How long should you keep training records in the UK?

A new starter hands over their CSCS card, IPAF licence and first aid certificate, and copies go in their file. Years later they've long left, but the copies are still there. Is that allowed? The short answer: most employers keep training records for the length of employment plus six years. The longer answer depends on what kind of record it is.

Training records are personal data

A copy of a card or certificate contains a name, often a photo and a card number. That's personal data, so UK GDPR applies. Its storage limitation principle says you keep personal data no longer than necessary for the purpose you hold it for.

For training records that purpose is clear: proving a worker was competent for the job. To your client, an auditor or the HSE. While someone works for you, you obviously need them.

After someone leaves: employment plus six years

There's no single statutory retention period for training certificates. The common practice is length of employment plus six years, because six years is the general limitation period for civil claims under the Limitation Act 1980. If a former worker, a client or an injured third party brings a claim, the training record is often your evidence that the right person was trained and authorised.

Personal injury claims normally have a three-year limit, but that runs from the date of knowledge, which can be much later. That's why many employers keep records for safety-critical training longer. Whatever you choose, write it down in your retention policy and apply it consistently.

Records with their own fixed periods

Some records that sit next to training records have a legal period of their own:

Record	Keep for	Rule
Training certificates and card copies	commonly employment + 6 years	limitation period, your policy
Health surveillance records (COSHH)	40 years	COSHH Regulations
Health records of workers exposed to asbestos	40 years	Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012
Accident book entries and RIDDOR records	at least 3 years	RIDDOR / Social Security rules
Right to work checks	employment + 2 years	Home Office guidance

The 40-year periods matter in construction: diseases caused by asbestos or hazardous substances can appear decades after exposure.

Inspection and examination reports

Reports for equipment rather than people aren't personal data, so the GDPR principle doesn't apply. Their own rules do:

• LOLER thorough examinations: keep a report until the next one is made, or for two years, whichever is later; the first examination after installation is kept as long as you use the equipment. See LOLER examination intervals.
• PUWER inspections: keep the record until the next inspection.

In practice many firms keep equipment records for the life of the machine. After an incident, a complete history is the best evidence you have.

Making it work in practice

1. Agree one retention period for leavers' training records and put it in your policy.
2. Mark leavers straight away, so you know when the clock starts.
3. Review on a schedule, for example quarterly, rather than when someone asks.
4. Keep what you need, not more. A front-of-card copy is usually enough; a National Insurance number doesn't belong on a training matrix.

And in Certly?

In Certly every worker's current cards and certificates sit in one place, with the expiry date and the file attached. Leavers are never deleted automatically: you decide when, so your retention policy stays in your hands. Before you clear a file, create an evidence pack PDF to archive it.

Still working from lever arch files? Scan the folder and drop it into Certly in one go: every certificate is read and queued for you to check. A good moment to clear out what's past its retention date. For what belongs in the matrix in the first place, see the skills matrix template guide.

This article sets out common retention periods and is not legal advice.