CLOCS Standard
The CLOCS Standard, short for Construction Logistics and Community Safety, sets out what construction clients, principal contractors, site operators and fleet operators must do to manage road risk created by vehicles servicing construction work. It is not an accreditation badge. It is a set of operational requirements aimed at safer, leaner and greener construction logistics, with a particular focus on protecting vulnerable road users around sites and on the routes that feed them. Version 5 was published in November 2024 and applies in full from 1 March 2025.
For a transport operator, the practical question is whether your routes, vehicles, drivers and records would stand up when a principal contractor checks them before your first delivery.
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What the CLOCS Standard requires for fleet operators
For fleet operators, CLOCS sets minimum requirements for management, vehicles, drivers and operations covering goods vehicles over 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight that deliver to or collect from CLOCS controlled sites. The client decides in their own contract whether the requirements also reach lighter vehicles, and Version 5 adds a clear expectation that vans and other vehicles under 3.5 tonnes used for construction logistics also have appropriate accreditation or a management system behind them.
Most operators evidence the fleet requirements through FORS Silver, because contractors recognise it and it maps closely to the CLOCS vehicle, driver and management expectations. CLOCS describes the benchmark as the standard set out as Silver in the FORS Standard. It does not name FORS Silver as the only permitted route. Other recognised schemes, or a documented management system that genuinely addresses the same ground, can be accepted where the procurer agrees.
The vehicle requirements centre on the nearside blind spot: side under-run protection, a camera and monitoring system, a nearside detection sensor system and an audible left-turn warning, supported by clear external hazard warning signage. Driver requirements include Safe Urban Driving for those working in urban environments. Version 5 also expects a work-related road risk policy, a drug and alcohol testing programme covering all drivers regardless of vehicle type, and a workable method of checking that any subcontracted haulage meets the same standard.
Andrew Logan, Operator Licence Ltd: “When I review an operator before a CLOCS project, I do not start with the certificate. I start with three things: a recent route risk assessment for the site, the last month of walkaround checks for the vehicles allocated to it, and the driver briefing record.”
How CLOCS is enforced across the supply chain
CLOCS works through the supply chain rather than through a single central enforcement body. Clients and developers write CLOCS requirements into tender and contract documents. Principal contractors then have to procure site and fleet operations that comply, check that vehicles and drivers meet the standard, and report performance up to the client.
In practice, compliance is tested in three ways. Pre-qualification, where you provide accreditation evidence and policies before you are approved. Gate checks, where a vehicle and driver are inspected on arrival and can be turned away. And site monitoring assessments, where an assessor reviews how deliveries are actually being managed against the standard.
Major infrastructure and construction programmes have used CLOCS style requirements for years, particularly in and around London, and the model has spread well beyond the capital. Operators usually meet CLOCS expectations long before the first load moves, so the work of getting routes, vehicles, drivers and records aligned needs to happen at the bidding stage.
CLOCS and the Direct Vision Standard in London
In London, CLOCS sits alongside the Direct Vision Standard run by Transport for London. The two are separate schemes and meeting one does not satisfy the other. DVS gives every HGV over 12 tonnes a star rating from 0 to 5 based on how much the driver can see directly from the cab. Since 28 October 2024, an HGV over 12 tonnes operating in Greater London needs a rating of 3 stars or higher, or it must be fitted with the Progressive Safe System to qualify for an HGV Safety Permit.
CLOCS does not automatically grant a DVS permit, and a DVS permit does not make a fleet CLOCS compliant. The useful overlap is practical rather than legal. An operator equipping vehicles for FORS Silver and CLOCS will often have already fitted much of the camera, sensor and signage equipment that the Progressive Safe System expects, which reduces duplication but does not remove the need to apply for the permit separately for each vehicle.
If you are bidding for CLOCS controlled work, download the current Version 5 standard and compare it line by line with what your operation actually does, not just what your policies say it does.
CLOCS Standard: six key requirements for fleet operators
The fleet operator requirements in CLOCS Version 5, published November 2024 and in force from 1 March 2025. Each one should be paired with evidence a principal contractor or CLOCS assessor can check.
Prepare evidence for recognised fleet accreditation or an accepted equivalent system, nearside blind spot safety equipment, driver competence and site briefings, a live work-related road risk policy, a drug and alcohol testing programme, and control over subcontracted haulage.
FORS Silver Benchmark
FORS Silver accreditation demonstrates CLOCS compliance for HGVs over 3.5t. It is the primary and most straightforward route to satisfying CLOCS fleet requirements.
Vehicle Safety Equipment
Side guards, front and nearside cameras, proximity sensors, and audible warning on all vehicles over 3.5t GVW. Identical to FORS Silver vehicle requirements.
Safe Urban Driving
All drivers operating in urban environments must hold Safe Urban Driving (SUD) training from a FORS Professional–accredited provider.
WRRR Policy
A documented Work-Related Road Risk management policy covering driver fitness, route planning, vehicle suitability, and incident investigation.
Subcontractor Compliance
Fleet operators must monitor subcontractor CLOCS or equivalent compliance. Evidence of monitoring is reviewed by the principal contractor.
Version 5 (2024)
CLOCS V5 published November 2024, in force from 1 March 2025. Adds ‘should’ requirements for vans and cargo bikes under 3.5t. Available free at clocs.org.uk.
Latest Operator Licence Information
Current UK-wide operator licence figures pulled from the live weekly register.
Latest Operator Licence Information
Current UK-wide operator licence snapshot
Live weekly-register figures across mapped UK operator licence regions.
Need to demonstrate CLOCS compliance?
Operator Licence Ltd can help review your evidence, identify the gaps and connect you with the right specialist support for CLOCS controlled work. That means checking routes, vehicle safety equipment, Safe Urban Driving records, work-related road risk policy and subcontractor controls against what a principal contractor will actually ask for, then helping you reach FORS Silver where that is the practical route.
CLOCS compliance checklist for fleet operators
Run this before contractor pre-qualification, not after a vehicle has been turned away at the gate.
Confirm your fleet accreditation. FORS Silver is the usual route for HGV operators. If you are not at Silver, identify the gap now and plan the audit timeline.
Check that vehicles over 3.5 tonnes have working side under-run protection, camera and monitoring system, nearside sensors, audible warning and hazard signage, and that the daily walkaround check confirms it.
Confirm all relevant urban drivers hold current Safe Urban Driving certificates. Prepare a site specific route risk assessment and keep a signed driver briefing record for each project.
Keep a live work-related road risk policy covering driver fitness, route planning, vehicle suitability, loading and unloading, and post-incident review. Hold a drug and alcohol testing programme covering all drivers.
Have a documented process for checking subcontractor compliance where haulage is hired in. For London work, confirm HGVs over 12 tonnes also hold a valid DVS HGV Safety Permit.
Related Accreditation Guidance
FORS Silver
FORS Silver is the usual practical route to demonstrating CLOCS fleet compliance. What Silver requires beyond Bronze and how to prepare for the audit.
Includes:
FORS Silver accreditation
FORS Bronze
FORS Bronze is required before Silver. The Bronze audit covers operator licence, maintenance records, driver management and safety policies.
Includes:
FORS Bronze accreditation
FORS Audit Preparation
How to prepare for FORS Bronze and Silver audits that underpin CLOCS compliance, including documentation, vehicle equipment and training records.
Includes:
FORS audit preparation
