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Free UK RAMS template, in Word and PDF
A blank risk assessment and method statement for one job, ready to fill in digitally in Word or print as a PDF. There is also a filled-in example, a consumer unit replacement in an occupied house, so you can see what good answers look like.
What is a RAMS?
A RAMS (risk assessment and method statement) is the health and safety document for one job. The risk assessment sets out what could hurt someone, who, and how you will control it. The method statement sets out how the work will be done, step by step, with those controls in place.
Principal contractors commonly ask for one before you start on their site, and so do many clients, facilities managers, venues, event organisers and film and TV productions. Some will not let you start until they have read it.
The legal duty behind it is the risk assessment. Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 requires a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks, and an employer with five or more employees must record its significant findings. The duty also covers self-employed people working in construction or whose work could put others at risk.
A method statement is not usually required by law under that name, but it is a common condition of getting on site. On construction work, including domestic jobs, CDM 2015 also requires contractors to plan, manage and monitor their work, and a RAMS is a common way to show that planning.
Risk Assessment and Method Statement (RAMS)
What’s in the template
Job details
Where the work is, who it is for and when it happens.
- Job title
- Client
- Site address
- Principal contractor
- Dates and working hours
Document control
Who wrote this RAMS, which version it is and when it will be looked at again.
- Company
- Prepared by
- Date and revision
- Review date
Scope of work
A plain description of what will and will not be done. Someone who has never been to the site should understand the job from it.
- Description of the work
- Not included
- Related documents
People and competence
Who will do the work, why they are competent to do it safely, and who else could be affected.
- Person in charge on site
- Team
- Qualifications, cards and training
- Others affected
Site and access
Conditions at the place of work that change how the job is done safely.
- Access and parking
- Site conditions and known hazards
- Asbestos
- Keeping others out
Plant, tools and materials
Everything brought to site for the job, and any substances that need a COSHH assessment.
- Plant and tools
- Materials
- Hazardous substances (COSHH)
Personal protective equipment (PPE)
PPE is the last line of defence. It is worn as well as the controls in the risk table, not instead of them.
- Worn at all times
- For specific tasks
Permits and isolations
Formal permissions, and how energy and services are made safe before work starts.
- Permits required
- Isolations
- Notifications and consents
Emergency arrangements
What happens if someone is hurt or something goes wrong. Everyone on the job should know this before work starts.
- First aid
- Nearest A&E
- Fire
- Emergency contacts
- Accident and near miss reporting
Welfare
Toilets, washing facilities, drinking water and somewhere to take a break. CDM 2015 requires these on construction work.
- Welfare arrangements
Environment and waste
How the job avoids harm to the surroundings and deals with its waste properly.
- Waste
- Noise, dust and pollution
Toolbox talk
Everyone who works to this RAMS is briefed on it before work starts, and again if it changes. Each person then signs the briefing register at the end of this document.
- Briefed by, date and time
- Points covered
Risk assessment
List each significant hazard for this job and who could be harmed. Score it before controls: likelihood (1 rare, 2 unlikely, 3 possible, 4 likely, 5 almost certain) times severity (1 negligible, 2 minor, 3 moderate, 4 major, 5 catastrophic, meaning death or permanent disability). Write the controls you will actually use, then score it again. 1 to 4 is low, 5 to 9 medium, 10 to 16 high, 17 to 25 critical. If a risk is still high or critical after controls, change the method or add controls before work starts.
Method statement
Write the work as numbered steps in the order it will be done, from arrival to handover. For each step, say who does it, how, and which controls from the risk table apply at that point. Include setting up, isolations, checks and tests, and leaving the site safe.
Sign-off and briefing register
Who prepared and approved the RAMS, with a signature and date for each, then a register for everyone briefed on it to sign.
Risk scoring key
The 5 x 5 grid used to score each risk: likelihood times severity gives the score and its level.
Worked example
Consumer unit replacement in an occupied house
Risk Assessment and Method Statement (RAMS)
- Job title
- Consumer unit replacement, 22 Fernhollow Road
- Client
- Mrs Ruth Ellery, homeowner. She is at home on the day and is the contact for any questions.
- Site address
- 22 Fernhollow Road, Northampton. 1960s semi-detached house. The consumer unit and the meter are in the cupboard under the stairs, next to the front door.
- Principal contractor
- None. Domestic job with Kilnbrook Electrical as the only contractor, so a one-page construction phase plan is kept with this RAMS.
- Dates and working hours
- 14/10/2026, one day, 08:30 to 16:30. Power off from about 09:30 to 15:00, agreed with Mrs Ellery.
