Scaffolding method statement example
Finished method statements for common jobs: the steps in order, who does each, and the emergency arrangements. Read one, download it, or build your own.
Build your ownChoose a job
- Electrical second fix and testing in a house refurbishmentLived-in 1970s house, accessories and consumer unit fitted, one circuit dead at a time, tested dead then live before handover.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Hot works: cutting and welding in an occupied warehouseSteel brackets cut out and replaced on a live bay, with a permit for each shift and a separate fire watcher.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Erecting an independent tied scaffold on a two-storey houseIndependent tube and fitting scaffold to a TG20 compliance sheet, family at home, rescue kit on the wagon.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Stripping and re-tiling a pitched roof from a scaffoldLived-in house, tiles, battens and underlay off, one section made weathertight each day.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Digging a 1.2 m trench for strip footings and a drainBeside a lived-in house, services located first, excavator then hand tools, trench sheets and props before anyone goes in.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Repainting occupied officesWater-based paint from a podium, walls filled and sanded first, one bay screened off at a time while staff work on.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Bathroom first and second fix in a lived-in houseOnly bathroom replaced, press-fit pipework under the floor and in a duct, tested before anyone closes it up, suite fitted after tiling.5 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Tarmac resurfacing on a car park that stays partly openOld surface tested and planed off, private retail car park, laid bay block by bay block with shoppers around.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Unloading a builders’ merchant delivery with a lorry loaderPacks of blocks and plasterboard landed on a small building site, on a standing lift plan reviewed for this site.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Cleaning the outside of a two-storey office with a water-fed poleAll from the ground, in an open office set back behind its own car park, on cold November mornings.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- MIG welding a pump frame in a plant roomMIG welding bare mild steel at floor level in a closed plant room, with on-torch extraction, while the retail park keeps trading.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopOffice ceiling, partitions, carpet and benches out by hand, building empty, every service including the fire alarm disconnected on a certificate, lit by roof lights and a 110 V string.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Skimming and patching walls in an occupied houseGround floor living room of a 2006 house, family at home, plaster mixed in the room with the door shut, from a hop-up.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Building a garden wall in blockwork and facing brickA 5 m long, 1 m high wall, one brick thick, on a foundation already in, laid from the ground.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Core drilling a flue hole through a cavity blockwork wallOne 125 mm wet core, rig fixed to the inner leaf, through an external wall of a single-storey extension, with the core caught outside.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Replacing damaged ceiling tiles and grid in an occupied office, out of hoursLike-for-like tiles and tees on the existing hangers, from a podium, with the offices empty and the fire alarm left live.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Clearing gutters on a bungalow from a ladderEight ladder positions of under 15 minutes each, one hand on the ladder, with a stand-off keeping it clear of the gutter.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Laying a block paved patio in a lived-in gardenDug out by hand to 250 mm, sub-base compacted, blocks laid on sand and cut wet, family at home.4 pages, checked 2 November 2026
- Hanging office doors in existing linings, out of hours in a working buildingSix heavy non-fire meeting room doors, trimmed and routed on trestles after the staff have gone.3 pages, checked 2 November 2026
Scaffolding method statement example
Erecting an independent tied scaffold on a two-storey house
Independent tube and fitting scaffold to a TG20 compliance sheet, family at home, rescue kit on the wagon.
What to change
- Company, people, site and dates
- Lifts, height and what the users will load on it
- Wall construction and ties
- Pavement or road: licence and public protection
- Overhead lines
- Rescue plan and kit
- Emergency arrangements
Sources
- HSE: scaffolding
- Work at Height Regulations, regulation 12: inspection
- HSE: protecting the public
- HSE GS6: avoiding danger from overhead power lines
Checked
The same sheet as text
Worked example of a method statement. Change it to fit your job before you use it.
Erecting an independent tied scaffold on a two-storey house
Job details
- CompanyHollins & Reed Scaffolding Ltd
- Site and work area7 Orchard Close, Stockport
- Planned dates12 to 13 October 2026
- CustomerMr and Mrs Barlow
- In charge on siteDan Hollins
- TeamThree scaffolders: Dan Hollins leads and checks the scaffold before handover; Tom Ellis and Priya Shah work with him.
- WorkErecting an independent tied scaffold on a two-storey house
- Risk assessmentErecting an independent tied scaffold on a two-storey house: worked example RAMS, a separate document
Work and boundaries
- Erecting. Areas: Front and gable elevations, ground to eaves, two lifts; Pavement outside No. 7, kept behind barriers
Working arrangement
- Erection fall protection: Advance guardrail system.
- Other people will be using the area.
- Independent tied scaffold to a TG20 compliance sheet: two lifts, general purpose 2 kN/m², no sheeting. The family stays at home; the front door stays clear as their way out. The exclusion zone and public protection go up before anything comes off the wagon. The highway licence for the pavement is held. Overhead lines were checked on the survey. The first-lift ladder comes off out of hours.
