Summary
On a UK construction site, "have you got your RAMS?" is one of the first questions a principal contractor or site manager will ask before you start. RAMS bundle two things: the risk assessment (what could go wrong and how likely/severe it is) and the method statement (the agreed sequence of work that keeps those risks controlled). Together they are how you show — to your own team, to the principal contractor, and to the HSE if it ever asks — that you planned the job and are working to a safe system.
This matters to every trade and every size of firm, from a sole trader fitting a boiler to a groundworks gang digging trenches. The legal duty to assess risk and put controls in place is not optional and it is not limited to big sites. The risk assessment duty sits in the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, the duty to plan and manage construction work sits in CDM 2015, and the overarching "so far as is reasonably practicable" duty sits in the 1974 Act. RAMS are the practical, accepted way of meeting all three at once for a specific task.
The biggest misconceptions are that a generic, downloaded RAMS is fine ("we use the same one for every job"), that the document is the goal (it is not — the safe system of work is the goal, the document just records it), and that RAMS are only needed on large sites. A method statement that does not match the actual task, the actual site and the actual hazards is worse than useless: it gives false assurance and falls apart the moment anyone reads it properly. The whole point is that it is specific, realistic and actually followed.
Key Facts
- RAMS = Risk Assessment + Method Statement — two linked documents, usually issued together before work starts.
- Risk assessment — identifies hazards, who could be harmed, evaluates risk and sets control measures; required by the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, reg 3.
- Significant findings must be recorded where the employer has 5 or more employees (good practice to record for any job regardless).
- Method statement — the step-by-step safe sequence of work that puts the risk-assessment controls into practice.
- Not a named statutory document — the law does not say "thou shalt produce a method statement"; it requires a safe system of work, and RAMS are how the industry demonstrates it.
- CDM 2015 — requires construction work to be planned, managed and monitored; RAMS support the construction phase plan and the principal contractor's coordination.
- Hierarchy of control — controls should follow eliminate → substitute → engineering controls → administrative controls → PPE (PPE is the last resort, not the first).
- Task-specific — a valid method statement reflects the real task, site, materials, plant and people; generic templates must be edited to the job.
- Sequence of work — the core of the method statement: what happens, in what order, by whom.
- Emergency arrangements — first aid, rescue (e.g. from height or confined space), incident reporting and emergency contacts must be included.
- Sign-off / briefing — the people doing the work must be briefed on the RAMS and sign to confirm they understand it (a "point of work" or pre-start briefing).
- Permits — high-risk activities (hot works, confined spaces, excavation near services, working at height) often need a separate permit-to-work alongside the RAMS.
- Living document — if the task, site conditions or team change, the RAMS must be reviewed and reissued, not blindly followed.
- Competence — the person writing the RAMS must be competent in the task and the hazards; copy-paste authors are a red flag.
Quick Reference Table
Spending too long on quotes? squote turns a 2-minute voice recording into a professional quote.
Try squote free →| RAMS section | What it must contain |
|---|---|
| Project / task details | Site address, client, task description, dates, document version |
| Scope of works | Exactly what this RAMS covers (and what it does not) |
| Personnel & competence | Who is doing the work, training/cards, supervisor |
| Hazards identified | The real hazards for THIS task and site |
| Risk evaluation | Likelihood × severity, residual risk after controls |
| Control measures | Following the hierarchy of control |
| Sequence of work | Numbered step-by-step safe method |
| Plant & equipment | Tools, access equipment, inspection requirements |
| PPE | Specific PPE for each stage (last line of defence) |
| COSHH / substances | Hazardous substances, assessments, SDS references |
| Permits required | Hot works, confined space, excavation, etc. |
| Emergency arrangements | First aid, rescue plan, contacts, reporting |
| Sign-off | Author, approver, and operatives' briefing signatures |
| Hierarchy of control | Example |
|---|---|
| 1. Eliminate | Prefabricate at ground level instead of at height |
| 2. Substitute | Use a less hazardous product / battery tool |
| 3. Engineering | Edge protection, LEV/dust extraction, guards |
| 4. Administrative | Exclusion zones, sequencing, training, signage |
| 5. PPE | Hard hat, gloves, RPE, hi-vis, harness |
Detailed Guidance
Risk assessment first, method statement second
You cannot write a sensible method until you know what you are protecting against. Start with the risk assessment: walk the task in your head (or on site), list the hazards, decide who could be harmed and how seriously, then choose controls using the hierarchy. Only then write the method statement — the sequence of work that builds those controls into how the job is actually done. The two documents must agree: every significant hazard in the risk assessment should be addressed by a step or control in the method statement. For substance hazards, the risk assessment links to a COSHH assessment — see coshh assessment and control of substances hazardous coshh.
