National Highways sector schemes changes

National Highways has recently published a replacement for the 1800 Series. The new specification is called CP 483 Instruction for specifiers for CC 483 – Structural Steel. This specification is supported by GC101 General requirements for the Specification for Highway Works.

One of the main changes to CP 483 is that it now identifies a list of the technical capabilities that should be met by the organisations deemed competent to carry out bridgework. A copy of the technical capabilities and competence requirements are listed below and steelwork contractors should be registered to, and operating in compliance with a scheme that meets this. The Register of Qualified Steelwork Contractors (RQSC) Bridges meets all the technical capabilities and competencies set out in CP 483.

It was agreed that those with BCSA RQSC (Bridges) are fully compliant with the requirements listed in CP 483 and that steelwork contractors and their suppliers of mechanical fasteners and steel projects should continue their certification to the Register of Qualified Steelwork Contractors (Bridges), NHSS3 for mechanical fasteners, NHSS3b for steel projects and NHSS20 for steelwork contractors.

For projects under the 1800 series, no change is necessary. Steelwork contractors should be certified to RQSC (Bridges) and NHSS20, while those supplying fasteners and steel sections should be certified to NHSS3 and NHSS3b respectively. Also, those companies providing corrosion protection must be certified to NHSS19a.

This information will be circulated to clients – national and local authorities, main contractors and steelwork contractors.

Peter Walker
Director of Health, Safety & Training

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CP 483 Version 1.0.0, published: 30-Sep-2025
CP 483 Version 1.0.0 1. Structural steelwork

The technical capability and competence scheme shall have the following features:

1) the scheme has publicly available, documented requirements including assessment criteria and certification guidelines.

2) the scheme administrator maintains a publicly available, documented list of companies that hold current certification to the scheme.

3) the scheme administrator and the assessors have a detailed technical knowledge of current construction and fabrication practice and processes for structural steelwork.

4) the scheme is managed by a technical supervisory panel with over-sight of the operation of the scheme.

5) the technical supervisory panel is made up of representatives of steelwork industry experts and highways clients.

6) the technical supervisory panel has documented governance processes and structure of the panel.

7) the technical supervisory panel reviews the technical capability and competence scheme bi-annually or more frequently.

8) the scheme administrator carries out a visit to the organisation’s steelwork fabrication facilities or live sites at least every three years and carries out a desktop assessment in the intervening years.

9) the scheme administrator undertakes a technical assessment of the capability of the organisation to execute structural steelwork for a given category of contract value and technical complexity.

10) the scheme includes verification that the organisation has the financial and management resources to execute steelwork of the value and technical complexity for the category to which they are certified.

11) the scheme includes verification that the organisation has completed three steelwork contracts within the last three years of similar value and technical complexity to the category to which they are certified.

12) the scheme includes verification that the three referenced contracts required steelwork materials and workmanship to recognised bridgework standards.

13) the scheme includes verification that at least one of the three referenced contracts required thick plate welding of steelwork.

14) the scheme includes verification that the organisation has manufactured in-house at least 75% of the steelwork for each of the three referenced contracts, and

15) the scheme verifies that the organisation has a steelwork fabrication facility within the UK or European Union.