Who needs legionella training?

Employers and anyone in control of premises, landlords included, must identify and assess sources of legionella risk, manage and control them, and keep records. That is HSE's summary of the duty.

HSE's Approved Code of Practice, L8, expects the people who carry out the control measures to be properly trained, to get regular refresher training, and for those records to be kept. Anyone whose work could expose people to the risk should get suitable information, instruction and training. In practice that usually means:

• maintenance staff, caretakers and handypersons
• facilities and building managers
• plumbers and heating engineers
• landlords and letting agents who manage their own properties
• anyone who runs temperature checks, flushing or cleaning as part of a water safety plan

What the law says

The duties come from the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and COSHH, which covers biological agents such as legionella. HSE sets out how to comply in two documents: L8, the Approved Code of Practice, and HSG274, the technical guidance. L8 has a special legal status: if you are prosecuted and did not follow it, you have to show you complied with the law some other way.

Awareness training, the responsible person and risk assessment

Legionella awareness training is the level most staff need. It is not a risk assessment, and on its own it does not make anyone the responsible person.

HSE describes the responsible person as someone with sufficient authority, competence, skills, knowledge of the system and experience. Awareness training is a sensible first step towards that role, but the responsible person also needs to know the building and its water systems, and a risk assessor needs more again.

Legionella training for a team

Choose "For my team" above to buy places for several people at once, with a lower price per place for five or more. Everyone gets their own login and their own certificate, which gives you the training record L8 asks you to keep.

For what the law expects of employers in more detail, read our guide to legionella training for employers.

Legionella awareness or the water hygiene Blue Card?

They are different courses for different jobs. Legionella awareness is about controlling the risk in the water systems of buildings. The EUSR National Water Hygiene course gives you the Blue Card, which UK water companies require before you work on the clean water network. See all EUSR and water hygiene courses.