FORS, the Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme, has published its 2016 Annual Review, highlighting the substantial growth of the scheme over the past year, both in terms of membership numbers and geographical reach.

The review highlights the progress of the scheme during 2016, including an overall membership increase of 22%, with many current members also working to progress through the accreditation levels. It reports a rise of 49% in FORS Gold membership and 69% in FORS Silver membership.

Last year also saw the first FORS Members’ Conference take place, which was an opportunity to celebrate key milestones that were reached in 2016, including the 4,000th accredited member, the 500th Silver member, the 150th Gold member, and the 500th FORS Practitioner.

The team could also be found out and about at industry exhibitions and conferences, meeting current and prospective members and speaking at high profile industry events to further raise awareness of the scheme.

John Hix, FORS director, said: “We’re delighted that the scheme is continuing to grow, and we’re particularly proud of the regional growth over the past 12 months. As a result, we have increased the number of auditors by 30% to cope with demand from operators right across the transport sector – from the ‘man-with-a-van’ right through to national parcel delivery fleets.

“I am particularly pleased to see such an impressive increase in Gold membership. This shows real commitment by FORS members to improvements in their operations and in taking the step to implement FORS further throughout their supply chain.

“We expect 2017 to be another dynamic year for the scheme, and we will continue to work with our members to raise standards across the industry – to work towards  safer, greener and more efficient operations.”