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Tiling RAMS Builder
Tiling risk assessment and method statement
Prepare RAMS for fixing ceramic, porcelain and natural-stone tiles to walls and floors, with the preparation and levelling that comes first.
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Pick everything this RAMS covers. The questions that follow are chosen from what you tick here.
Tiling RAMS template
A blank tiling RAMS to fill in: job details, method statement, risk assessment and briefing record.
Risk assessment and method statement
Tiling 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
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Risk assessment
| Hazard | Who might be harmed and how | Controls in place | Further action |
|---|---|---|---|
Tiling RAMS example
The same RAMS, filled in for one job.
Risk assessment and method statement
Tiling, 9 Elm Grove, Stockport: kitchen
- Company
- Hollins & Reed Tiling Ltd
- Site and work area
- 9 Elm Grove, Stockport: kitchen
- Planned dates
- 12 to 14 October 2026
- In charge on site
- Dan Hollins
- Team
- Two tilers: Dan Hollins leads and sets out; Priya Shah cuts and fixes.
Method statement
- 1Set 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.
- 2Check the background and set-outCheck the background is accepted for the tile and fixing system. Mark movement joints, edges and service openings before spreading adhesive.
- 3Carry the materials 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.
- 4Check adhesive and grout informationRead the product label and safety data sheet before mixing or spreading. Set out the gloves, eye protection and washing water the product requires.
- 5Fix, grout and protect the tilesSpread only a workable area, bed and align the tiles, and keep movement joints open. Grout after the specified set and protect the surface until the system permits use.
- 6Clear 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.
Tiles detach or crack because the background or joint detail is not suitable
Tilers and people below or near the work
Stop at a weak, moving or unconfirmed background. Keep wet-area waterproofing outside this operation unless it has been accepted.
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.
Skin, eye or breathing exposure to adhesive, grout, primer or cement dust
Tilers and people in the room
Use the selected product controls, not controls copied from another tub. Keep people who do not need to be there away from mixing and spreading.
Tiles fall or move, and people slip on or damage uncured adhesive and grout
Tilers and people using the area
Keep the work area separated while adhesive or grout is wet. Tell the next trade the restrictions for walking, loading and cleaning.
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.
What a Tiling RAMS covers
Preparing and levelling the background, then cutting and fixing ceramic, porcelain or stone tiles on walls and floors. Not covered: wet-room tanking.
- Lay tile
- Controlled preparation
- Hand-mixed levelling compound
Suggested steps and hazards for Tiling
Suggested for lay tile before any questions are answered.
Check the background and set-out
- Check the background is accepted for the tile and fixing system.
- Mark movement joints, edges and service openings before spreading adhesive.
Hazard
Tiles detach or crack because the background or joint detail is not suitable
Who might be harmed and how
Tilers and people below or near the work
Controls in place
- Stop at a weak, moving or unconfirmed background.
- Keep wet-area waterproofing outside this operation unless it has been accepted.
The background and joint detail decide whether the tiled surface can stay sound.
Check adhesive and grout information
- Read the product label and safety data sheet before mixing or spreading.
- Set out the gloves, eye protection and washing water the product requires.
Hazard
Skin, eye or breathing exposure to adhesive, grout, primer or cement dust
Who might be harmed and how
Tilers and people in the room
Controls in place
- Use the selected product controls, not controls copied from another tub.
- Keep people who do not need to be there away from mixing and spreading.
The product label and safety data sheet set the controls for the selected materials.
Chemical safety data sheets Fix, grout and protect the tiles
- Spread only a workable area, bed and align the tiles, and keep movement joints open.
- Grout after the specified set and protect the surface until the system permits use.
Hazard
Tiles fall or move, and people slip on or damage uncured adhesive and grout
Who might be harmed and how
Tilers and people using the area
Controls in place
- Keep the work area separated while adhesive or grout is wet.
- Tell the next trade the restrictions for walking, loading and cleaning.
Controlled fixing, grouting and protection prevent movement and early damage.
Chemical safety data sheets
What the builder asks about Tiling
Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests.
The job
- Are the tiles going on a floor or a wall?
- What are you removing or correcting?
- Which compound and primer are on the job?
- What tiles and fixing system are specified?
Where
- Has the material been identified before you disturb it?
- What will control the work sequence?
- What pipes or cables run behind, under or through the floor or wall?
- 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?
- Which preparation method are you using?
- How will you mix and place it?
- How will the materials get to the work?
- Will you cut anything on site, and with what?
What your Tiling 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.
The method statement and risk assessment in one A4 PDF.
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).
- 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).
HSE guidance: the steps to manage risk and what contractors must do under CDM. 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.