RAMS for Tree Surgery (UK) – Generate in Minutes
By the Riskora Editorial Team · Reviewed against our editorial standards · Last reviewed
Generate structured RAMS for tree surgery — covering chainsaw operations, aerial tree work, felling procedures, wood chipper use, and proximity to overhead power lines.
UK (RAMS) example document — Two-Storey Rear Extension — 14 Birchwood Lane, Reading. Client: Mr & Mrs A. Whitfield (Private Client). Site: 14 Birchwood Lane, Reading, RG1 5JT. Scope: Construction of a two-storey rear extension (6.4m × 4.2m) to an existing semi-detached dwelling. Works comprise breaking out of existing rear elevation, trench-fill foundations to 1.0m, traditional cavity blockwork to first floor, pre-stressed concrete lintels, timber roof structure with natural slate finish, plus alterations to existing rear wall to form structural opening with rolled steel joist (RSJ 203×102 UB23). Works programmed over 9 weeks with a peak site team of 6 operatives. Hazards assessed: Manual handling — blocks, lintels, plasterboard, Working at height — independent scaffold & roof structure, Buried services strike during excavation, Collapse of excavation / trench wall, Hand-arm vibration (HAVS) — breaking out, drilling, Silica dust — cutting blocks, brick, concrete, Vehicle/pedestrian segregation — narrow domestic street.
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What should tree surgery RAMS include?
Tree surgery RAMS must cover the type of operation (felling, crown reduction, sectional dismantling, stump grinding), chainsaw use and maintenance, aerial access method (climbing, MEWP), drop zones and exclusion areas, proximity to overhead power lines and buildings, wood chipper operation and feeding procedures, manual handling of timber, PPE requirements (chainsaw-rated), traffic management for roadside work, and NPTC/City & Guilds competence requirements for all operatives.
Tree Surgery Is One of the Most Dangerous Occupations in the UK
Tree surgery combines chainsaws, working at height, falling timber, heavy plant, and unpredictable conditions — often in public spaces near roads, buildings, and power lines. Chainsaw kickback can cause fatal injuries in a fraction of a second. Misjudged felling direction can drop trees onto people, property, or live overhead cables. Branch failure during climbing operations can send an arborist falling without warning. The RAMS for tree work must be as specific and detailed as the work itself — generic construction RAMS are completely inadequate for arboricultural operations. Many contractors aren't sure what a RAMS document actually requires, which leads to submissions being rejected.
How Riskora Helps
Riskora generates tree surgery RAMS covering all common arboricultural operations — felling, sectional dismantling, crown reduction, deadwooding, and stump grinding. The tool addresses chainsaw use and safety, aerial access methods, drop zone management, overhead power line proximity, chipper operation, and traffic management for roadside work. Select your operation type and generate a structured RAMS. If you're new to RAMS, our step-by-step guide to writing a RAMS explains the fundamentals before you start generating.
Who it's for
- Arboricultural contractors preparing RAMS for local authority tree maintenance contracts
- Tree surgeons producing RAMS for domestic garden work involving felling
- Utility arborists documenting work near overhead power lines
- Estate and grounds maintenance teams managing woodland thinning operations
- Developers commissioning tree clearance RAMS for site preparation
Understand the Fundamentals
Before you generate your document, these guides cover the knowledge that underpins every good RAMS, risk assessment, and method statement.
What Is a RAMS Document?
Understand the two components of a RAMS and why they're required before work begins on site.
How to Write a RAMS Document
A step-by-step guide to structuring your RAMS from project details through to sign-off.
UK Legal Requirements for Risk Assessments
What the law requires under MHSWR 1999 and CDM 2015, and what 'suitable and sufficient' means.
Who Needs a RAMS?
Find out whether your work requires a RAMS and who is responsible for producing one.
How to Write a RAMS (UK Guide)
A practical walkthrough of writing RAMS from scratch, covering structure, common mistakes, and what reviewers look for.
Construction Safety Documents Explained
An overview of the key safety documents required on UK construction sites and how they relate to each other.
