DSE Regulations 1992: what it requires

The Display Screen Equipment Regulations 1992 cover workstation assessment, training and eye tests. They apply to display screen users, including people working from home.

What it actually says

For anyone becoming a user, “his employer shall ensure that he is provided with adequate health and safety training in the use of any workstation upon which he may be required to work”

Regulation 6(1), DSE Regulations 1992, on legislation.gov.ukRegulation 6(2) adds that training must be repeated whenever the organisation of the workstation is substantially modified, which is what makes a move to hybrid working a trigger.Quoted to the end of the opening words; the caption says what the provision goes on to require.

Statutory InstrumentApplies to: Employers of anyone who habitually uses display screen equipment as a significant part of their normal work.

The Display Screen Equipment Regulations 1992 cover workstation assessment, training and eye tests. They apply to display screen users, including people working from home.

Courses that cover the DSE Regulations 1992

This ProCompliance course names the DSE Regulations 1992 as its governing framework. It is the training this law asks for. It also states its own accreditation, so you can check it before you buy.

Display Screen Equipment TrainingIOSH approvedCPD accreditedThe Regulations apply to workers who habitually use display-screen equipment as a significant part of their normal work. Employers must assess qualifying workstations and reduce identified risks.View info Free trial

Read our guides: UK DSE requirements and Becoming a DSE assessor.

What the DSE Regulations 1992 require

Regulation 6

Employers must give users “adequate health and safety training in the use of any workstation upon which he may be required to work”.

Regulation 6

Employers must also train someone when that person becomes a user. Then they must train again whenever the organisation of a workstation changes substantially.

Read the official text on legislation.gov.uk

What the DSE Regulations 1992 mean for training

DSE is one of the clearest training duties in UK law. The regulation carries the title provision of training, and it applies per workstation. That is why a change of desk setup, or a move to home working, triggers it again.

Common questions

Is DSE training a legal requirement?

Yes, for display screen equipment users. Regulation 6 of the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 sets the duty. It asks for adequate health and safety training in the use of the workstation.

Does DSE apply to people working from home?

The duties apply to users wherever they habitually work with display screen equipment. That work has to be a significant part of their normal work. In practice, a home workstation can count.

Who counts as a display screen equipment user?

The definition sits in regulation 1(2). A user is “an employee who habitually uses display screen equipment as a significant part of his normal work”. The test is therefore habit and significance. Hours a day do not decide it.

What counts as display screen equipment?

The Display Screen Equipment Regulations 1992 define the equipment just as widely. It covers “any alphanumeric or graphic display screen, regardless of the display process involved”. In other words, the definition turns on the screen, whatever device it sits in.

This plain English summary is not legal advice. The wording above comes from the official text. This page links to that text, and you should rely on it instead. Some duties depend on your own risk assessment, so only that assessment can tell you what they mean.