Become a Certification Support Officer (CSO)
How to get and maintain a CSO qualification, and what to do if you want to end your authorisation.
Applies to England, Scotland and Wales
CSOs are non-veterinary personnel who are authorised by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) to support Certifying Officers for export health certification for animal products (excluding germplasm and live animals) throughout Great Britain.
They are also known as Animal Health Paraprofessionals (AHPs).
All CSOs are authorised under the policy for APHA authorisation of export Certification Support Officers (CSOs) in Great Britain (ET175). You must read this document before becoming an CSO and refer to it while you’re authorised.
Training and requirements
Eligibility
To become a CSO you must:
- be over the age of 18
- have the right to work in the UK
- have a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check with no recorded convictions
- be proficient in English and able to communicate for the purposes of the role of an AHP
- have no known conflict of interest in the proposed work
You must also have at least 3 A levels, one of which must be in a science or food technology subject. Equivalent qualifications, such as Scottish Highers, non-UK qualifications and all UK university degrees, are also eligible.
Your employer will be asked to confirm your eligibility.
If you do not have any of these qualifications, you may be able to apply for CSO eligibility based on relevant experience (ET222). To be eligible, you should have at least 3 years’ experience working in a regulatory, industrial food processing environment, or as a veterinary paraprofessional.
Complete the training with Improve International
To become a CSO you must complete the Official Controls Qualification (OCQ)(AHP) - CSO qualification. This consists of an online course and exam.
Register with Improve International to access the CSO training
Get authorised by APHA
When you have completed your qualification, APHA’s Official Veterinarian (OV) team will grant your full CSO authorisation and send you an official CSO stamp with your unique CSO number on it.
To get authorised, you must:
- be regarded by the Agency as suitable for carrying out tasks on behalf of ministers, taking into account any previous performance as an official
- work under the direction of a Certifying Officer (CO) who is either an OV or a Food Competent Certifying Officer (FCCO)
Authorisation can take up to 10 working days. If you’re successful, APHA will notify you by email and send your CSO stamp to your employer’s address.
You must not carry out any CSO work until you receive confirmation of your authorisation by email and your CSO stamp by post.
Maintaining your qualification and authorisation
Your OCQ(AHP) - CSO qualification must be revalidated every 4 years by completing an online course and exam. Improve International will send you reminders of your revalidation deadline by email.
Your authorisation will be suspended if you do not maintain your qualification. If you do not revalidate by the deadline your authorisation will be suspended and you’ll have 6 months to revalidate it before it expires.
If your authorisation expires you’ll need to complete your training again to reauthorise.
Extensions and exceptions
You can apply for an extension or exception if you cannot revalidate your qualification before the deadline.
Extensions and exceptions can only be considered in certain situations. Details can be found in the TR588 application form.
Request extension or exception to OCQ training requirement (TR588).
Maintaining your records
You are responsible for making sure all your details recorded on Improve International are correct.
If you need a replacement CSO stamp
If your CSO stamp has been lost, damaged or stolen you must complete the OV45 form and send it to APHA’s OV team. The OV team will send you a replacement stamp within 10 working days of receiving the form.
If your stamp has been stolen you must report the theft to the police. If you are given a crime reference number you must include it on the OV45 form.
How to stop being a CSO
You can either:
- deregister as a CSO (form OV56)
- allow your authorisation to expire by choosing not to revalidate your qualification
Deregistering as a CSO will stop all official CSO communications. If you do not deregister, official communications related to your qualifications will stop after your qualifications expire, but you will continue to receive some CSO briefing notes.
How to destroy your official CSO stamp
When your authorisation ends you must destroy your official CSO stamp. You can do this yourself or post it to APHA’s OV team to do it for you. If you want to destroy your stamp yourself, you must:
- Peel off the rubber containing the unique number.
- Cut the rubber off and dispose of the rubber and number separately.
- Take a picture of the destroyed stamp and email it to CSCOneHealthOVTeam@apha.gov.uk.