Risk assessment
| Hazard | Who might be harmed | Initial risk | Control measures | Residual risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HazardElectric shock or electrocution from live parts while removing and connecting the consumer unit, including the tails between the meter and the isolator, which stay live | Who might be harmedOwen and Jay; the occupants if live parts were left exposed | Initial risk15 Highlikelihood 3 × severity 5 | Control measures
| Residual risk5 Mediumlikelihood 1 × severity 5 |
| HazardAsbestos fibres released by disturbing the old fuse board, its backboard, the pads in the fuse carriers or the wall behind | Who might be harmedOwen, Jay and the occupants | Initial risk15 Highlikelihood 3 × severity 5 | Control measures
| Residual risk5 Mediumlikelihood 1 × severity 5 |
| HazardOccupants, a young child or the dog coming into the work area: contact with open equipment, tools or sharp offcuts, or the dog getting out through the front door | Who might be harmedMrs Ellery, her son (aged 4), the dog and visitors | Initial risk12 Highlikelihood 3 × severity 4 | Control measures
| Residual risk4 Lowlikelihood 1 × severity 4 |
| HazardLoss of power to the house for about five and a half hours: heating, fridge-freezer, smoke alarms, home working, and anyone relying on powered medical equipment | Who might be harmedMrs Ellery and her son | Initial risk9 Mediumlikelihood 3 × severity 3 | Control measures
| Residual risk3 Lowlikelihood 1 × severity 3 |
| HazardManual handling: lifting out the old board and holding the new steel consumer unit in place while kneeling in a cramped cupboard | Who might be harmedOwen and Jay | Initial risk6 Mediumlikelihood 3 × severity 2 | Control measures
| Residual risk4 Lowlikelihood 2 × severity 2 |
| HazardDust from drilling fixing holes in brick and plaster, including silica dust, and debris in the eyes | Who might be harmedOwen, Jay and the occupants nearby | Initial risk9 Mediumlikelihood 3 × severity 3 | Control measures
| Residual risk3 Lowlikelihood 1 × severity 3 |
| HazardFire or burns from overheated connections, arcing when the supply is restored, or a poorly made termination in the new unit | Who might be harmedThe occupants, Owen and Jay | Initial risk10 Highlikelihood 2 × severity 5 | Control measures
| Residual risk5 Mediumlikelihood 1 × severity 5 |
| HazardSlips, trips and falls over tools, cables, dust sheets or the old board in the hall and on the stairs | Who might be harmedOwen, Jay and the occupants | Initial risk6 Mediumlikelihood 3 × severity 2 | Control measures
| Residual risk2 Lowlikelihood 1 × severity 2 |
Likelihood × severity
Low 1–4Medium 5–9High 10–16Critical 17–25Method statement
Arrive and brief the household
Arrive at 08:30 and park on the drive. Owen briefs Jay on this RAMS and both sign the briefing register. Owen then goes through the day with Mrs Ellery: power off from about 09:30 to 15:00, her son and the dog kept out of the hall, nothing to be switched on or off at the board, and the fridge-freezer kept shut. Lay dust sheets flat in the hall.
Check the existing installation and the asbestos result
Before isolating, look over the isolator, the tails and the network operator's cut-out for damage, overheating or a broken seal. If any is found, stop and report it to the network operator on 105. Confirm again that there are no solar panels, battery storage or generator. Check the board and backboard are the ones sampled on 06/10/2026, and stop if any other suspect material is found (risk 2). Note what each circuit feeds, and check the main earthing and the main protective bonding to the gas and water pipes, which BS 7671 requires to be adequate for the new work. If either falls short, agree with Mrs Ellery how it will be put right before the new board goes into service.
Confirm where the supply is isolated
This house has a double-pole isolator switch between the meter and the fuse board, so the supply is isolated there and the network operator's cut-out fuse is not touched. The cut-out fuse belongs to the network operator. If there had been no isolator, the fuse would have been withdrawn only by the network operator, a Safe Isolation Provider, or by Owen where that network operator's own procedure allows registered electricians to do so, arranged before the job.
Isolate, lock off and prove dead
Owen switches off the main switch and then the isolator, locks the isolator off with his personal padlock and a danger tag, and keeps the key. He checks the voltage indicator on the proving unit, tests between every combination of line, neutral and earth at the incoming terminals of the board, then checks the indicator on the proving unit again. Work on the board starts only after this.
Test the existing circuits and remove the old board
Before anything is disconnected, test the insulation resistance of each existing circuit, with sensitive equipment unplugged, and record the results, so faults are found before the new RCBOs are fitted. Tell Mrs Ellery about any fault and what it means for the day. Label each circuit's cables, photograph the connections, disconnect them and remove the old board in one piece. Take it straight out to the van.
