Roofing risk assessment template UK
Last updated 17 October 2026
A UK roofing risk assessment names the roof, who can fall, and the controls for that address. It is not a blank form.
A roofing risk assessment for a UK job has to name this roof, not “various roofs”. It has to say who can fall, who can be hit by a tile, and what will stop that on this address. A site-ready RAMS your principal contractor can review puts that assessment next to the method, so the briefing is one document.
Start from the roofing RAMS template, then add the pitch, the access and anything the crew will not see on a generic sheet.
Worked example
A two-storey re-tile on a house with a school-run footpath and two roof lights:
- Fragile surfaces are covered or barriered before anyone walks the pitch. Suspected asbestos cement stops the job until it is in the plan.
- Access is an independent scaffold to the eaves. The ladder is for getting onto that scaffold, not for cutting tiles.
- The hoist stays clear of the telephone line. Dropped tiles are kept off the footpath between 08:00 and 09:15.
- Work stops in high wind or on a wet pitch. The competent person sets that limit for this roof before the day starts.
That is the shape of the draft. It is not a sign-off for 12 Sample Street or for your site.
What the law is asking for
- Work at Height Regulations 2005. Avoid work at height where you can. Otherwise prevent a fall, and only then mitigate how far someone or something can fall.
- Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. Where the work is construction, the contractor plans, manages and monitors it. A RAMS does not replace a construction phase plan.
- Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. The assessment has to be suitable and sufficient, and the controls have to be put in place.
- Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, where a hoist or gin wheel is used.
HSE’s HSG33 is guidance on health and safety in roof work. It is not a regulation, and it does not replace the assessment for this address.
Questions
Does a one-day domestic re-roof still need a written assessment?
If someone can fall, or materials can fall on someone else, the Work at Height Regulations 2005 still apply. Domestic work can also be construction work under CDM 2015. Write down the roof, the access and the controls before the gang starts.
Is a roofing risk assessment the same as a RAMS?
The risk assessment is the hazards, who might be harmed, and the controls. The method statement is the order of work. A RAMS is both, which is what a principal contractor usually asks to see before sign-in.
Can the crew work from a ladder?
Ladders are access unless a safer platform is not reasonably practicable and a competent person records why. The roofing template treats a ladder as access, not as the working platform.