Skip to content

Strip out RAMS example

Worked examples for common jobs, written with our builder. Read, download, adapt.

Build your own

Choose a job

Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshop

Office 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.

See the method statement on its ownDownload PDFDownload Word

What to change

  • Company, people, site and dates
  • Asbestos survey type, date and result
  • Disconnection certificate and who gave it
  • Lighting and generator
  • Masks and health surveillance
  • Welfare with the water off
  • Where the skips sit and who loads them
  • Emergency arrangements

Sources

Checked

  1. ComplyOnSitecomplyonsite.comWORKED EXAMPLE: RISK ASSESSMENT AND METHOD STATEMENTStripping out a vacant single-storey workshopHollins & Reed Strip Out Ltd · 12 to 16 October 2026 · In charge: Dan HollinsWorked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Job detailsCompanyHollins & Reed Strip Out LtdSite and work areaUnit 4, Mill Lane Trading Estate, Oldham OL9 6QRPlanned dates12 to 16 October 2026CustomerThornley Vale Estates LtdIn charge on siteDan HollinsTeamFour people: Dan Hollins leads and is the first aider; Priya Shah is hisdeputy; Tom Reed and Sam Okoro strip and load the skips.WorkStripping out a vacant single-storey workshopPrepared byDan HollinsSignatureDateWork and boundariesStrip out the office ceiling, partitions, carpet and benches by hand and clear the waste. Areas: Officeend and workshop benches, Unit 4Not our work:The steel frame, roof sheets, roof lights, outside walls, floor slab and roller door. Nothing thatholds anything up.Working arrangementAccess: a podium.Working height: ceiling grid at about 2.7 m.Ground or floor: level concrete slab, carpet in the office end.Asbestos survey: Refurbishment and demolition survey covering everything on the strip list.Who takes it away: A waste carrier we have checked is registered.The work area will be kept clear of other people.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 1 of 7
  2. Example: Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopComplyOnSiteUnit 4 is a detached single-storey workshop and stands empty, with no neighbours in thebuilding. The refurbishment and demolition survey dated 21 September 2026 opened the ceiling,partitions, floor coverings and benches on the strip list and found no asbestos in them, and thesurveyor confirmed the building fit to go back into. The copy is on site. The landlord’s electricianand gas engineer have disconnected every service, the fire alarm included, and their certificatedated 2 October 2026 is on site, so there is no live alarm cable. The light fittings, tubes, smokedetectors, sounders, oils and drums went before handover, so nothing but the bare grid comesdown. With the water off, a welfare unit with a toilet, hot water and soap stands in the yard.Everyone on this job is on the company’s health surveillance for dust work: a yearly questionnaireand lung function test from our occupational health provider. The two skips sit on the yardconcrete 5 m from the roller door, one for plasterboard only and one for timber, metal, carpet andmineral fibre ceiling tiles. Tom Reed and Sam Okoro load both by hand from the trolley, flat andbelow the rim, and the carrier swaps them when full.Emergency arrangementsThere is no fire alarm, so whoever sees a fire shouts Fire and sounds the air horn on the roller door.Everyone leaves by the roller door or the side door and meets at the yard gate. Priya Shah rings 999and gives Unit 4, Mill Lane Trading Estate, OL9 6QR; Dan Hollins does if Priya is the one hurt. Dan isthe first aider and the kit is in the van at the yard gate, with the eyewash and two extinguishers bythe roller door. Whoever is nearest stays with the casualty, and Tom Reed opens the yard gate andwaits there to bring the crew in. Suspect asbestos found: stop, everyone out, shut the doors, tellDan and ring the landlord.Planned method1Set up the work areaConfirm the work area and scope before starting. Keep other people outside the active workarea. Keep entrances and escape routes clear.2Set up the generator and lightingDaylight comes through the roof lights. Under the office ceiling, a 110 V lighting string and ourdouble-insulated M Class vacuum run from a small generator in the open yard, never indoors,with its exhaust away from the doors. Stop it and let it cool before refuelling, and keep the fuelin the van. We work 8 to 4, so nobody strips in the dark. Keep a battery work light at the officedoor, so nobody is left in the dark if the generator stops.3Read the refurbishment and demolition surveyRead the whole report before anything comes out, and check it covers every area on the striplist, above the ceilings and inside the partitions. Check the surveyor has confirmed the area fitto go back into after the survey. Anything the report lists as asbestos, or says it could notreach, stays out of this method.4Mark what comes out and staysMark the removal boundary on the drawing and in the work area. Stop if the actual buildingdiffers from the information.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 2 of 7
  3. Example: Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopComplyOnSite5Check what is behind the surfaceOpen only after checking the drawings, survey and visible condition of the wall, ceiling or floor.Treat anything hidden, damaged or different from the information as a stop.6Check the disconnection certificateRead the certificate and walk it against the building before anything comes out. It must nameevery service, the fire alarm included. Treat any cable or pipe the certificate does not cover aslive, and stop.7Classify waste before collectionIdentify each waste stream before it leaves the site. Keep anything uncertain out of theordinary load.8Check the carrier and record the transferCheck the carrier on the public register and ask where the waste is going. Complete a wastetransfer note for each load and keep it for two years.9Check the trolley routeUse a trolley that can take the load and fits through the route. Keep thresholds, slopes anddoorways clear before moving it.10Stop things falling on people belowKeep people out of the area below the work so nobody walks under the removed ceiling tilesand fittings. Keep toe boards and guards in place on any platform, and lanyard tools where youcan.11Set up access equipmentUse access equipment suited to the task and work area. Check the equipment before use.Keep the area below the work controlled.12Control the dust from hand strippingOpen the doors to the outside to get air through, and keep anyone not stripping out of thebuilding. Lift pieces out whole and break as little as you can. This work cannot take water oron-tool extraction, so the mask does the rest.13Wear a powered hood for the strippingStripping runs for over an hour without a break, so everyone stripping wears a TH2 poweredhood, which needs no fit test. Check the fan and the airflow before going in, and charge thebatteries overnight. If the fan stops or the flow falls, leave the area before taking the hood off.14Keep the ways out clear of strip wasteClear stripped material from the floor as you go and never stack it by a door. Leave nothing onthe floor overnight that does not need to be there.15Place and load skips safelyPut skips on stable ground with space for collection and away from escape routes. Keep wastebelow the sides and prevent loose material blowing out.