RAMS Template Tradesman Example: A Complete UK Guide

What RAMS Actually Are and Why They Matter for Sole Traders

RAMS stands for Risk Assessment and Method Statement. They are two separate documents that are almost always submitted together as a single package. The risk assessment identifies the hazards on a specific job, scores the likelihood and severity of harm, and records the control measures you will put in place. The method statement describes, in plain sequential order, exactly how the work will be carried out safely. Together they form your written evidence that you have thought the job through before you started.

For a sole trader, RAMS serve a dual purpose. First, they are your legal demonstration of compliance with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, which places a duty on every self-employed person to conduct their work without exposing themselves or others to risks to their health and safety. Second, on most commercial sites, a principal contractor will refuse to let you through the gate without an approved RAMS specific to the task. A generic one you downloaded from somewhere and changed the company name on will be spotted immediately.

The common misconception is that only large companies need RAMS. In practice, any tradesperson carrying out work that involves a non-trivial hazard, whether that is working at height, using power tools in an occupied property, working near live electrical circuits, or cutting into potentially asbestos-containing materials, should have a written risk assessment. If you have fewer than five employees, including yourself as a sole trader, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 does not legally require you to write it down, but the duty to assess the risk still exists under Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and the moment a principal contractor or insurer asks for evidence, having nothing written down is a serious problem.

• •Risk Assessment: identifies hazards, scores risk, records controls
• •Method Statement: step-by-step description of how the work is done safely
• •Both documents submitted together as one RAMS package
• •Required by principal contractors before you can start on most commercial and many domestic jobs
• •Legally underpinned by the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999

The Full Worked Example: Bathroom Installation by a Sole-Trader Plumber

Below is a complete, realistic RAMS for a sole-trader plumber. The scenario is a first-fix and second-fix bathroom installation in an occupied domestic property in Leeds. The client is a homeowner, not a business. The job value is £3,200. Start date is 14 July 2025, estimated duration three working days. Read it as a continuous document first, then the sections that follow will explain each part in detail.

RISK ASSESSMENT AND METHOD STATEMENT. Document reference: RA-2025-047. Prepared by: J. Hartley Plumbing, 14 Birchwood Close, Leeds, LS6 3PQ. Date prepared: 7 July 2025. Review date: 13 July 2025 (day before commencement). Client/Principal Contractor: Mr and Mrs D. Patel, 22 Ash Grove, Leeds, LS8 1TN. Work description: removal of existing bathroom suite including bath, basin, toilet and pipework; installation of new suite comprising shower enclosure, vanity unit, back-to-wall WC, and associated hot and cold supplies and waste connections. Property type: occupied domestic dwelling, Victorian mid-terrace, first floor bathroom.

HAZARDS IDENTIFIED AND CONTROL MEASURES. Hazard 1: Manual handling of heavy bathroom suite. Likelihood 3, Severity 3, Risk Score 9 (Medium). Controls: use of sack truck and lifting aids for bath removal; second person engaged for bath lift where weight exceeds 25 kg; client informed property will need clear access route from front door to first floor. Hazard 2: Working at height (stepladder use for pipework connections above floor level). Likelihood 2, Severity 4, Risk Score 8 (Medium). Controls: stepladder inspected prior to use in accordance with Work at Height Regulations 2005, Regulation 12; three points of contact maintained; stepladder footed or secured. Hazard 3: Exposure to existing lead pipework. Likelihood 3, Severity 3, Risk Score 9 (Medium). Controls: visual inspection of existing pipework before work commences; if lead confirmed, gloves and RPE FFP2 minimum to be worn during removal; waste disposed of as special waste. Hazard 4: Water ingress and slip hazard during disconnection of existing supplies. Likelihood 3, Severity 2, Risk Score 6 (Medium). Controls: mains stopcock location confirmed with client before start; isolation valve fitted on supplies before work begins; absorbent mats laid on floor. Hazard 5: Dust and debris from removal work in occupied property. Likelihood 4, Severity 2, Risk Score 8 (Medium). Controls: dust sheets laid from work area to front door; temporary partition at bathroom door; client advised not to enter work area during first-fix operations.