Key Risks and Considerations
- •Chainsaw kickback — causing severe lacerations or fatal injury
- •Falls from height — during climbing or from MEWP platforms
- •Struck by falling branches or timber during felling or dismantling
- •Contact with overhead power lines — trees growing into or near OHLs
- •Wood chipper entanglement — feeding and clearing blockages
- •Manual handling — heavy timber, logs, and branch wood
- •Vehicle and pedestrian interface — roadside tree work near traffic
- •Hand-arm vibration — extended chainsaw and brush cutter use
- •Falling on uneven ground — woodland, slopes, and soft surfaces
- •Noise exposure — chainsaws, chippers, and stump grinders
What UK Law Actually Says
Direct quotes from the named regulations, with plain-English explanations of what each one means in practice.
Regulation 5, Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998
“Every employer shall ensure that lifting equipment for lifting persons is such as to prevent a person using it being crushed, trapped or struck or falling from the carrier.”
Tree surgery from a MEWP brings LOLER Reg 5 directly into play — anti-crush devices, secondary guarding, harness within the bucket. RAMS must show the MEWP is being used in line with these duties, not just driven into position.
Read the source on legislation.gov.uk →Regulation 7, Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992
“Every employer shall ensure that any personal protective equipment provided to his employees is maintained (including replaced or cleaned as appropriate) in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.”
Chainsaw chaps, helmet-mesh combos, eye and ear protection are the survival kit of arboriculture. PPE Reg 7 requires the maintenance regime — not just initial provision. The RAMS should reference the inspection schedule and replacement criteria.
Read the source on legislation.gov.uk →The Numbers Behind the Risk
Why this matters — the most recent published figures from the Health and Safety Executive and ONS.
4-6 arboriculture deaths per year
Approximate annual UK fatalities in tree work — disproportionately involving chainsaw kickback, falling branches, and falls from height. A small workforce, a high fatality rate per worker.
Source: HSE — Tree work →£185k fine, 2022
Sentence handed to an arboriculture firm following a fatal chainsaw incident where the RAMS failed to specify the kickback prevention measures and second-operator presence.
Source: HSE — Recent prosecutions →Worked Example: RAMS for Sectional Felling of a 14m Oak in a Garden
An arboriculture contractor is asked to fell a dead 14m English oak in a residential rear garden. No room to fell whole; sectional dismantling required from a MEWP, with a ground crew managing rope-lowered sections.
The structured builder sequences: (1) tree assessed (decay extent, structural integrity, lean direction) — Quantified Tree Risk Assessment outcome documented, (2) garden cleared, exclusion zone established 1.5× the tree height, (3) MEWP set up on stable hardstanding with outriggers fully extended (LOLER cert in date), (4) chainsaw operator (NPTC CS30/CS31) in MEWP with second operator on the ground for rescue cover, (5) sections cut sequentially top-down and lowered on a friction device by named ground operative (NPTC CS39), (6) brash chipped on site with chipper exclusion zone, (7) waste removed.
Chainsaw chain inspected pre-start and at every refuel. Wind threshold 25mph — work pauses. Communications via radio between MEWP operator and ground crew. Operatives' NPTC certificates and first-aid-with-forestry-bias qualifications are all recorded. Total RAMS production: 9 minutes for an inherently hazardous job that benefits enormously from a structured approach.
Common Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
1. Single chainsaw operator with no rescue cover
Why it fails: HSE FISA guidance is clear: chainsaw work requires a second competent person within audible range. A lone operator can't be self-rescued from a serious cut or kickback injury.
Fix: Always document a second operator on site with FISA-compliant first-aid kit including a tourniquet. Communications protocol stated.
2. PPE listed without inspection regime
Why it fails: Helmet-mesh visors degrade; chainsaw chaps damage in use. PPE Reg 7 requires maintenance — not just provision. RAMS that list PPE without the inspection schedule miss the regulation.
Fix: Document pre-use checks for cut-resistant trousers, helmet/visor combos and chainsaw boots. State replacement triggers (any cut to chap fibres, any helmet impact).
3. MEWP used as a working platform without rescue plan
Why it fails: MEWP entrapment or operator collapse needs a rescue plan. Reliance on a second MEWP that isn't already on site isn't a plan.
Fix: Document the rescue route: ground-level controls operable, second MEWP available within 30 minutes, named rescue plan owner.