Fit the new consumer unit
Fix the new steel consumer unit in the same position, drilling only the holes needed, with dust extraction (risk 6). Bring the cables in through the manufacturer's entry fittings and seal any gaps with fire-rated sealant. Connect each circuit to its RCBO, connect the earthing conductor and the new tails from the isolator, and tighten every terminal to the manufacturer's torque setting. The work is done to BS 7671:2018+A4:2026, the current IET Wiring Regulations, which require a consumer unit in a home to have a non-combustible enclosure or to be housed in one.
Inspect and test before switching on
With the supply still locked off, inspect the new work and carry out the dead tests: continuity of the protective conductors and ring final circuits, insulation resistance and polarity. Record every result on the schedule of test results. A circuit that is not satisfactory stays disconnected, and the reason is explained to Mrs Ellery.
Re-energise and complete the live tests
Fit the covers and switch off every circuit device. Owen removes his lock, switches on at the isolator and then the main switch, and switches the circuits on one at a time. He carries out the live tests (earth fault loop impedance, prospective fault current and RCBO operation) and checks the surge protection device's indicator. Then check that the smoke alarms, the boiler and the fridge-freezer are working.
Complete the Electrical Installation Certificate
Owen completes an Electrical Installation Certificate for the new consumer unit, with the schedule of inspections and the schedule of test results, and records any defects found on the existing circuits. Mrs Ellery is given a copy.
Notify the work under the Building Regulations
Replacing a consumer unit in a home in England is notifiable under Part P of the Building Regulations. Owen notifies it through his competent person scheme within 30 days of finishing. The scheme tells the local authority and sends Mrs Ellery a Building Regulations compliance certificate.
Hand over and clear up
Show Mrs Ellery the new board: the isolator and main switch, what each RCBO feeds, how to use the test buttons as the label on the board explains, and what to do if one trips. Reset the clocks and heating timer with her. Vacuum the cupboard and hall, and take the old board, offcuts and packaging away for recycling.
How to use this template
Download the Word file and save a fresh copy for each job. Do not send the last job's RAMS with the names changed.
Open the worked example alongside it, to see the level of detail to aim for.
Fill in the job details, scope, people and site first, so the hazards you list are about this job, this site and this team.
List the significant hazards in the risk table. Score each one before and after controls: likelihood times severity, each from 1 to 5.
Write the method as numbered steps in the order the work happens, with each control at the point it is needed.
Read it through against the job. Are these the controls you will really use on the day? Delete any guidance text you have not replaced.
Brief everyone who will do the work, have them sign the briefing register, and review the RAMS if the job, the site or the team changes.
Common questions
Is a RAMS a legal requirement in the UK?
Not by that name. The law requires a suitable and sufficient risk assessment (regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999), with the significant findings written down if you employ five or more people. A method statement is not usually a legal requirement in itself, but principal contractors and clients commonly make it a condition of starting. On construction work, CDM 2015 also requires you to plan, manage and monitor the work, and if you are the only contractor it requires a construction phase plan, which can be short for a small job.
What is the difference between a risk assessment and a method statement?
The risk assessment asks what could go wrong: the hazards, who could be harmed, how likely and how serious it is, and the controls. The method statement says how the job will be done, step by step, with those controls in the right places. Together they make the RAMS, and they should agree with each other.
What should a RAMS include?
Job and site details, the scope of work, who will do it and their training, the hazards with their risk ratings and controls, the method step by step, PPE, permits and isolations, emergency arrangements, welfare, waste, a sign-off, and a register of who was briefed. This template has a place for each. Keep it to the job in front of you: a short, specific RAMS is more use than a long, generic one.
Can I use the same RAMS for every job?
Only the parts that really are the same. The site, the people around you, access, emergency arrangements and often the hazards change from job to job, so update them and re-date the document each time. HSE's own guidance warns that copying an example and adding your company name is not enough to meet the law.
Is this RAMS template free, and can I edit it in Word?
Yes. The blank template is a Word file you can fill in on screen, on a computer, tablet or phone, and a PDF you can print and fill in by hand. The worked example is a PDF. There is nothing to buy and no sign-up, and you can use them for as many of your own jobs as you like.
Does HSE provide a RAMS template?
No. HSE publishes a free risk assessment template, in Word and OpenDocument formats, with example risk assessments for a few types of business. It is a general risk assessment, not a RAMS, so it has no method statement, job details or briefing register. This template covers both parts for a single job.
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