METHOD STATEMENT. Step 1: Arrive on site at 08:00. Carry out site-specific briefing with client. Confirm mains water stopcock location. Confirm acceptable working hours (08:00-17:30 Mon-Fri). Step 2: Protect access route with dust sheets. Erect temporary dust screen at bathroom doorway. Step 3: Isolate water supply at mains. Drain down affected pipework via lowest convenient outlet. Step 4: Disconnect WC cistern, basin taps, and bath taps. Remove existing suite to skip or van for disposal. Inspect existing pipework for lead. Step 5: First-fix new pipework routes for hot and cold supplies and waste connections. Pressure test pipework before boarding. Step 6: Day 2: Install shower enclosure, vanity unit, and back-to-wall WC pan and cistern. Connect supplies and waste. Step 7: Day 3: Final connections, siliconing, and sign-off with client. Clean all areas. Remove dust screens and sheeting. Step 8: Carry out visual inspection of all work. Issue completion notification to client.

SIGNATURES. Operative: J. Hartley. Signature: [signed]. Date: 7 July 2025. Client acknowledgement (optional for domestic): D. Patel. Date: 8 July 2025. Review confirmed prior to commencement: J. Hartley. Date: 13 July 2025.

Section-by-Section Breakdown: Document Header and Project Details

The document reference number (RA-2025-047 in the example) is not bureaucracy for its own sake. It allows you to track revisions, demonstrate that the document was prepared before work started if there is ever a dispute or an HSE investigation, and cross-reference it against a job record or invoice. A simple numbering system, year followed by sequential job number, is all you need.

The review date is the element most sole traders omit. RAMS should be reviewed before the job starts, particularly if there is a gap between preparation and commencement. In the example, the document was prepared seven days before the start date and reviewed the day before. If the job scope changes during work, for example you discover the bathroom is larger than expected and you need to use a scaffold tower rather than a stepladder, a revised RAMS must be prepared and the original updated.

The work description should be specific enough that someone who has never visited the site understands the scope. Vague descriptions like 'plumbing works' or 'bathroom refit' are red flags for a principal contractor's health and safety adviser. Include the property type because the hazard profile of an occupied Victorian terrace is different from a new-build site or a commercial premises.

• •Document reference: tracks revisions and proves it pre-dates the work
• •Review date: must be confirmed before commencement; must be updated if scope changes
• •Work description: specific enough for an outsider to understand the exact scope
• •Property type: occupied, unoccupied, domestic, commercial, high-rise all change the hazard profile

Section-by-Section Breakdown: Hazard Identification and Risk Scoring

The risk matrix used in the example is a standard 5x5 grid, but the numbers you assign must reflect reality for your specific job, not a generic template. Likelihood runs from 1 (very unlikely) to 5 (almost certain). Severity runs from 1 (negligible) to 5 (fatal or catastrophic). The risk score is likelihood multiplied by severity. A score of 1-6 is generally treated as low, 7-15 as medium requiring control measures, and 16-25 as high requiring the task to be redesigned or stopped.

The critical mistake on this part of the document is listing hazards with no genuine control measures. Writing 'PPE to be worn' against every hazard with no specification of what PPE, no indication of whether it has been provided, and no reference to any inspection or maintenance process is worthless and will be rejected on any serious site. Control measures need to be specific, actionable, and assignable. In the example, the work at height hazard specifies the regulation it references, Regulation 12 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005, the inspection standard for the equipment, and the specific safe behaviour required.

The Work at Height Regulations 2005 Regulation 12 requires that any access equipment, including ladders and stepladders, is inspected by a competent person before use and that a record is kept. For a sole trader, a brief note in a site diary or a photo of the equipment on the day is sufficient, but having nothing is a compliance failure. If you are working above two metres for more than thirty minutes at a stretch, a stepladder is rarely the right equipment choice and your RAMS should reflect that by specifying a podium, platform steps, or hired scaffold tower instead.

• •Score each hazard on likelihood (1-5) x severity (1-5) to produce a risk score
• •Low: 1-6. Medium: 7-15. High: 16-25 (redesign or stop the task)
• •Control measures must be specific: name the PPE, specify the inspection standard, assign responsibility
• •Work at Height Regulations 2005 Reg 12: access equipment must be inspected before use and a record kept
• •If working above two metres for extended periods, specify the correct equipment not just a stepladder

Section-by-Section Breakdown: The Method Statement

The method statement is where most sole-trader RAMS fall apart. It either reads like a marketing brochure, 'we will carry out all works to the highest standard', or it is lifted verbatim from a generic template with no connection to the actual job. The method statement must describe the actual sequence of work you will do on this specific job, in enough detail that a competent person could follow it and understand at what point each hazard arises and what the control is.

