Method statement
Method statement meaning: what it is and when you need one
A method statement is a written description of how a specific job will be carried out safely, setting out the sequence of work, the equipment and people involved, and the control measures that the risk assessment for that job identified. Where a risk assessment says what could go wrong, the method statement says how the work will proceed so that it does not.
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The UK Health and Safety Executive puts it directly: the method statement "describes in a logical sequence exactly how a job is to be carried out in a way that secures health and safety and includes all the control measures". You will also see it called a safe system of work document, a work method statement, or in Australia a safe work method statement (SWMS).
What does a method statement contain?
There is no mandated format, which is why quality varies so wildly. A usable one covers:
- Scope. The specific task, at the specific location, for the specific dates. Not "electrical works".
- People and competence. Who does the work, who supervises, what qualifications are required.
- Sequence. The job broken into steps in the order they happen, including set-up and making good afterwards.
- Control measures per step. Drawn from the risk assessment and tied to the step they belong to, not listed in a block at the end.
- Plant, equipment and materials. Including inspection and test certificates where they apply.
- PPE. Specified per task, not as a blanket list.
- Permits and isolations required. Which permits must be in force before which step starts.
- Emergency arrangements. Rescue plan, first aid, raising the alarm, stop-work triggers.
- Sign-off. Prepared by, approved by, and a briefing record signed by everyone doing the work.
The most effective ones include a drawing or a marked-up site plan. HSE notes that diagrams make it clearer how work should be carried out, and a sketch of the exclusion zone communicates more than three paragraphs about it.
How do method statements and risk assessments fit together?
In UK and Irish practice the two documents travel as a pair, universally abbreviated to RAMS (risk assessment and method statement). They are not interchangeable and neither works properly alone.
- The risk assessment comes first. It identifies the hazards, judges who might be harmed and how seriously, and decides what controls are needed.
- The method statement comes second. It writes those controls into the running order of the job, so the crew knows at which step each one applies.
Get the order wrong and you get the most common failure in the field: a method statement written from a template, with a risk assessment reverse-engineered afterwards to match it. The paperwork looks complete. The thinking never happened.
In the UK, RAMS are typically requested by a principal contractor from every subcontractor before site access is granted, which is where most people first meet the term. That is a contractual convention layered on top of the legal duties, not the legal duty itself.
When is a method statement legally required?
Less often than the construction industry's habits suggest, and precision matters here. HSE is explicit that "the arrangements for carrying out demolition, dismantling or structural alteration must be recorded in writing before the work begins", usually achieved with a method statement. For everything else, HSE states that "while not required by law, method statements are also prepared for many other construction activities".
The honest framing: a written method statement is legally mandated for a narrow set of higher-risk activities, and is established good practice, often contractually required, for a much wider set. The underlying legal duty is to have a safe system of work. The method statement is the normal way of proving you thought one through and communicated it.
Does every country do it this way?
No, and treating the UK model as universal will get you into trouble. Requirements differ by country and by industry.
- UK and Ireland. RAMS as described above, under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, with construction duties on top.
- Australia and New Zealand. A safe work method statement is mandatory for high risk construction work under the model WHS Regulations. Safe Work Australia describes the SWMS as a written document setting out the high risk construction work activities, the hazards and risks arising, and the control measures to be put in place, and requires it to be prepared, kept, complied with and reviewed.
- United States. No single federal equivalent. The nearest cousin is the job hazard analysis, which OSHA promotes through its recommended practices rather than as a blanket written mandate, alongside specific standards that carry their own written requirements.
- EU member states. National implementations of the framework directive vary, with construction and high-hazard sectors generally carrying stricter documentation duties than general industry.
Check your jurisdiction, your sector and your client's contract. Each of the three can demand something the others do not.
Method statement in practice: a worked example
A contractor is replacing a rooftop air handling unit. The risk assessment flags falls from height, a crane lift over an occupied car park, and live electrical isolation. The method statement turns those into a running order: car park closed and marshalled from 06:00, roof edge protection installed and inspected before anyone goes up, isolation taken under a permit to work, old unit removed, new unit landed, then reinstatement. Each step names who does it and what must be true before it starts.
What a method statement is not
It is not a risk assessment, not a permit to work, and not proof that anything was done. A permit authorises a specific high-risk activity at a specific moment. A method statement describes the intended approach in advance. Evidence of what happened on the day is a third record, which is why proof of work capture is now standard on contractor-heavy sites. A signed method statement proves intent, not execution.