Make it task-specific, not generic
A generic RAMS is the most common failing the HSE and principal contractors see. "Working at height — wear a harness" tells nobody anything. A specific method statement says what access equipment, where the anchor is, who inspects the scaffold, the exclusion zone below, the rescue plan, and the order the work is done in. If your RAMS could be handed to any trade on any site without changing a word, it is wrong. Tie it to the real plant, the real materials and the real layout. For high-risk activities, cross-reference the dedicated guidance: working at height, confined spaces, excavation safety and hot works.
Writing a clear sequence of work
The sequence is the heart of the method statement. Number the steps and keep each one to a single, concrete action with its control built in.
Example sequence (cutting a structural opening):
1. Confirm temporary support / propping is in place and signed off.
2. Isolate/locate services (CAT scan + drawings) before any cutting.
3. Set up LEV dust extraction; mask/RPE on; exclusion zone established.
4. Cut in agreed sequence to maintain support at all times.
5. Install lintel/support per structural detail before removing props.
6. Clear debris; reinstate; remove exclusion zone; brief next trade.
Each step should answer: what, who, with what, and what stops it going wrong. Avoid vague verbs ("be careful", "where possible") — they are not controls.
Emergencies, permits and the people doing the work
A method statement that ignores what happens when it goes wrong is incomplete. Include first aid arrangements, how someone is rescued (from height, from an excavation, from a confined space), how incidents are reported, and emergency contacts. Where the activity is high-risk, a permit-to-work runs alongside the RAMS — hot works, confined-space entry, excavation near buried services. Finally, the RAMS only works if the gang knows it: brief the team at the point of work, let them challenge anything unrealistic, and have them sign to confirm they understand. A signed-but-unread RAMS protects nobody. Tie the briefing into your site induction checklist and reinforce specifics through toolbox talks.
How RAMS sit within CDM 2015
On notifiable and multi-contractor projects, CDM 2015 puts duties on the client, principal designer, principal contractor and contractors to plan, manage and monitor the work. Your RAMS feed the principal contractor's construction phase plan and coordination — they are how you show your part of the job is planned and controlled. On domestic projects the duties shift but the planning still applies. See cdm regulations and cdm 2015 domestic projects.
Reviewing and reissuing
RAMS are a living document. If the method changes, the weather changes the ground conditions, a different access method is used, or new people join, stop and review. A RAMS that no longer matches the job is a liability — update the version, re-brief and re-sign. Date and version every issue so everyone is working to the current one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are method statements a legal requirement?
Not by name. No regulation says "produce a method statement". What the law requires is a suitable and sufficient risk assessment (Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999) and a safe, planned system of work (Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and CDM 2015). RAMS are the standard, accepted way to demonstrate you have done both — which is why principal contractors insist on them.
Can I use a generic RAMS template?
A template is a fine starting point, but it must be edited to the actual task, site, hazards, plant and people before it is valid. A generic RAMS that does not match the job offers no real protection and will not stand up to scrutiny from the HSE, a principal contractor or a court. Treat the template as a skeleton, not the finished document.
Who should write the RAMS?
Someone competent in the task and its hazards — usually the contractor or supervisor doing the work, not an administrator copying last job's file. Competence means understanding both the trade and the safety controls. For specialist high-risk work, get input from someone qualified in that activity.
Do small jobs and sole traders need RAMS?
The duty to assess risk and work safely applies regardless of company size. Recording significant findings is required where there are five or more employees, but recording is good practice on any job and is routinely demanded before site access. A sole trader fitting a boiler still needs to have thought through the risks and controls — RAMS are just the tidy way to show it.
What is the difference between a risk assessment and a method statement?
The risk assessment identifies what could go wrong and decides the controls; the method statement is the step-by-step plan that puts those controls into action as the job is done. The risk assessment answers "what are the dangers and how do we control them?"; the method statement answers "how, in what order, do we actually do the work safely?" They are issued together as RAMS.
Regulations & Standards
Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 — overarching duty to ensure health and safety so far as is reasonably practicable; basis for the "safe system of work".
Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 — Regulation 3 requires a suitable and sufficient risk assessment; significant findings recorded where 5+ employees.
Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015) — planning, managing and monitoring construction work; construction phase plan; contractor duties.
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) — assessment and control of hazardous substances referenced from RAMS.
Work at Height Regulations 2005 — planning and control of work at height referenced in relevant RAMS.
Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) — safe use and inspection of plant/equipment cited in RAMS.
HSE guidance — risk assessment, safe systems of work and method-statement good practice.
HSE — Risk assessment — how to assess and record risk
HSE — Construction (CDM 2015) — planning and managing construction work
HSE — Managing health and safety in construction (L153) — CDM 2015 guidance
legislation.gov.uk — Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 — risk assessment duty (reg 3)
legislation.gov.uk — Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 — general duties
cdm regulations — how RAMS fit the CDM 2015 framework
coshh assessment — assessing hazardous substances referenced in RAMS
site induction checklist — briefing the team on the safe system of work
toolbox talks — reinforcing RAMS controls at the point of work