Sequential numbering is essential. Each step should be a discrete action. The ordering matters because it determines when control measures need to be in place. In the example, the isolation of the water supply (Step 3) comes before any disconnection work (Step 4), not alongside it. That sequence is not obvious to a client or a site inspector unless you write it down, and it is also your evidence if a flood occurs and the question is whether you isolated the supply before starting.

Include the specific technical standards where they apply. A plumber fitting a new shower would reference the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999 in the method statement for the pipework installation. An electrician carrying out first-fix cabling in the same bathroom would reference the relevant zone requirements under BS 7671:2018 Amendment 4:2026. A gas engineer fitting a new boiler would reference the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 Regulation 26, which requires that an installation is tested for gas tightness before being commissioned. Referencing the relevant standard does not make you look like you are showing off. It demonstrates competence to the person reviewing the document.

• •Sequential numbered steps, each a single discrete action
• •Sequence must reflect real operational order, not a generic process
• •Control measures must appear at the step where the hazard arises, not in a separate list
• •Reference relevant technical standards by name and number where applicable
• •Avoid generic phrases like 'all works carried out to a high standard'

How the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 Applies to Your RAMS

Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 places a general duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees. Section 3 extends that duty to non-employees, which means clients, members of the public, and anyone else who might be affected by your work. As a sole trader, you are both an employer in the broad sense and a worker, and Section 3 is the provision most directly relevant to domestic work in occupied properties where the client's family is present.

The phrase 'so far as is reasonably practicable' is important. It does not mean you have to eliminate every conceivable risk. It means you have to weigh the risk of harm against the cost and difficulty of the control measure, and if the control is proportionate, you must implement it. A RAMS is the written record that you carried out that weighing exercise before you started work. Without it, if something goes wrong, the default assumption is that you did not think about it at all.

The Building Safety Act 2022 has extended competence duties to all contractors and sole traders carrying out building work in England and Wales. The Building Safety Regulator became an independent statutory body on 27 January 2026. While its primary focus is higher-risk buildings (residential buildings over 18 metres or seven storeys), the competence framework it mandates has practical implications for sole traders in that demonstrating documented safety processes, including RAMS, is increasingly part of what insurers and principal contractors will expect as a baseline, not just for high-rise work.

• •Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 s.2: duty to employees
• •Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 s.3: duty extends to non-employees including domestic clients and public
• •Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 Reg 3: duty to assess risks regardless of company size
• •Building Safety Act 2022: competence duties now extend to all contractors and sole traders carrying out building work
• •RAMS is your written evidence that the 'reasonably practicable' assessment was done

Adapting the Template for Different Trades

The structure of the worked example above applies across all trades, but the specific hazards and technical references will differ. For an electrician carrying out a consumer unit replacement in an occupied property, the hazard profile centres on live electrical work, exposure to potentially deteriorated wiring, and the requirement to notify the work through a competent person scheme under Part P of the Building Regulations 2010. The method statement should specify the isolation procedures, the testing sequence to be followed under BS 7671:2018 Amendment 4:2026, and the point at which the property is safe to re-energise.

For a gas engineer carrying out a boiler installation, the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 Regulation 26 requires a gas tightness test before the installation is commissioned and after any work on gas fittings. This must appear in the method statement as a discrete step, not as a footnote. The engineer must be registered with Gas Safe Register, and the RAMS should note the registration number. From 1 October 2026, gas tightness testing procedures are also subject to updated requirements under IGEM/UP/1B Edition 4, which changes how permissible pressure drop is determined based on installation volume rather than meter size.

For a roofer or any trade regularly working at height, the hazards section will be dominated by fall prevention and the method statement must address the hierarchy of controls under the Work at Height Regulations 2005: collective protection (edge protection, scaffold) before individual protection (harness), and personal protective equipment as a last resort, not a first response. A RAMS that says 'operative to wear harness when working at height' with no reference to a suitable anchor point, no training evidence, and no rescue plan will be rejected by any competent principal contractor.

• •Electrician: include Part P notification, BS 7671:2018 A4:2026 testing sequence, isolation procedure
• •Gas engineer: include Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 Reg 26 tightness test step, Gas Safe registration number
• •Roofer: follow Work at Height Regulations 2005 hierarchy, collective protection before personal protection
• •Builder: include CDM 2015 role clarification, asbestos survey reference if pre-2000 building
• •All trades: hazard profile and technical references must reflect the actual trade and job, not a generic template

CDM 2015 and When a Sole Trader Becomes a Principal Contractor

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, known as CDM 2015, are the framework that governs health and safety management on construction projects in the UK. For a sole trader, the most important question is what role CDM assigns you on a specific job. If you are the only contractor on a domestic job, you are a contractor and the client (if they are a domestic client) takes on the duties of the principal designer and principal contractor by default unless they appoint someone else in writing.

