How to Check a Chainsaw or Climbing Ticket (UK)

How to Check a Chainsaw or Climbing Ticket

To check a City & Guilds (NPTC) certificate, scan its QR code, or enter the holder's name and the certificate's authentication code on City & Guilds' verification page. For Lantra, use Lantra's Certificate Checker (name and achievement date). Then check the person: a ticket shows they passed an assessment on a date, not how they work today.

Everything below was checked on the official pages on 25 October 2026. TreeBay doesn't check anyone's tickets: a ticket named in a listing, a job advert or a message is what that person says, so check it yourself.

Checking a City & Guilds (NPTC) Certificate

The NPTC chainsaw and climbing tickets are City & Guilds Certificates of Competence. Our NPTC chainsaw tickets guide explains which unit does what, and the old "CS" numbers you'll still see.

e-Certificates. City & Guilds issues e-certificates with a unique QR code and a certificate authentication code linked to the learner's name. Scan the QR code, or enter the learner's name and the authentication code on the e-Certificate verification page. e-Certificates issued from 1 April 2013 can be checked this way (City & Guilds: certificates and credentials).
Older certificates. Some older certificates don't carry an authentication code and may still be genuine: City & Guilds' customer support can help with those (verification page).
Paper certificates carry the City & Guilds logo, a security hologram and the awarding body emblem (City & Guilds).
Digital ID cards. After a Certificate of Competence, NPTC issues a digital ID card with the holder's latest achievements and a verified photograph (NPTC). To check one, enter the name, enrolment number and programme of study code on the ID card verification page; the card's QR code fills in the numbers for you.

Check that the units on the certificate are the ones the work needs: for chainsaw work from a rope and harness, that's climbing trees and aerial rescue (0039-22) and using a chainsaw from a rope and harness (0039-23), or the older CS38 and CS39.

Checking a Lantra Certificate or Card

Lantra's certificate checker page has three checkers, and says they're available 24/7:

Certificate Checker: the learner's name and the achievement date on the certificate. It checks the certificate and the person claiming to hold it.
Learner Checker: the learner's name, date of birth and postcode. It shows the courses that person has completed.
FISS & TTM Card Checker: printed and digital cards for two card schemes, fencing (FISS) and temporary traffic management (TTM).

The Certificate Checker needs only what's printed on the certificate. If you use the Learner Checker instead, ask the person first, and tell them it's for checking their tickets.

Then Check the Person

A certificate records that someone passed an assessment on a date. HSE's chainsaw guidance quotes the standard for tree work: "All workers who use a chainsaw should be competent to do so. Before using a chainsaw to carry out work on or in a tree, a worker should have received appropriate training and obtained a relevant certificate of competence or national competence award, unless they are undergoing such training and are adequately supervised" (HSE: Chainsaws at work, INDG317).

So as well as the ticket:

Ask what they've done since. HSE suggests refresher training every two to three years for occasional users and every five years for full-time users (INDG317).
Ask for references from people they've worked for.
See them work. A short skills test, or a trial shift. A trial shift for an employee is work, so pay at least the minimum wage for it: our first employee guide covers that.

Taking On a Subcontract Climber: What to Ask For

Certificates for the work (for chainsaw work from a rope and harness, 0039-22 and 0039-23), checked as above
Emergency first aid training. There's no legal requirement for a chainsaw operator to hold an emergency first aid at work certificate, but HSE recommends one, and says anyone working with chainsaws needs to be trained in emergency first aid, in particular how to control major bleeding (INDG317)
The record of the last thorough examination of their climbing kit. HSE says climbing equipment needs a thorough examination by a competent person (HSE: lifting equipment in arboriculture); for equipment that lifts people and is exposed to wear, LOLER sets at least every 6 months, or the interval in an examination scheme (reg 9)
Who will be on the ground. HSE says that in an emergency "a reliable means of rescue must be available and people trained in tree rescue should be available at each work site" (HSE: lifting equipment in arboriculture)

Proving Your Own Tickets

City & Guilds (NPTC): if your centre sent you an e-certificate, you can use it without logging in anywhere, and an employer can check it with its QR code or authentication code (City & Guilds: e-Certificates for learners). Keep it, and your digital ID card, on your phone.
Lantra: your e-cards and e-certificates are in your Lantra Learner Hub account (Lantra).

Lost a Certificate?

City & Guilds (NPTC). Within one calendar month of the date it was issued, ask your training centre: it requests the replacement for you. After that, apply on City & Guilds' online application and payment form. The archive search costs £50 plus VAT where applicable, isn't refunded if the record isn't found, and takes up to three weeks (City & Guilds: replacement certificates). Replacement NPTC ID cards go through the same form (NPTC). If someone applies for you, they need your signed consent form and a copy of your passport or driving licence.

Lantra. Lantra's checker page sends you to its contact page to order a replacement; it doesn't give a price.

When your tickets are in order, browse job adverts and training courses on TreeBay.