RAMS Explained: Risk Assessments and Method Statements, With a Worked Example

RAMS stands for risk assessment and method statement. On most construction sites, a contractor has to send RAMS to the principal contractor before starting a task, and the team doing the work has to be briefed on them. This guide explains what each part is, what the law actually requires, and walks through a full example.

What RAMS means

In short, the risk assessment decides what controls are needed. The method statement turns those controls into a step by step plan the team can follow.

What the law says

• Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3. Employers and the self-employed must assess the risks of their work. With five or more employees, the significant findings must be recorded. Our guide to the 5 steps to risk assessment explains the process.
• CDM 2015, regulation 15. Contractors must plan, manage and monitor their work so it is carried out safely, and give workers the information and instructions they need.
• Specific written plans. Some regulations require a written plan for particular work, including demolition and dismantling under CDM 2015 regulation 20, licensed asbestos work under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, and lifting operations under LOLER 1998. These are often written as method statements.

HSE also warns against generic paperwork. Its guidance on the construction phase plan says the plan should not be cluttered with generic risk assessments and method statements, and its risk assessment guidance tells people not to simply copy an example. RAMS should describe the actual job on the actual site.

What a good method statement includes

1. Job title, location, client and principal contractor
2. Scope of the work and what is not included
3. Who is in charge, who will do the work and the competence required
4. Plant, equipment and materials, including inspection and certificates
5. Permits needed, for example hot works or a permit to dig
6. Step by step sequence of work, with the controls built into each step
7. PPE required for each stage
8. Emergency and rescue arrangements, first aid and fire
9. Environmental controls such as dust, noise, waste and spills
10. How the work will be monitored and when the RAMS will be reviewed
11. Briefing record, with names and signatures of those briefed

Worked example: installing a suspended ceiling from a mobile tower

A short example to show how the two parts connect. A real document would be specific to the site, the building and the team.

Risk assessment extract

Method statement extract: sequence of work

1. Supervisor checks the area is clear, services are identified and the floor is suitable for the tower.
2. Exclusion zone set up with barriers and signs below the working area.
3. Trained operative erects the tower, fits guardrails, toe boards and outriggers, and records the inspection.
4. Team briefed on these RAMS, the rescue plan and the emergency arrangements. Briefing signed.
5. Wall angle fixed at the agreed level, then main runners hung and levelled.
6. Cross tees fitted, tiles cut with a knife where possible and fitted from the platform only.
7. Tower moved only with nobody on it and materials removed, then re-checked before use.
8. Waste bagged and removed daily, tower dismantled, area handed back and inspected.

Notice that each control in the risk assessment appears as a step in the sequence. If a control is in the risk assessment but not in the method, it will probably not happen.

Briefing the team

RAMS that sit in the site office protect nobody. CDM 2015 expects workers to be given the information and instructions they need, so brief every person who will do the work, including anyone who joins later. Use the job in front of you, check understanding, and record who was briefed. A toolbox talk format works well.

When to review RAMS

• The work, the sequence or the team changes
• New plant, equipment or materials are introduced
• Site conditions change, for example weather, access or neighbouring work
• There is an accident, near miss or concern raised
• Monitoring shows the method is not being followed

Mistakes that get RAMS rejected

• Generic text copied from another job, sometimes with the wrong site name still in it
• A hazard list with no real controls, or controls that rely only on PPE
• No sequence of work, so the method statement is just another risk assessment
• Missing emergency and rescue arrangements, especially for work at height and confined spaces
• No reference to permits, inspections or certificates the work depends on
• No evidence that the team has been briefed

Getting the controls right comes down to the hierarchy of controls: eliminate, substitute, engineer, then administrative controls and PPE as the last resort.

Training that helps

Our RAMS training course teaches teams to write and check RAMS in practice. If you write or check RAMS, the NEBOSH Managing Risks course covers risk assessment and controls in depth, and the NEBOSH Health and Safety Management for Construction certificate covers planning construction work. For teams who need the basics online, our risk assessment eLearning and permit to work eLearning courses can be completed at any time.

Where this fits in SMSTS and SSSTS

Writing, checking and briefing RAMS is a core part of both courses, and supervisors are expected to make sure the method is followed. Our free SMSTS mock test and SSSTS mock test let you check your knowledge before the course or a refresher, and you can email yourself the results sheet at the end.

When you are ready, the five day SMSTS course is for site managers and the two day SSSTS course is for supervisors. If your certificate is due, the SMSTS refresher and SSSTS refresher keep it current.

Frequently asked questions

What does RAMS stand for?

Risk assessment and method statement. The risk assessment identifies hazards and controls; the method statement sets out the safe sequence of work.

Is a method statement a legal requirement?

The general law requires a risk assessment, not a method statement. Some regulations require written plans for specific work, such as demolition, licensed asbestos work and lifting operations, and most principal contractors require RAMS before work starts.

Who writes RAMS?

The contractor doing the work, usually a supervisor or manager who knows the task, with input from the people who will carry it out. The principal contractor reviews them.

Are RAMS part of the construction phase plan?

No. The construction phase plan sets out the arrangements for the whole project. HSE says it should not be filled with generic RAMS, which belong with each task.

Read the source

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3; the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, regulations 15 and 20, and HSE guidance L153; HSE’s risk assessment guidance and templates; the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012; and the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998. Facts checked on 6 October 2026.