A project becomes notifiable to the HSE under CDM 2015 if construction work is scheduled to last more than 30 working days with more than 20 workers simultaneously, or exceed 500 person-days of work. Most sole-trader domestic jobs do not hit these thresholds. However, the requirement to have a site-specific risk assessment and method statement applies to all construction work regardless of whether the project is notifiable. CDM 2015 does not create the RAMS requirement on its own. That comes from the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. CDM 2015 determines who is responsible for what on multi-contractor projects.

Where a sole trader is engaged by a principal contractor on a commercial or multi-trade site, the principal contractor sets the rules. The RAMS must be submitted in the format the principal contractor specifies, approved before work starts, and reviewed whenever scope or conditions change. On these jobs, a RAMS rejected at the gate is a half-day of earnings lost. Having a well-structured, job-specific document that you can produce quickly is a direct commercial advantage, not just a compliance exercise.

• •CDM 2015: applies to all construction work in the UK
• •Domestic client: principal contractor and principal designer duties default to the contractor unless formally appointed
• •Notifiable threshold: 30+ working days with 20+ simultaneous workers, or 500+ person-days
• •RAMS required regardless of notification status: requirement derives from Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 Reg 3
• •Principal contractor sites: RAMS must be submitted and approved before work starts

The Seven Most Common RAMS Mistakes Sole Traders Make

The first and most damaging mistake is using a generic template with only the company name changed. Principal contractors and site safety managers see hundreds of RAMS documents. A generic one is obvious within thirty seconds. The hazards listed will not match the job, the control measures will be vague, and the method statement will read like it was written for a different trade entirely. It will be rejected, and you may not get a second chance before the start date.

The second common mistake is failing to include the review and re-issue process. RAMS are live documents. If the scope changes, if you discover an unexpected hazard on day one, for example, asbestos-containing floor tiles under the existing bathroom vinyl, the original RAMS is no longer valid. You must stop work, update the document, and get it re-approved if you are on a managed site. Having a version control process, even just a revision number and date in the header, means you can demonstrate that you responded correctly to changed conditions.

The remaining five mistakes are listed below. Each one has caused real problems for real sole traders, ranging from being turned away from sites to HSE investigation following an incident.

• •Generic template not adapted to the specific job and trade: rejected on sight
• •No review date or revision process: RAMS becomes invalid when scope changes
• •Risk scores not recalculated after control measures: the residual risk score must appear, not just the initial score
• •No reference to the actual operatives by name: 'the operative' is not sufficient on most managed sites
• •Method statement in past tense: write it in future tense as a planned sequence, not a report of what happened
• •PPE listed as the first and only control measure: the hierarchy of controls requires elimination and substitution to be considered first
• •No signature block or date of preparation: undated RAMS cannot prove it pre-dated the work

RAMS for Subcontractors: What You Must Pass Down the Chain

If you take on a helper, labourer, or sub-trade on a job where you are acting as the lead contractor, you have additional RAMS responsibilities. The person working under you must be made aware of the site-specific risk assessment before they start work. You do not have to hand them the full document, but you must brief them on the hazards relevant to their work, the control measures in place, and the emergency procedures. That briefing should be recorded, ideally with a signature, because if something goes wrong and it comes out that you said nothing, you face exposure under Section 2 and Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The induction record can be as simple as a one-page form: name, date, job address, hazards covered in the briefing, control measures explained, emergency procedures confirmed, signature of the person briefed, and your signature as the person giving the briefing. Keep a copy. This takes ten minutes and it is the difference between demonstrating compliance and having nothing to show an inspector.

Be cautious about using another tradesperson's RAMS as your own. If a principal contractor provides you with a site-wide RAMS and asks you to sign it as your own, you need to satisfy yourself that it accurately describes the work you will be doing, the equipment you will be using, and the control measures you will actually implement. Signing a document you have not read, or that does not reflect your actual scope, provides you with no legal protection and could expose you to liability if something goes wrong and the document is shown to be inaccurate.

• •All workers under your control must be briefed on site-specific hazards before starting
• •Record the briefing: name, date, hazards covered, signature of both parties
• •Never sign another party's RAMS as your own without checking it accurately describes your scope and controls
• •Keep records: a signed briefing sheet is your evidence of compliance under the 1974 Act

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