Facilities management courses online in the UK: where to train and what employers look for

What employers look for in an online facilities management certificate

There is no single certificate the law requires for a facilities manager, so your employer decides what training the role needs. What the law does set is the duties the role carries: the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Workplace Regulations for the building and the people in it, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 for fire, the duty to manage asbestos, HSE's L8 for legionella and the duty of care for waste. When an employer checks a facilities management certificate, they usually look for:

• Content that follows UK law and HSE guidance. The duties of those in control of premises, the responsible person for fire, the duty to manage asbestos, legionella control under L8 and the duty of care for waste, with the differences in Scotland and Northern Ireland noted.
• The whole job, not one topic. Fire and emergency planning, statutory inspections, contractors and permits to work, space, energy and waste, a helpdesk, planned maintenance, budgets and records.
• A clear record. The course name, hours of learning and completion date.
• A refresh date. Law, guidance and the building itself change, so a refresh date matters.

Lift College's certificate records that you completed the Facilities Management Course, 4 hours of learning, your completion date and a recommended refresh date 3 years on. It is not a professional membership grade; if your employer wants one, this course is sound groundwork for it. Specialist tasks such as asbestos surveys, legionella risk assessments of complex systems, gas work, fixed electrical testing and fire risk assessments of high-risk buildings still need a competent specialist, and the course teaches you how to appoint and check one.

What the Lift College course covers

There are 7 short modules, each with a knowledge check, then a multiple choice final test with an 80% pass mark and unlimited free retakes.

1. What facilities management is. The scope of the role, hard services such as building fabric, plant and systems and soft services such as cleaning, security, catering and reception, in-house teams and outsourced providers, and the skills the job needs.
2. Health and safety in buildings. The Health and Safety at Work Act and the duties of those in control of premises, the Workplace Regulations on temperature, ventilation, lighting, space, floors, traffic routes, toilets, washing and rest facilities, risk assessment and accident reporting.
3. Fire safety and emergency planning. The responsible person under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and the law in Scotland and Northern Ireland, the fire risk assessment, fire doors, escape routes, alarm and extinguisher testing, drills, fire marshals, personal emergency evacuation plans, and planning for floods and power loss.
4. Statutory inspections and building compliance. The duty to manage asbestos and the asbestos register, legionella risk assessment and water checks under L8, gas safety checks, fixed electrical testing and portable appliance testing, lifts and lifting equipment, pressure systems, fire alarm and emergency lighting tests, and building a compliance calendar.
5. Managing services and contractors. Specifying and tendering services, service level agreements and key performance indicators, checking contractor competence, inductions, permits to work for hot work, roof work and confined spaces, sharing the asbestos register and supervising work on site.
6. Space, energy and waste. Space planning, desk ratios, hybrid working and moves, reducing energy and water use, waste segregation and the duty of care for waste including waste transfer notes and registered carriers, and hazardous waste such as fluorescent tubes and batteries.
7. People, budgets and records. Running a helpdesk, planned preventive maintenance and reactive repairs, asset registers, setting and tracking a facilities budget, business cases for capital work, complaints, and the records to keep for inspectors, insurers and auditors.

By the end you can explain what the facilities role is responsible for, describe the duties on those in control of premises, identify the duties of the responsible person for fire, plan the statutory inspections a building needs, select, brief and control contractors, apply good practice to space, energy and waste, and keep the records an inspector or insurer will ask for.

The law and guidance it is written around

• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (England, Wales and Scotland). Employers must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of their employees, and those in control of premises owe a duty to other people who use the building. Northern Ireland has the same duties in the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978.
• Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (England and Wales). The responsible person must carry out and keep up to date a fire risk assessment, put fire precautions in place, plan for emergencies and train staff. Scotland has similar duties under the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and Northern Ireland under the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006.
• Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 (Great Britain). The workplace must be kept in good repair, with reasonable temperature, ventilation, lighting and space, safe floors and traffic routes, and suitable toilets, washing, drinking water and rest facilities. Northern Ireland has its own Workplace Regulations with the same standards.
• Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, regulation 4 (Great Britain). Whoever is responsible for maintaining or repairing non-domestic premises must find out whether asbestos is present, record where it is and its condition, manage the risk and give the information to anyone who might disturb it, such as contractors.
• HSE Approved Code of Practice L8: legionella in water systems (Great Britain). How duty holders assess and control the risk from legionella in hot and cold water systems: appoint a responsible person, prevent or control the risk, keep records and review. It is not compulsory but it has special legal status.
• Environmental Protection Act 1990, section 34 (England, Wales and Scotland). Anyone who produces, keeps or disposes of business waste must store it safely, hand it only to a registered carrier or licensed site and keep a waste transfer note for at least two years. Northern Ireland has the same duty in the Waste and Contaminated Land (Northern Ireland) Order 1997.

How Lift College compares with other UK providers

Details below are as each provider shows them on its own course page, checked 27 October 2026. "Check provider" means the page did not state it. We could not find a facilities management course on iHASCO's site when we checked, so it is not in the table.

With Lift College the £19.99 is the full price for one learner, with nothing added at checkout, and the refresher is free when your recommended refresh date arrives. Retakes of the final test are free and unlimited.

Who it suits

The Facilities Management Course is for people new to facilities management, people given building responsibilities alongside another job, and anyone who wants to move into the role, across the UK. It is for you if:

• you have just become a facilities manager or want to move into the role
• you are an office manager, premises officer, caretaker or site manager who has been given responsibility for a building
• you have been named the responsible person for fire safety, asbestos or legionella and want to understand the whole picture
• you manage cleaning, security or maintenance contractors and need to know what good control looks like
• you own or run a small business from your own premises and need to know what the building requires of you

For the fire side of the job, see our fire marshal training guide. For water systems, see our legionella awareness guide, and for the duty to manage asbestos our asbestos awareness guide. See every course on the health and safety courses page or browse all Lift College CPD courses. Buying for a team? Open a free organisation account: every course is £16.99, and you can pay by card or invoice with your PO.

Enrol on the Facilities Management Course for £19.99 and start module 1 the minute you pay. Ask within 14 days of paying and we refund you in full.