Planning Lifts (AP) (A61 / N401)

Think of evidence as anything that shows you planning and authorising lifts safely and in line with company procedures.

Visual proof

Clear photos or short screen-captures of you:

• marking out crane pads or exclusion zones on site

• annotating duty charts or CAD drawings for a lift plan

• briefing the lifting team before the first lift

• checking wind speed or ground conditions during a lift

Site paperwork

This will include documents that carry your name or signature and prove you follow company systems—completed lift plans, RAMS, crane supplier data sheets, ground-bearing calculations, daily lifting schedules, toolbox-talk registers and near-miss or hazard cards you have raised.

Witness statement

A brief note from a project manager, lifting manager or Appointed Person confirming they have seen you prepare and authorise safe lift plans on a live site.

General safety and productivity

Anything that shows you help keep the lifting operation safe and on programme counts: coordination-meeting minutes you led, emails or radio logs where you re-sequenced lifts to avoid clashes, or records of briefings you delivered to the crane team.

The timing is largely up to you. Your assessor can only start reviewing your portfolio once you’ve uploaded your evidence, so the sooner everything is in the e-Portfolio, the sooner the process moves forward.

Some learners upload all their photos, videos and paperwork in a couple of days, schedule their discussion straight away and finish in less than one week. Others spread it out over several weeks because of shifts or site access.

In short, the pace is in your hands—submit your evidence promptly, respond to feedback quickly, and you can complete the NVQ just as fast.

Yes. Appointed Persons who have completed the Level 5 Planning Lifts NVQ only need to complete one additional unit from the Level 4 Crane Supervisor qualification to gain the Crane Supervisor endorsement — as long as they have also passed the A62 Crane Supervisor technical test.

The required unit is:

Allocating and Monitoring the Use of Plant, Equipment or Machinery

If you're completing the Level 5 Planning Lifts NVQ with us, we can deliver this additional unit alongside your main portfolio for an additional £395 + VAT.

By completing both at the same time, you’ll be able to upgrade to the Blue CPCS or NPORS card for both Appointed Person and Crane Supervisor in a single submission.

Click the “Book your NVQ” button and you’ll be taken to our short online profiling form. The form collects the details we need to register you and asks you to attach a clear photo of the front and back of your CPCS or NPORS card.

When the form arrives, one of our assessors phones you for a brief chat. The call confirms that the NVQ is a good fit—that you have the right skills, site access, machine availability and can gather the required evidence.

If the assessor is happy, we email an invoice. The profiling call is free and there is no obligation: if you decide not to go ahead, simply ignore the invoice. If you do want to proceed, pay the invoice and we will enrol you and pass your details to the assessor the same day, so you can start collecting evidence straight away.

Yes, if you are a CITB-registered employer. This NVQ is eligible for the short-qualification grant of £600 (claimable on completion by the employer).

Only the company (not the individual learner) can make the claim, and the application must be submitted to CITB within 52 weeks of the achievement date.

If you are a sole trader or limited company already on the CITB register, you can still claim; private individuals who are not levy-registered cannot.

To confirm eligibility, call the CITB Levy & Grants team on 0344 994 4455 (Mon–Fri, 08:00–18:00) or email levy.grant@citb.co.uk to confirm your registration and grant status.