Display Screen Equipment (DSE) Training: Legal Requirements and What to Cover
DSE training is one of the few pieces of workplace training that UK law names outright. If someone in your business uses a computer, laptop or tablet daily for continuous spells of an hour or more, the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 make them a "DSE user", and you must train them in the safe use of their workstation before they start. This page sets out what the regulations actually require, what good DSE training covers, how it fits with the workstation assessment, and how to handle home and hybrid workers.
Who it applies to: workers who use display screen equipment daily, for continuous periods of an hour or more (HSE).
When: before the person becomes a user, and again whenever their workstation is substantially modified (Regulation 6).
Alongside it: a workstation assessment, planned breaks, and a free eye test on request.
What the DSE regulations require
The 1992 regulations give employers a short list of duties towards DSE users. HSE summarises them as four things you must do: carry out a DSE workstation assessment, reduce the risks it finds (including making sure users take breaks or change activity), provide an eye test if a user asks for one, and provide training and information.
The training duty sits in Regulation 6. It says the employer must ensure each user, and each person who is about to become a user, "is provided with adequate health and safety training in the use of any workstation upon which he may be required to work". Since a 2002 amendment, the regulation adds that for new starters the training must be provided before they become a user. A second paragraph requires fresh training whenever the organisation of a workstation is substantially modified.
The regulations apply wherever the user works. HSE lists fixed workstations, mobile workers, home workers and hot-desking staff as all being within scope. They do not apply to people who use a screen infrequently or only for short periods, and employers have no duty to provide breaks or eye tests for the self-employed.
Why the training matters
HSE links poor DSE use and badly set-up workstations to pain in the neck, shoulders, back, arms, wrists and hands, along with fatigue and eye strain. The causes are often a combination of small things: a chair at the wrong height, a screen facing a window, a laptop used on a sofa for hours. Training is how users learn to spot and fix those things themselves, which is cheaper and quicker than waiting for a complaint.
It also makes the assessment work. HSE's own workstation checklist is designed for users to fill in, and its guidance says users can complete it themselves "if users are suitably trained". Without training, a self-assessment is a box-ticking exercise.
What DSE training should cover
The regulations do not prescribe a syllabus. HSE's leaflet Working with display screen equipment (INDG36) suggests explaining the following to users, and it is a sound basis for any course or briefing:
- The risks and your controls. What DSE work can do to the body and eyes, and what the business has put in place: adjustable chairs, monitor arms, break arrangements, how to request kit.
- Adjusting furniture. Seat height, back support, footrests. HSE's guide is that forearms should be roughly horizontal and the eyes level with the top of the screen.
- Organising the workstation. Keeping the keyboard and mouse within easy reach to avoid awkward or frequently repeated stretching, room for documents, and placing the screen to avoid glare and reflections from windows and lights.
- Cleaning the screen and mouse. A small item, but smeared or flickering screens cause eye strain; HSE notes that characters that flicker or move may mean the equipment needs servicing.
- Reporting problems. Who to contact for help, and that aches, pains or discomfort should be reported early. A complaint of discomfort is one of the triggers for a new assessment.
- Using the checklist. How to complete the DSE workstation checklist, if users will be assessing their own workstations.
Two topics are worth adding even though they sit under other regulations. The first is breaks: the law requires work to be planned so users get breaks or changes of activity, and HSE advises that short, frequent breaks beat long, infrequent ones, giving 5 to 10 minutes every hour as better than 20 minutes every two hours. The second is eye tests: tell users they can ask for one and how your arrangement works.
Training and the workstation assessment
Training and assessment are separate duties, but they work as a pair. HSE says an assessment must look at the whole workstation (equipment, furniture and conditions), the job being done, and any special requirements, such as a user with a disability. You must assess when a new workstation is set up, when a new user starts, when a workstation or the way it is used changes, and when users complain of pain or discomfort.
Many businesses use software that trains users and walks them through a self-assessment. HSE accepts this as a way to involve users, but warns that the software "is not an assessment on its own". A trained assessor should look at the results, clear up doubtful points, give feedback and make sure problems are actually fixed, for example by changing the equipment.
If you have many users, HSE suggests appointing competent assessors and training them in how to review checklists, tackle problems a user cannot solve, know when to seek further help, and record significant findings. Under general risk assessment rules, businesses with five or more employees must write their significant findings down.
DSE training for home and hybrid workers
HSE's guidance says the regulations can apply to staff who work at home permanently or long term, and to hybrid workers who routinely split their time between home and the office. Where they do apply:
- You must train home workers in the use of their workstation and equipment, including good posture and good working practices.
- You usually do not need to visit their home. Workers can complete a self-assessment, provided they have been given suitable training, such as how to use an ergonomic checklist.
- If someone works in both places, the assessment should cover both.
- If the assessment shows they need equipment, such as a separate keyboard or a laptop stand, you cannot charge them for it.
Laptops deserve their own section in any training. HSE's advice is to use a docking station or a firm surface with a full-sized keyboard and mouse wherever possible, raise the screen so the user sits comfortably, and allow more changes of activity where awkward postures cannot be avoided.
Eye tests and glasses
Users who ask for an eye test must be given one, and the employer pays. HSE says it should be a full eye and eyesight test by an optometrist or doctor. You can choose how to arrange it: let staff book their own optician and reimburse them, or send everyone to one practice. Users are entitled to further tests at regular intervals and if screen work causes visual fatigue.
Glasses are narrower. You only pay if the test shows the person needs glasses specifically for screen work, prescribed for the distance at which they view the screen, and then only for a basic pair of frames and lenses. If their normal glasses are suitable, you pay nothing. HSE notes that there is no evidence DSE work causes permanent damage to the eyes, although long spells can cause tired eyes, headaches and temporary short-sightedness.
Keeping a record
The regulations do not say you must record DSE training, but you will want evidence if an employee later claims a work-related injury or HSE asks how you comply. A simple record works: who was trained, when, by what method, and the date of their assessment. Tie refresher training to the triggers in the law, such as an office move, new equipment or a change in working pattern, rather than a fixed annual cycle that nobody reads.
DSE training belongs in the same place as your other people policies. If you are building out a compliance programme, see our guide to building a compliance programme, and our page on workplace surveillance ethics if you are considering break-monitoring or activity software for remote staff. More guides are on the e-Business Ethics homepage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is DSE training a legal requirement?
Yes, for DSE users. Regulation 6 of the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 requires employers to give users adequate health and safety training in the use of their workstation, before they become users, and again when a workstation is substantially modified.
Who counts as a DSE user?
HSE defines DSE users as workers who use display screen equipment daily, for continuous periods of an hour or more. Staff who use a screen occasionally or only for short spells are not covered by the regulations, although the same good practice still helps them.
How often should DSE training be repeated?
The law does not set a fixed interval. Training is required before someone becomes a user and whenever the organisation of their workstation is substantially modified. Many employers add a short refresher when they review assessments, for example after an office move or a switch to hybrid working.
Do home workers need DSE training?
Yes, if they are DSE users. HSE says the regulations can apply to people who work at home long term or split their time between home and the workplace, and that employers must train them in the use of their workstation, including posture and good working practices. Trained home workers can complete a self-assessment.
Is an online DSE course enough?
It can deliver the training, but HSE is clear that assessment software is not an assessment on its own. A trained assessor should review the results, clear up doubtful points and make sure problems are put right.
Does the employer have to pay for glasses?
Only if an eye test shows the employee needs glasses specifically for screen work at the distance the screen is viewed. The employer must then pay for a basic pair of frames and lenses. If an ordinary prescription is suitable, the employer does not pay.