Risk Assessment Examples (UK Construction)
By the Riskora Editorial Team · Written to our editorial standards
Most risk assessment examples online are watered-down templates. The six on this page are written the way principal contractors actually expect to see them — site-specific hazards, residual ratings, named controls, and the bits reviewers check first. Use them as a structural reference, then build your own in the free Riskora wizard below.
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.
Full version
What does a good UK risk assessment example look like?
A good UK risk assessment names the activity in one specific sentence, lists each significant hazard with who is at risk, scores likelihood × severity before controls, lists the controls in plain language, scores residual likelihood × severity after controls, and ends with a named competent reviewer and review date. It is written for one job on one site — not a generic trade.
Why most risk assessment examples online get you rejected at induction
Search results for "risk assessment example" are dominated by Word templates with the same five generic hazards copied from each other. Hand one in unedited and you'll be turned around at induction. UK principal contractors, CHAS auditors and HSE inspectors all look for the same three signals: site specificity, residual ratings, and a named competent reviewer. Templates strip all three out. See the most common reasons documents get rejected for the full pattern.
How Riskora Helps
The examples below are written to the depth a UK reviewer expects — and the free Riskora wizard at the top of the page produces documents in the same format from your own inputs. No card, no training, one free PDF. If you want to compare options first, the best UK risk assessment software guide ranks the alternatives.
Who it's for
- Roofing and work at height
- Groundworks and service trenches
- Hot works on flat roofs
- Electrical installation in occupied buildings
- Demolition and soft strip
- Site clearance and tree work
Understand the Fundamentals
Before you generate your document, these guides cover the knowledge that underpins every good RAMS, risk assessment, and method statement.
UK Legal Requirements for Risk Assessments
What MHSWR 1999 and CDM 2015 actually require, and when an assessment must be written down.
UK Method Statement Examples
The MS side of a RAMS pack, written to the same depth as the risk assessments on this page.
RAMS Examples
Full RAMS examples that combine risk assessment and method statement in one document.
Simple Risk Assessment Example
A shorter single-task example for low-risk work where a full multi-hazard register isn't proportionate.
How to Write a RAMS Document
Step-by-step guide to producing the full pack reviewers expect at induction.
Risk Assessment Template (UK)
A blank structured template you can fill in if you're not ready to use the wizard yet.
How many hazards should a risk assessment example show?
For most UK construction tasks, expect 6 to 12 hazards. Fewer than 6 and the assessment is usually too generic; more than 12 and it tends to be a bundle of jobs that should each have their own. The roofing and groundworks examples below sit at 7–9 hazards each.
Do risk assessment examples need a risk matrix?
Yes — UK reviewers expect a likelihood × severity matrix shown twice on every hazard line: once before controls (initial risk) and once after (residual risk). Without the matrix legend on the document, the scores are unverifiable.
Can I use these examples as my own risk assessment?
No. Under MHSWR 1999 reg 3 the assessment must be 'suitable and sufficient' for the actual work, crew and site. Use the examples to learn the structure and depth, then rewrite every hazard and control to describe your real job.
Key Risks and Considerations
- •Treating an example as a finished document
- •Listing 'work at height — wear PPE' as a control
- •Skipping residual risk after controls
- •No site-specific access, plant or weather notes
What UK Law Actually Says
Direct quotes from the named regulations, with plain-English explanations of what each one means in practice.
Regulation 3, Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
“Every employer shall make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to the health and safety of his employees to which they are exposed whilst they are at work; and the risks to the health and safety of persons not in his employment arising out of or in connection with the conduct by him of his undertaking.”
Reg 3 is where the 'suitable and sufficient' test comes from. The examples on this page show what that bar looks like in practice — they cannot themselves satisfy it for your job because only an assessment of the actual work being done by the actual people doing it can clear it.
Read the source on legislation.gov.uk →Regulation 13, Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015
“Every contractor must plan, manage and monitor construction work carried out either by the contractor or by workers under the control of the contractor, in a way which ensures that, so far as is reasonably practicable, it is carried out without risks to health and safety.”
On any construction job your risk assessment is one input into a wider planning and monitoring duty under CDM. A copied template fails this test the first time an inspector or principal contractor asks how it was tailored to the actual site.
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.
138 worker fatalities
Fatal injuries to workers in Great Britain in 2023/24. Falls from height, struck-by and contact with machinery dominate — precisely the categories the worked examples above are written to catch on real sites.
