Free to use · PDF download # Staircase installation RAMS Builder > Staircase RAMS builder for installing a stair flight or altering existing stairs. Answer a few questions, or download a free template or example PDF. > Web page: https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=staircase-installation Staircase installation risk assessment and method statement Prepare RAMS for installing a stair flight or altering and repairing an existing staircase. - Free to use - No account needed - Questions follow HSE guidance - Saves in this browser ## Staircase installation RAMS template A blank staircase installation RAMS to fill in: job details, method statement, risk assessment and briefing record. Risk assessment and method statement Staircase installation RAMS - **Company**: left blank to fill in - **Site and work area**: left blank to fill in - **Planned dates**: left blank to fill in - **In charge on site**: left blank to fill in - **Team**: left blank to fill in Method statement 1. 1 2. 2 3. 3 4. 4 5. 5 6. 6 Risk assessment | Hazard | Who might be harmed and how | Controls in place | Further action | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | [Download the templatePDF, 4 pages](https://complyonsite.com/rams/samples/staircase-installation-rams-template.pdf) ## Staircase installation RAMS example The same RAMS, filled in for one job. Risk assessment and method statement Staircase installation, 31 Chester Road, Hale: hallway and first floor landing - **Company**: Hollins & Reed Joinery Ltd - **Site and work area**: 31 Chester Road, Hale: hallway and first floor landing - **Planned dates**: 12 to 14 October 2026 - **In charge on site**: Dan Hollins - **Team**: Two joiners: Dan Hollins leads and checks the opening each morning; Priya Shah works with him. Method statement 1. 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. 2 Stop things falling on people belowFence off the ground below the work so nobody walks under the stair components. Use toe boards, brick guards or netting on platforms and lanyard tools where you can. 3. 3 Set up access equipmentUse access equipment suited to the task and work area. Check the equipment before use. Keep the area below the work controlled. 4. 4 Protect the stair componentsKeep the flight and its parts dry and protected until they are ready to install. Keep the route to the opening clear and dry. 5. 5 Use the ladder or stepsCheck the ladder or steps before use. Place them on firm, level ground. Keep three points of contact while climbing. Reposition them instead of overreaching. Do not carry loose tools or tins up; hand them up or use a belt. 6. 6 Carry the stair flight safelyPlan the route, clear it, and carry long items upright with two people. Store materials close to the work so nobody carries further than they need to. 7. 7 Check the opening and supportsCheck the opening, landing and supports match the stair information before it is lifted. Stop if the sizes, levels or supports do not match. 8. 8 Secure the flight before letting goKeep the flight supported until the specified fixings and temporary supports are in place. Check the fixings are tight before removing the lifting help. 9. 9 Fit and check the handrailFit the specified handrail and check its height, continuity and fixings. Keep the stair closed until the handrail is checked. 10. 10 Check the guardingCheck the guarding is secure and that openings are safe before people use the stair. Keep the stair closed until the check is complete. 11. 11 Clear and hand back the areaRemove tools, waste and unused materials. Check the area is clean and ready to use. Tell the person in charge when the work is complete. Risk assessment - People entering the work area or tripping over materials Workers, occupants and visitors Mark or barrier the active work area. Store tools and materials away from access routes. - Stair components falling onto people below People below, including the public Lower waste in bags or a chute, never throw it. Keep the exclusion zone up until the last item is down. - Falling from the access equipment; tools or materials falling from the platform The person on the platform, if it is set up on soft or sloping ground and shifts under them. Anyone passing or working underneath. Place access equipment on a firm, level surface. Keep tools and materials secure while working above ground. - Damage, slips or failed components from poor storage Stair installers and people nearby Store components as the maker says and keep them off wet ground. Do not use damaged parts without checking them. - Falling from the ladder or steps; tools or tins dropped on people below The person working from it, if the feet slip or they overreach to one side. Anyone passing or working under the ladder while it is in use. Secure the equipment where it could move. Keep the base and area below clear. - Back and shoulder injury from carrying heavy or long items Everyone handling materials Use a trolley or sack truck on the flat. Never carry up a ladder; hand items up or hoist them. - An unstable stair or failed installation Stair installers and people below Use the current installation information for the named stair. Do not make up a support or fixing detail on site. - The flight moves, falls or traps hands during installation The installation team and people nearby Keep hands clear of pinch points while the flight is being set down. Keep people out of the opening until the stair is secure. - Someone falls because the handrail is missing or loose Stair users and installers Use the approved dimensions and fixing details. Raise any loose fixing or unsafe gap before handover. - A person falls or a child becomes trapped in the guarding Stair users and installers Check every fixing and opening against the approved details. Raise any gap or loose part for correction. - Debris, tools or unfinished work left in the area Workers, occupants and visitors Remove waste by the agreed route. Record and protect any unfinished work. [Download the examplePDF, 4 pages](https://complyonsite.com/rams/samples/staircase-installation-rams-example.pdf) ## What a Staircase installation RAMS covers Fitting a new flight into its opening, and altering or repairing treads, strings, newels and balustrades. Not covered: forming a new stair opening in a floor. - Install a stair flight - Alter or repair stairs ## Suggested steps and hazards for Staircase installation Suggested for install a stair flight before any questions are answered. 