General building covers the multi-trade work that small contractors carry out daily — extensions, refurbishments, kitchen and bathroom installations, loft conversions. The hazard profile is broad but shallow: working at height, dust, manual handling, occupier interface, hidden services. The challenge for a general-building RAMS is to cover all of these credibly without becoming a generic everything-document that says nothing specific about the job in front of it.
HSE has been explicit for over a decade that domestic refurbishment of pre-2000 property is the highest-risk asbestos-exposure scenario in UK construction. The reasons are structural: the work disturbs the kinds of materials where ACMs are commonly found (textured coatings, AIB ceilings, vinyl floor tiles, pipe lagging, cement products), there is rarely a pre-existing asbestos register, and the surveyor route familiar to commercial contractors often isn't followed.
For any pre-2000 property the RAMS should require a survey (or refer to one already done by the client), describe the materials that will be disturbed, and set out the refusal protocol for unexpected finds — what the operative does if they uncover suspected ACMs once work has started. CAR 2012 reg 5 places the survey duty on the contractor for domestic property because there is no domestic dutyholder.
Cutting blockwork, tiles, plasterboard, render and stone all release respirable crystalline silica (RCS). The Workplace Exposure Limit is 0.1 mg/m³ over 8 hours, and dry cutting routinely exceeds this within minutes. HSE has been increasing its enforcement activity on silica specifically — Operation Lung-Buster (2022 onwards) prosecuted builders for dry-cutting without controls.
The RAMS should name the wet-cutting equipment (on-tool water suppression for circular saws, water sprays for grinders), the RPE specification (FFP3 minimum), and the housekeeping regime that prevents dust accumulation between tasks. 'Dust mask' is not an acceptable PPE specification on a modern small-builder RAMS.
WAHR 2005 does not ban ladders, but it does require them to be the right tool for the job — short-duration, light work, where a tower or platform is not reasonably practicable. The RAMS should walk through the proportionality test: was a podium step, MEWP or tower considered, what ruled it out, and only then arrive at ladders.
Mobile aluminium towers (PASMA) are the dominant access platform for general building work indoors. The operatives erecting them need PASMA cards, the tower needs to be inspected before each use and tagged, and the RAMS should name the inspection regime.
Most general building work happens in an occupied property — either domestic or a tenanted commercial unit. The RAMS must address the occupier interface: protection of the customer's belongings, dust separation between work area and living area, water and power isolation timing, and the protocol for vulnerable occupants. For work over a few days, welfare provision under Schedule 2 of CDM 2015 (toilets, washing, rest area, drinking water) is still required even on domestic projects — the RAMS should describe how this is provided (on-site facility, customer permission to use theirs, nearby pub / café arrangement).
Each hazard paired with the UK regulation or HSE guidance document that applies.
Asbestos exposure in pre-2000 property
CAR 2012 + L143
Silica dust from cutting blockwork, tiles, render
COSHH 2002 + WEL
Falls from height — ladders, towers, working platforms
WAHR 2005
Electrical contact with hidden services
EAWR 1989 + HSG85
Manual handling of materials (boards, kitchens, tile bags)
MHOR 1992
Slips and trips in cluttered work areas
Workplace Regs 1992
Hot works during pipework, roofing repairs, lead burning
FPA HW01 + RRO 2005
Hand-arm vibration from extensive use of power tools
Vibration at Work Regs 2005
Patterns we see when principal contractors send general building RAMS back for re-work.
The legal framework a general building RAMS operates inside — all links point to the official source.
SI 2015/51
Applies to all construction work including domestic refurbishment over the notifiable threshold.
SI 2012/632
Triggers asbestos duties for any work disturbing pre-2000 fabric.
INDG458
Plain-English guidance for small builders on the asbestos materials they typically encounter.
INDG163
HSE's introductory guide to risk assessment — useful baseline reference in a small-builder RAMS.
PASMA
Competence scheme for mobile aluminium tower erection. RAMS should name the operative's PASMA card.
Yes, with one significant carve-out. Regulation 7 transfers most of the client duties from the householder to the contractor (for a sole contractor) or to the principal contractor (where there is one). The duties to plan, manage and monitor the work all apply — including the welfare provisions in Schedule 2. The notification threshold (F10) only applies if the project will last more than 30 working days with more than 20 workers at any one time, or exceed 500 person-days.
Almost certainly yes. Asbestos was used in construction products in the UK until late 1999 — the cut-off in CAR 2012 is November 2000. A 1990s house could contain textured coatings (Artex), AIB in airing cupboards, vinyl floor tiles, pipe lagging and cement products. The cost of a refurbishment-and-demolition survey is small relative to the cost of an HSE prosecution for exposing workers and occupants to asbestos without controls.
Not in compliance with COSHH. The 0.1 mg/m³ workplace exposure limit for RCS applies wherever the worker is — being outdoors slows the build-up but does not eliminate it. Dry-cutting is also a nuisance to neighbours and can trigger environmental health complaints. Wet cutting (on-tool water suppression) or extracted dust collection is the expected control for any sustained cutting.
Schedule 2 of CDM 2015 requires toilet, washing, drinking water, changing area and rest area facilities suitable for the duration and nature of the work. For a one-day visit to a domestic property, customer permission to use their facilities is normally acceptable; for any multi-day project, the contractor should provide their own (portable toilet) or have a documented arrangement (named nearby pub or café). 'Use customer's' is not acceptable for projects beyond a few days.
A single core RAMS with a per-job addendum is acceptable for repeat work in similar conditions. The addendum should name the property, the property age, the asbestos check result, the occupier and any vulnerable-person notes — that is what makes the document site-specific. A separate RAMS is normally only required for one-off or unusually complex work.
City-specific local context — council, HSE office and local building stock notes — for general building contractors.
Riskora prompts for the council permits, building stock and access constraints that apply wherever the job is — these are the general building details principal contractors check first in each city.
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Final RAMS must be reviewed and approved by a competent person before use.