CPCS digger tickets on machines we own — below and above 10 tonnes
Excavator operators remain among the most employable people on any UK site, and the CPCS 360 excavator ticket is the qualification contractors ask for by name. We run excavator training year-round at our Staffordshire centre on our own fleet — compact machines through to 10-tonne-plus tracked excavators.
Courses are practical from day one: controls and manoeuvring, grading, trenching, working near services, then the CPCS theory and practical tests on the same machine you trained on. Maximum two candidates per machine.
CPCS A58 (360 below 10 tonnes) covers compact and mid-size excavators — utilities, landscaping, confined urban work.
CPCS A59 (360 above 10 tonnes) covers the larger tracked machines used in bulk earthworks and major construction. Most full-time digger drivers hold A59.
CPCS A59B covers wheeled 360 excavators ("rubber ducks"), and A59C / A12C add lifting-operations endorsements.
CPCS A12 (180 excavator / backhoe loader) covers the JCB-style wheeled backhoe.
Experienced operators can test in 1–2 days. Complete novices typically need 4–5 days of training before the CPCS tests. Nobody fails for lack of machine time here — two candidates per machine maximum.
If you want to work as a full-time excavator operator on major sites, A59 (above 10 tonnes) is the ticket employers ask for and covers the bigger money. A58 suits utilities, groundworks and house-building where compact machines dominate. Many operators add the second category later in a shorter conversion course.
Courses start from £495 for experienced-operator training and testing. Novice courses cost more due to extra machine days — call us for an all-in quote including HS&E test and card fees.
Yes — the A59C lifting operations endorsement (crane-mode excavator work: slinging, chains, lift plans) runs as a 1–2 day add-on from £300.
Check dates and prices online, or call us for advice on the right course for your experience