1. ### Stop things falling on people below - Fence off the ground below the work so nobody walks under the stair components. - Use toe boards, brick guards or netting on platforms and lanyard tools where you can. Hazard Stair components falling onto people below Who might be harmed and how People below, including the public Controls in place - Lower waste in bags or a chute, never throw it. - Keep the exclusion zone up until the last item is down. Falling objects are a leading cause of harm to the public near construction. [HSE: Protecting the public](https://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/safetytopics/publicprotection.htm) 2. ### Protect the stair components - Keep the flight and its parts dry and protected until they are ready to install. - Keep the route to the opening clear and dry. Hazard Damage, slips or failed components from poor storage Who might be harmed and how Stair installers and people nearby Controls in place - Store components as the maker says and keep them off wet ground. - Do not use damaged parts without checking them. Poor storage can damage a stair before it is fitted and make the route unsafe. [Timber staircase installation](https://www.bwf.org.uk/choose-wood/stairs/) 3. ### Check the opening and supports - Check the opening, landing and supports match the stair information before it is lifted. - Stop if the sizes, levels or supports do not match. Hazard An unstable stair or failed installation Who might be harmed and how Stair installers and people below Controls in place - Use the current installation information for the named stair. - Do not make up a support or fixing detail on site. The opening and supports must suit the stair before its weight is put on them. [Timber staircase installation](https://www.bwf.org.uk/choose-wood/stairs/) ## What the builder asks about Staircase installation Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests. The job - What stair system are you installing? - What is being repaired or altered? - What parts are in the stair package? Where - How will people avoid the stair while you work? - What pipes or cables run in the walls, floors or stair opening? - Is the building older than the year 2000? Older buildings can have asbestos in them. How it’s done - What will you stand on to reach the work? - Is the bit holding the stair up affected? - How will the stair flight get to the work? - Will you cut anything on site, and with what? ## What your Staircase installation RAMS includes ### Method statement The work in order, step by step. ### Risk assessment Each hazard, who could be harmed, the controls in place and any further action. ### PDF The method statement and risk assessment in one A4 PDF. - ### [Concrete RAMS](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=concrete) - ### [Formwork RAMS](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=formwork) - ### [Steel fixing RAMS](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=steel-fixing) - ### [Concrete floor grinding RAMS](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=concrete-floor-grinding) - ### [Bricklaying RAMS](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=bricklaying) - ### [Plastering RAMS](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder?job=plastering) - [All trades and tasks](https://complyonsite.com/tools/rams-builder) ## What the law asks for ### What a RAMS is A risk assessment and method statement. The risk assessment records what could cause harm on the job, who could be harmed and how, and the controls that keep the risk down. The method statement sets out how the work will be done, step by step, in the order it happens. A client or main contractor will usually ask for one before you start. RAMS is a site term, not a legal one: the law asks for the risk assessment and for the work to be planned, and a method statement is the usual way to show that plan for one job. ### What the law asks for - Employers, and self-employed people doing construction work, must make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to their own people and to anyone else affected by the work ([Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1999/3242/regulation/3)). - An employer with five or more employees must record the significant findings. The assessment must be reviewed if there is reason to think it is no longer valid, or the work has changed significantly. - Every contractor must plan, manage and monitor its work so that, so far as is reasonably practicable, it is done without risks to health and safety, and must give its workers the information and instructions they need, including the hazards the risk assessment found ([Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, regulation 15](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/51/regulation/15)). HSE guidance: [the steps to manage risk](https://www.hse.gov.uk/simple-health-safety/risk/steps-needed-to-manage-risk.htm) and [what contractors must do under CDM](https://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/cdm/2015/contractors.htm). This is the law in Great Britain; Northern Ireland has its own equivalent regulations. ### What the builder does You choose the work and answer questions about how the job will be done, such as what you will stand on and what else is going on nearby. Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests. Many suggestions link to the HSE guidance they draw on. Your work is kept in this browser, and the PDF is made on your device. ### Separate documents A COSHH assessment, lifting plan, permit to work, asbestos survey and the principal contractor’s construction phase plan are separate from the RAMS.