessment and safety data sheets, and how to read the GHS pictograms and hazard statements on a label. The depth should match the role: a kitchen porter handling neat degreaser needs more than a waiter who rarely touches chemicals. The test is whether someone could, if asked, explain the risks and controls for the products they actually use.

Who Needs Training and When

Everyone who uses or could be exposed to hazardous substances needs training appropriate to their role. In hospitality that means kitchen porters and chefs for cleaning chemicals and degreasers, bar and cellar staff for line cleaner and carbon dioxide, housekeepers for the range of products they carry, and maintenance staff for drain cleaners and descalers. Training should happen before someone first uses a substance, not weeks into the job, which makes COSHH part of induction. It should be repeated when a new product is introduced, when a process changes, and as a refresher at sensible intervals. New, young, and agency staff deserve particular attention, because they are the least likely to know the chemicals and the most likely to be handed a spray bottle with no explanation.

Do You Need a Formal COSHH Course?

For most hospitality roles, a formal certificated course is not required by law. What the law requires is adequate training, and a well-run in-house briefing tied to your own assessment and products usually meets that better than a generic online course, because it covers the chemicals staff actually use. A short, recognised COSHH awareness course can still be worthwhile for the person who carries out the assessments, because it builds confidence in reading safety data sheets and applying the hierarchy of control. The distinction worth holding onto is between training the assessor, where a course adds real value, and training the wider team, where a practical briefing about your own products is usually the more effective and more honest approach.

Recording Training So It Counts

Training only protects you if you can show it happened. Keep a record of who was trained, on what, by whom, and when, with the person signing or otherwise confirming they understood. Tie the record to the substances or assessments it covers, so it is clear a porter was briefed on the degreaser they use rather than on COSHH in the abstract. Update the record when you train someone on a new product or run a refresher. Paper sign-off sheets work but are easily lost and hard to keep current across shifts; digital records timestamp each briefing and make it simple to show an inspector that the people on shift today have been trained on the chemicals they handle. An assessment with no training record reads as one that nobody has been told about.

What to do next

Add COSHH to your induction

Brief new starters on the chemicals they will use before they first handle them, not weeks into the job.

Match the briefing to each role

Give kitchen, bar, housekeeping, and maintenance staff training on the specific products they use rather than a generic talk.

Keep a dated training record per substance

Log who was trained, on what product or assessment, and when, and refresh it for new products and at sensible intervals.

Common mistakes to avoid

Mistake

Assuming an online certificate satisfies the training duty

Instead

A generic course rarely covers your actual products. Pair any course with a practical briefing on the specific chemicals each role uses.

Mistake

Training staff but keeping no record

Instead

Without a dated record tied to the substances covered, you cannot show the duty was met. Log every briefing and keep it current across shifts.

Frequently asked questions

Is COSHH training a legal requirement?

Yes. Providing information, instruction, and training is one of the employer duties under COSHH. Anyone who uses or could be exposed to hazardous substances must be trained appropriately for their role.

Do all staff need a formal COSHH certificate?

No. The law requires adequate training, not a specific certificate. A practical in-house briefing on the products staff actually use usually meets the duty better than a generic course, though a course can help the person who writes the assessments.

How often should COSHH training be repeated?

Train before first use, then again whenever a new product is introduced or a process changes, plus refreshers at sensible intervals. New, young, and agency staff should be prioritised because they are least familiar with the chemicals.

COSHH Regulation and Duties