Emergency arrangements
- Fall into a harness: Tom Ellis and Priya Shah recover the person from the lift above, using the rescue kit on the wagon. 999 comes second: do not wait for them to do the rescue. Anyone hurt on the path or road: stop work, keep people away, close the bay. Scaffold touching an overhead line: stay clear, nobody touches the tube, ring the line owner. Scaffold moving or collapsing: everyone off and keep people away. Fire in the house: the family leaves by the front door. First aider: Tom Ellis, kit on the wagon. Dan Hollins rings 999, gives 7 Orchard Close, and meets the crew at the main road junction.
Planned method
- 1. Set up the work areaConfirm the work area and scope before starting. Keep other people outside the active work area. Keep entrances and escape routes clear.
- 2. Keep people clear of the workAgree how people get past or around the work while it is going on. Put barriers or signs where a route crosses the work. Do not leave open work unattended.
- 3. Check the sheet or design firstKeep the TG20 sheet, maker instructions or design on site. Brief the gang on the build order and how they will stay protected.
- 4. Set the boundary before work startsFence off the base and the area below the work. Protect any public route, traffic route or overhead line beside it.
- 5. Check for asbestos before you disturb anythingCheck the asbestos survey covers exactly what you will disturb, to the full depth. Register only, or nothing: get a refurbishment survey or a sample first. Read what it says about old boards, soffits, sealants or insulation where ties and fixings go. No survey, or a material you do not recognise: stop and get it checked.
- 6. Find and isolate hidden servicesFind cables and pipes before you disturb anything: drawings, then a detector. Mark what you find. Not sure what is there? Turn the supply off, or do not start. Have cables and gas isolated by the right person and prove them dead before you start.
- 7. Check the weather before you startDo not lift or fix scaffold and loose materials in strong wind. Stop in heavy rain, ice or lightning.
- 8. Stop things falling on people belowKeep people out of the area below the work so nobody walks under the tubes, boards, fittings and tools. Keep toe boards and guards in place on any platform, and lanyard tools where you can.
- 9. Unload and stack on the agreed areaTake nothing off the wagon until the boundary is up. Stack it on the agreed area and protect the pavement.
- 10. Set a firm, level basePut sole boards and base plates under every standard where the ground needs support. Check the ground or supporting structure before building up.
- 11. Build the base lift with fall protectionNobody steps onto a new lift until the fall method in this document is in place. Board the lift and fit guardrails and toe boards before it is used. Anyone within 1 m of an unprotected edge clips on.
- 12. Use advance guardrailsFit the advance guardrail from the lift below before anyone steps onto the new lift. Keep it in place until the lift is boarded and its own guardrails are in.
- 13. Tie and brace the base liftInstall the planned ties and bracing in the order shown on the sheet or design. Keep every tie within its stated safe working load.
- 14. Fit the access ladder and secure itFit it once the base lift is tied, before anyone works from that lift. It goes 1 m above the landing, at 65 to 75 degrees, and is tied. Out of hours, remove the bottom ladder or board it off.
- 15. Use the hoistCheck the hoist's thorough examination report is in date and it can take the weight. Keep people out from underneath while a load is up.
- 16. Repeat for each liftFor every lift, raise the materials by the agreed route, fit the fall protection, board it, then tie and brace it. Take the ladder up with the build, so nobody climbs the frame.
- 17. Block off what is not finishedMark any part that is not finished and physically block the way onto it. Do this before leaving site, as well as during the work.
- 18. Inspect before handing it overCheck the finished scaffold, access, boards, guardrails, ties, toe boards and loading arrangements. Record the inspection and hand it over with the current tag or record visible.
- 19. Clear and hand back the areaRemove tools, waste and unused materials. Check the area is clean and ready to use. Tell the customer or whoever runs the site when the work is complete.
What a finished method statement says
- The job and its boundariesWhat is being done, where, and what is not your work.
- How the work area is set upAccess, shared spaces and who else is around.
- The steps, in the order they happenOne action to a step, from arrival to sign-off.
- Who does each stepThe people in charge and the skills each step needs.
- What happens if something goes wrongWho to call, where to go and how help gets in.
Method statement or risk assessment: which one is this?
This is the method statement: how the job is done, step by step. The risk assessment says what could go wrong and what controls it.
Method statement example questions
Are these real jobs?
No. Every job, company, person and address here is made up, and every page says so.
Can I send one as it is?
No. Your site, your people and your emergency arrangements will be different. Change it to fit your job first.
Where is the risk assessment that goes with it?
In the Scaffolding RAMS example. The method statement names it on page one.
Word or PDF?
Both. Word if you will change the wording yourself, PDF to read or print. Or press Use this and edit it in the builder.
Does a method statement need a risk assessment?
A method statement names the risk assessment it rests on. CDM 2015 does not set a form for either document.
Where is the blank?
On the method statement template page. These examples are all filled in.