Source: HSE — Workplace fatal injuries 2023/24 →51 construction worker deaths
Construction remained the highest-fatality sector in 2023/24. Every example on this page is taken from a construction scenario for that reason — the cluster of risk that matters most for UK contractors writing their own RAMS.
Source: HSE — Construction sector statistics 2023/24 →Side-by-side: a weak example vs a passing one
Weak example (gets rejected). Activity: "Roofing works". Hazard: "Working at height". Control: "Wear PPE and follow site rules". Risk rating: "Medium". Reviewer: blank. This is the format of nearly every free template on the open web — and it's the format CHAS reviewers reject within 30 seconds.
Passing example. Activity: "Strip and re-felt 95m² pitched tile roof at 12 Acacia Avenue, eaves 5.4m / ridge 8m, public footpath under the eaves, crew of three, 4-day programme." Hazard: "Fall from height at the eaves and ridge edge during tile strip." Initial risk: 4 × 5 = 20. Control: "Independent scaffold (designed and tagged) with double guard rail and toeboard at eaves and ridge level; debris netting on the footpath side; banksman in place during strip; harness as last-resort fall-arrest at chimney only, with documented rescue plan." Residual risk: 1 × 5 = 5. Reviewer: A. Patel, IOSH-qualified site supervisor, 12 May 2026, next review on weather change or programme variation.
Why the second one passes. The activity is one job at one address. The hazard names the scenario, not the trade. The controls are observable on site (you can stand there and tick whether the toeboards are present). The residual rating shows the controls actually reduce the risk. The reviewer is a real, competent, named person.
Common Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
1. Submitting an example as your finished document
Why it fails: Under MHSWR 1999 reg 3 the assessment must be 'suitable and sufficient' for the actual work. Anything copied verbatim from this page (or any other) fails the test on day one.
Fix: Use the examples to learn the structure. Then write each hazard and control to describe your actual crew, site and method.
2. Listing 'wear PPE' as the primary control
Why it fails: PPE sits at the bottom of the hierarchy of control. If it's the first thing named, the assessment hasn't considered elimination, substitution, engineering or admin controls.
Fix: Walk the hierarchy in writing: can it be eliminated, substituted, engineered out, controlled by procedure? Only then list PPE as the residual barrier.
3. No residual rating after controls
Why it fails: Without a residual rating the reviewer can't see whether your controls are proportionate, and you have no audit trail showing why you accepted the remaining risk.
Fix: Score likelihood × severity twice — before and after controls. Only proceed if the residual sits in the low band, or document the additional measures for amber.
4. No named competent reviewer
Why it fails: MHSWR reg 3(3) requires assessments to be reviewed if circumstances change. Without a named reviewer and date the document cannot be defended as 'live' under audit.
Fix: Every assessment names the competent person who signed it off, the date, and the next review trigger. Software keeps that audit trail automatically.
Live example documents — generated by the same engine you'll use
The samples below are rendered live from Riskora's document engine — the same one running behind the free wizard at the top of the page. Switch tabs to see a full RAMS, toolbox talk, site induction and COSHH assessment. The RAMS PDF downloads without an account so you can inspect the hazard register, risk matrix and sign-off block in detail.
Default — 4 of 12 available · Full version
Generated live in your browser from the same engine signed-up users use — no account required. Your details never leave the page.
Six worked risk assessment examples (UK construction)
1) Re-roofing a two-storey terrace. Activity: strip and re-felt 95m² of pitched tile roof, 8m ridge, public footpath under the eaves, crew of three. Hazards: falls from height at eaves and ridge, falling materials onto the footpath, manual handling of tiles up the scaffold, exposure to pre-2000 roofing felt, slip hazards on the platform, wind-driven instability above 23mph. Controls: independent scaffold with toeboards and tagged handover, debris netting on the public side plus banksman during strip, mechanical hoist for any lift over 20kg, asbestos refurb survey reviewed pre-start, anemometer with documented stop-work threshold. Residual: low/medium.
2) Service trench in a domestic front garden. Activity: 18m gas service trench, mixed made-ground, 1.4m max depth, pedestrian pavement adjacent. Hazards: trench collapse, strike of unmarked services, falls into the trench by pedestrians, HAVS exposure for the operator. Controls: CAT & Genny scan plus utility plans reviewed pre-dig, first 600mm hand-dug, trench boxes for any depth over 1.2m, Heras barrier with covered walkway, HAVS exposure tracked against the daily action value. Residual: low.