Key Features
- Tree surgery operation presets (felling, dismantling, crown work, stump grinding)
- Chainsaw safety hazard libraries
- Aerial tree work and climbing controls
- Drop zone and exclusion zone templates
- Overhead power line proximity assessment
- HAVS and noise exposure considerations
- Download to PDF
Example Structure (UK Standard)
- Site and tree assessment
- Operation type (felling, dismantling, crown work, stump grinding)
- Chainsaw risk assessment and controls
- Aerial access method and fall protection
- Drop zones and exclusion areas
- Overhead power line assessment
- Hazard identification with risk ratings
- Control measures
- PPE requirements (chainsaw boots, trousers, helmet, visor, gloves)
- Wood chipper operating procedures
- Traffic management (if roadside)
- Emergency procedures (chainsaw injury first aid, rescue from height)
- NPTC competence requirements
Common Questions Before Getting Started
Will this take long?
Under 5 minutes. Select your trade, pick hazards, download.
Is it complicated?
No training needed. The guided builder walks you through every step.
Do I need experience?
If you know what work you're doing, you can use Riskora.
Is it free to try?
Yes. The Free plan needs no card — generate, review and download one free PDF. Upgrade any time for branding, DOCX, sign-off and higher limits.
Create your RAMS in under 5 minutes
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All documents generated by Riskora should be reviewed by a competent person before use on site. Riskora provides structured templates — professional judgement is always required.
"A chainsaw doesn't give second chances, and a tree doesn't care where it falls. The RAMS need to show that you've thought about both."
What your RAMS actually contains
Riskora builds a structured, client-facing document — not a generic AI paragraph. Every section is shaped around your job, your site and your team.
Hazards
Task-specific hazards for the job, captured row by row — not a generic list pulled from an old RAMS.
Controls
Control measures mapped to each hazard with residual risk scoring after controls are applied.
PPE
PPE requirements tied to the activity and site, ready to brief to the team.
Method steps
Step-by-step method statement structured around how the work is actually sequenced on site.
Emergency arrangements
First aid, rescue plan, emergency contacts and site-specific escalation routes.
COSHH prompts
Substance prompts when the work involves chemicals, dusts, fumes or sealants — flagged early, not missed at review.
Sign-off
Operative sign-off captured against the document — names, dates and acknowledgement of the brief.
Version history
Every change tracked so you can show what was issued, when, and which version the team signed.
Approval status
Clear approval state on every document — draft, in review, approved, issued — visible across the team.
Audit trail
Who created it, who reviewed it, who signed it. A complete trail you can hand to a principal contractor or auditor.
From copied-and-pasted to site-specific
The reason RAMS get rejected is rarely the format — it's that the document is obviously generic. Riskora rebuilds it around this job, this site and this task.
Generic template copied from an old job.
- • Hazards and controls that don't match this site or task.
- • Method steps written for a different sequence of work.
- • No emergency arrangements specific to the location.
- • Client flags it as generic and asks for a rewrite.
Site-specific document structured around this job, site and task.
- • Hazards captured from the actual scope you pasted in.
- • Method steps sequenced for how the work runs on site.
- • Emergency arrangements and rescue plan tied to the location.
- • Approved internally, briefed to the team, signed off and stored.
From job details to signed-off document
A four-step workflow used by contractors, consultants and safety teams to turn informal job details into client-ready safety paperwork.
- 1Paste job details
Drop in a client email, a WhatsApp from the site manager, a scope of works or a tender note. Anything that describes the job.
- 2Riskora structures the document
Riskora turns your brief into hazards, controls, method steps, PPE, emergency arrangements and COSHH prompts.
- 3Review, edit and download
You stay in control of every section. Tweak anything, then download a clean PDF or share a link.
- 4Brief the team and record sign-off
Brief operatives, capture their sign-off and keep a full audit trail of who signed which version.
Built by people who've written this paperwork on real sites
Riskora is built by a founder with hands-on site and document experience — designed for contractors, consultants and safety teams who need to issue, brief and prove safety paperwork without losing a day to admin.
- Built for contractors, consultants and teams
Solo trades, principal contractors and in-house safety teams all run on the same workflow. - Supports multiple countries
UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, US and Canada — wording and document types match the local standard. - Not just documents
Sign-off, approvals, version history and an audit trail — the management workflow around the paperwork.
Frequently Asked Questions
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No training. No complex setup. Just select your trade and go.
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References & Further Reading
Primary UK sources covering the legal and practical framework behind RAMS, risk assessments and method statements.
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Final RAMS must be reviewed and approved by a competent person before use.
Riskora is an assistive document preparation tool. All documents generated must be reviewed, verified, and approved by a competent person before use on site. Riskora does not replace professional safety judgment, and no output should be treated as a legal compliance guarantee.