AITT welcomes the growth in accredited training — and reminds employers that the certificates they can’t see are the ones that should worry them most.
More than 105,000 accredited certificates for materials handling equipment (MHE) training were issued in 2025, according to the latest figures from the Accrediting Bodies Association for Workplace Transport (ABA). The total — 105,899 — is up from 103,196 in 2024, continuing a trend of year-on-year growth in accredited provision.
The Association of Industrial Truck Trainers (AITT), one of the ABA’s founding members, welcomes the increase. But it comes with a familiar challenge.
“Every one of those 105,899 certificates represents an operator who has been properly trained, properly tested, and properly certified,” said Liam Knight, Managing Director of AITT. “That matters. But the number we can’t count is the one that keeps us awake at night: how many non-accredited certificates were issued alongside them?”
No one knows. And in an industry where a poorly trained operator can injure themselves, a colleague, or a member of the public in seconds, that uncertainty has real consequences.
2025 ABA Certificate Figures at a Glance
Total certificates issued: 105,899 (up from 103,196 in 2024)
Counterbalance — novice, experienced & conversion: 41,379
Counterbalance — refresher: 48,721
Reach truck — novice, experienced & conversion: 9,223
Reach truck — refresher: 6,576
One figure in this year’s data stands out. For Counterbalance training — by far the largest category, accounting for 90,100 certificates in total — refresher training outstripped initial training. 48,721 refresher certificates were issued, compared to 41,379 for novice, experienced, and conversion courses combined.
“That’s a really encouraging sign,” said Knight. “Refresher training is often the first thing that gets cut when budgets tighten. Seeing it at this volume tells us employers aren’t just ticking a box to get someone on the truck — they’re investing in keeping their people competent over time. That’s exactly what the law requires, and exactly what keeps workplaces safe.”
Reach truck volumes also recovered in 2025, with novice, experienced, and conversion training up on the previous year. AITT sees this as a sign of renewed investment in higher-density warehousing operations — environments where the consequences of inadequate training are particularly acute.
“Growth is good news,” Knight added. “But we have to be honest about what it doesn’t tell us. 105,899 is a strong number — and still only a fraction of the operators working on MHE across the UK. Every employer who doesn’t ask for accredited training is taking a risk they probably don’t fully understand.”
AITT is calling on employers to take a straightforward step when arranging any MHE training:
•Ask whether the training provider is accredited by an ABA member body
•Insist on seeing the accreditation before booking
•Refuse to accept certificates that cannot be verified against a recognised standard
•Use the ABA member body websites to check accredited providers in their area
For more information visit AITT at www.aitt.co.uk or call 01530 810867.
Comments are closed.