3) Hot works on a flat felt roof. Activity: torch-on felt repair to a 40m² flat roof above an occupied office. Hazards: fire ignition on built-up felt, fume inhalation, falls from the perimeter edge, hot bitumen burns. Controls: hot-works permit issued daily, 60-minute fire watch after last torch use, two 9kg dry powder extinguishers within 6m, edge protection on all sides, supplied-air respirator for confined parapet detail. Residual: low.
4) Second-fix lighting in an occupied open-plan office. Activity: install 24 LED panels through a suspended ceiling, evening shift, building occupied until 18:00. Hazards: contact with energised cabling, falls from lightweight stepladders, manual handling of luminaires, slip hazards from cable drums in walkways, occupant disturbance. Controls: documented permit-to-work with isolation point and lock-out tag, Class 1 fibreglass platform steps inspected on the day, two-person lift for panels over 15kg, floor-stand barriers and signage in the affected corridor, work scheduled after 18:00 only. Residual: low.
5) Soft strip of a Victorian terrace. Activity: remove internal joinery, plaster and floor coverings prior to refurbishment. Hazards: airborne lead from pre-1992 paint, silica from plaster removal, manual handling of waste, working in a dust-laden atmosphere, fire (electrical isolations not yet confirmed). Controls: refurbishment asbestos survey reviewed pre-start, RPE to FFP3, M-class vacuum extraction at the cut, water suppression on plaster removal, full electrical isolation certificate held on site, daily DOP test of negative-pressure enclosure where used. Residual: low/medium.
6) Tree felling within striking distance of a building. Activity: section-fell a mature beech within 6m of a residential property, climber + groundsman + traffic marshal. Hazards: falling sections onto the building, chainsaw kickback, climber fall, public access in the drop zone, vehicle conflict at the kerbside loading point. Controls: site-specific drop-zone plan with marked exclusion radius, climber on twin rope system with documented aerial rescue plan, all chainsaw operators NPTC-certified with logs on site, TM2 chapter 8 cones and signage at the kerbside, banksman in radio contact with the climber. Residual: low.
Each example is illustrative — the numbers, distances, equipment names and crew details are the difference between a real assessment and a template that gets rejected at induction.
What UK reviewers (principal contractors, CHAS, HSE) look for first
- Is the activity described specifically? Not "electrical works" but "second-fix lighting circuits in the ground-floor open-plan office, ceiling height 2.7m, evening shift".
- Is the risk matrix legend present? Without the legend the scoring is meaningless to anyone but the author.
- Are residual ratings shown? Pre-controls and post-controls — both, on every hazard line.
- Is there a named competent reviewer? With a sign-off date and a defined review trigger.
- Does the PPE list match the controls? If edge protection is named as the control, the PPE schedule shouldn't fall back on a harness as the primary measure.
From example to your own document — in under 5 minutes
The free Riskora wizard at the top of this page takes a one-line description of your job and builds the structure shown in the examples above: activity, hazard register, initial and residual risk scores, method-statement steps and sign-off block. The first PDF is free with no card. Upgrade only if you need branded output, DOCX or higher document limits.
If you need the matching method statement, the UK method statement examples page mirrors the structure here for the MS side of a RAMS pack.
Key Features
- Site-specific hazard wording
- Likelihood × severity matrix (initial + residual)
- Named control measures, not generic PPE
- Competent reviewer + review date
- Aligned with HSE INDG163 and CDM 2015
- Free PDF download — no card required
Example Structure (UK Standard)
- Activity: one specific sentence (what, where, who, how long)
- Hazard list: 6–12 named hazards with the scenario described
- Initial risk: likelihood × severity score with a visible legend
- Controls: testable, observable, named (not generic 'PPE')
- Residual risk: post-control likelihood × severity score
- Sign-off: competent reviewer name, date, next review trigger
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, sign-off and higher limits.
Create your RAMS in under 5 minutes
No onboarding or setup needed — start generating documents instantly
Try Riskora FreeNo card required · 1 lifetime safety document · Upgrade when you need more
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.
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
Describe your job — your draft is one paragraph away.
No training. No complex setup. Just select your trade and go.
References & Further Reading
Primary UK sources covering the legal and practical framework behind RAMS, risk assessments and method statements.
Create your examples risk assessment free — preview before sign-up
Generate a preview first. Sign up only when you want to save, edit or export.
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.