David Cant

First week on the job. 19 years old. He didn't want to ask questions. Didn't want to look stupid in front of the lads. So he guessed. We found him in the trench without shoring. Alone. Digging away. I wasn't angry. I was frustrated. Afterwards, I sat with him and said, "The only dumb question on site is the one that gets you hurt". Check on your new lads. Because the ones staying quiet are the ones who need you most.

Speeding is serious and often deadly - No argument there. But framing every speeder as either a deliberate criminal or an incompetent driver oversimplifies human factors and road realities. The real fix isn't just 'prosecute them all, no exceptions' It's better engineering and education that treats ALL road users as fallible humans rather than villains.

@RabScott2 You’re going to mention cyclists again aren’t you? Stop pivoting away from speeding and tell me how do we solve the problem of drivers speeding?

Speeding drivers are either aware they are speeding, and are therefore deliberately committing an offence, or they are unaware they are speeding and therefore not competent enough to be driving at all. All speeding drivers deserve to be prosecuted, no exceptions.

@_QuickFang @ahazard_hunter @TommyVFrankland What makes you think a 19 year old passing a H&S test in 45 minutes and a CSCS Card would stop someone from jumping into a excavation without shoring? Experienced groundworkers even do it.

@davidgcant @ahazard_hunter @TommyVFrankland if your kid had had it, he should have known not to be digging holes without properly shoring up the sides.

First week on the job. 19 years old. He didn't want to ask questions. Didn't want to look stupid in front of the lads. So he guessed. We found him in the trench without shoring. Alone. Digging away. I wasn't angry. I was frustrated. Afterwards, I sat with him and said, "The only dumb question on site is the one that gets you hurt". Check on your new lads. Because the ones staying quiet are the ones who need you most.

@Arron_Tweets_ 😂 it's a 10.

@davidgcant But is it a 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 we need to know so we are safe or going to die

Okay, wild idea I know, but let's normalise risk assessment…

@MikeyCycling @Professer_Blue Phone use while driving is genuinely dangerous and deserves enforcement. Catching people might feel satisfying to you, but tech solutions like better hands-free mandates or auto-detection systems do far more for real cultural shift than turning a safety issue into a grudge match.

@Professer_Blue Yes, you are defending bad driving like this. I do this so that one of these drivers doesn't end one of your loved ones. You tweet like this because you'd rather have the phone driving and don't care about the lives of your loved ones.

Use your brain, Andy. Who do you think owns the vehicle? His employees will get the NIP from the police anyway, so they’ll still find out. This is about culture change. It’s about making phone use whilst driving unacceptable by publicly exposing it to thousands of people.

@ahazard_hunter @_QuickFang @TommyVFrankland You're right. They can create a false sense of security. Most site managers see the card and mentally tick a box. The card becomes a substitute for actual supervision and on-the-job safety assessment.

@davidgcant @_QuickFang @TommyVFrankland It's simply a revenue generating racket. Many alternative training resources exceed the CSCS card scheme.

@ahazard_hunter You got it.

@davidgcant People who aren't in the right frame of mind can often lead to a bad outcome. Watch and support them.

6:00am was the safety briefing. A contractor didn’t sleep. Arrived late. Up fighting with his wife most of the night. He was fuming. Grabbed his tools. Then rushed on to the site. Was not in the right mindset. This is when your safety system either works or it doesn’t.

@TommyVFrankland @_QuickFang Renewal for a card is a cash machine, not a safety check. There’s no meaningful reassessment of whether the cardholder is still fit, current, or competent. It can create a false sense of security for workers. Real competence comes from supervised experience, not a laminated card.

@davidgcant @_QuickFang I thought the same. Why wasn't the NVQ 2 high enough. Still had to get the card because of the amount of sites I had to go to.

@_QuickFang @TommyVFrankland The card doesn’t prove competence, it proves you passed a test which has changed very little in 20 years. A worker with a valid CSCS card who hasn’t been on site in 3 years is treated as safer than an uncarded worker who’s been doing the job daily - which is absurd.

@davidgcant @TommyVFrankland I think it’s sensible. A lot of kids have no NVQ and no idea of safe practices or modern processes. Things change all the time and it’s good to stay abreast. I had to do my refresher last year and found it helpful

@Arron_Tweets_ Sounds about right. Ensure what’s written is right and aligns with how you do business.

@davidgcant I think external reviews are key to having a defensible management system that is for the end user and organisational protection.

Update on HSE case. Working with a sharp H&S lawyer, you quickly realise that everything a company has put in place is under scrutiny… and all that paperwork? It can hang you out to dry just as easily as no paperwork at all.

@_QuickFang @TommyVFrankland I need a CSCS card to get on site and have to pass the touch screen test. Have done so for 20 years. Daft for people who are in H&S if you ask me. The NVQ’s people have to get for the cards should be enough IMO.

@davidgcant @TommyVFrankland Don't book it through a third party, book it ditrectly through JIB and I think it's about £25, pick a test centre near you. Download the app - £6 and play it like a game untill you've memorised the whole lot. It's really helpful for finding your way round a site if you're new.

@_QuickFang @TommyVFrankland You're right but the scheme is a light touch on H&S arrangements/knowledge. It's simply a set of questions and answers people can memorise to pass a test. Quickly forgotten. A money making scheme at best. I'm not a fan to be honest. 🤓

@davidgcant @TommyVFrankland Among many other things it covers working in ground excavations and the importance of shoring up the sides.

@TommyVFrankland @_QuickFang No problem.

@davidgcant @_QuickFang Ah OK. Just thought you wanted to know what it was. Soz

@TommyVFrankland @_QuickFang I know what it is, I was just curious to learn what was meant by the comment “that's why we have CSCS in the UK”

@davidgcant @_QuickFang Construction skills certification scheme (building site passport).

@_specofdirt I know what you mean. There's always a workaround, you’ve just got to find the right one.

@davidgcant It’s hard scheduling shut down work in retail. Sometimes bandaids are the only viable option.

Just fill it with RS 88 joint compound and throw a polisher on it. Good to go.

@_QuickFang I'm curious, tell me more.

@davidgcant This is why we have CSCS in the UK

Walking into a meeting, my client said to me, “I want you to go hardball on CDM with this lot Dave…” I wasn't sure what to expect…. Turned out the developer wanted to do things under the radar.