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 3 of 7
  4. Example: Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopComplyOnSite16Use the agreed removal methodUse the tool and sequence that match the material and the agreed scope. Keep hands clearand lower removed pieces instead of dropping them.17Remove stable pieces in orderWork from the top down, with ceilings first and floor coverings last. Before a ceiling bay comesout, check how the partition heads under it are fixed, and brace any head held only by the grid.Support each section before its last fixing comes out. Remove manageable pieces and clearthem before starting the next.18Bring down the ceiling, partitions and carpetCeiling first. Tiles come out whole, then the grid is unclipped and passed down in lengths. Thenunscrew the partitions and benches, and lift the carpet last. Put on cut-resistant gloves andsafety glasses before anyone touches the grid, because the cut ends are sharp.19Label and separate each streamPut each kind in its labelled container as it is produced. Keep plasterboard apart fromeverything else, so it stays out of any landfill cell taking biodegradable waste.20Move waste by a planned routeUse a trolley or wheeled bin where it reduces carrying. Keep the route clear and never throwwaste down openings or stairs.21Clear up with a vacuumAt every break and at the end of each day, go over the floor with the M Class vacuum. No drysweeping. Empty it into a sealed bag outside by the skip, with the hood still on.22Clear and hand back the areaRemove tools, waste and unused materials. Check the area is clean and ready to use. Tell thecustomer or whoever runs the site when the work is complete.Risk assessmentHazardWho might beharmed and howControls in placePeople entering thework area or trippingover materialsStep 1Workers,occupants andvisitorsMark or barrier the active work area. Store tools and materialsaway from access routes.Carbon monoxidefrom a generatornear the building, afire while refuelling,and tripping on thelighting leadStep 2The teamGenerator outside only. Refuel cold. Run the lead high alongthe wall, clear of the walkways.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 4 of 7
  5. Example: Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopComplyOnSiteHazardWho might beharmed and howControls in placeBreathing asbestosfibres from a boardor debris the surveydid not findStep 3The team andanyone in thebuildingStop and keep everyone out if you find a board, lagging ordebris the report does not describe. Asbestos board can looklike plasterboard. Licensed work is not for this method; hand itto a licensed contractor.The wrong element isremoved andretained work orpeople are put at riskStep 4Strip-out workersand other buildingusersUse the agreed scope and sequence. Keep structural, glazedand live work out of this method.Hidden structure,asbestos or servicesare disturbed duringstrip-outStep 5Strip-out workers,other trades andbuilding usersMake a small controlled opening where the method allows it.Stop and get the information checked before widening theopening.A service thecertificate missed iscut or pulled whilestill liveStep 6Strip-out workersStop and ring whoever signed the certificate if anything doesnot match. Do not cut, drill or pull anything you cannot trace tothe certificate.Hazardous orwrongly describedwaste is moved oraccepted as ordinarywasteStep 7Workers, carriersand receiving sitesUse the correct waste classification guidance. Ask a specialistwhen classification is uncertain.Waste is fly-tipped orsent to a site thatcannot lawfullyaccept itStep 8Your company,carrier andreceiving siteDescribe the waste with its waste code and how it is contained.Keep the transfer notes with the job file.A loaded trolley runsaway, tips or strikessomeone on therouteStep 9Workers andpeople on therouteDo not overload the trolley. Use a second person where theroute needs control.Removed ceiling tilesand fittings fallingonto people belowStep 10People belowBring waste down by hand or in bags. Never throw it. Keep theexclusion zone up until the last item is down.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 5 of 7
  6. Example: Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopComplyOnSiteHazardWho might beharmed and howControls in placeFalling from theaccess equipment;tools or materialsfalling from theplatformStep 11The person on theplatform, if it is setup on anunsuitable surfaceand shifts underthem. Anyonepassing or workingunderneath.Place access equipment on a firm, level surface. Keep toolsand materials secure while working above ground.Workers breathe dustfrom board, ceilingtiles and the ceilingvoidStep 12The stripping teamand anyone at thedoorsKeep everyone not wearing a mask out of the building. Stop ifdust is reaching anyone outside.Breathing dust whenthe hood fan stops orthe filter blocksStep 13Everyone strippingIf the fan stops or the flow falls, leave the area before takingthe hood off. Change the filter as the maker says.Piled waste feeds afire or blocks the wayoutStep 14The teamWalk the ways out at the end of each shift. Keep waste awayfrom any exit.A skip blocks anescape route,overloads the groundor sheds waste intopeople and trafficStep 15Workers, driversand the publicKeep the loading area controlled while a vehicle or skip ismoved. Cover or secure the load before collection.An uncontrolled tool,piece or fixing strikesa worker or damagesretained workStep 16Strip-out workersand people nearbySupport the piece before the last fixing comes out. Stop if thematerial or method is different from the plan.A ceiling, partition orfitting falls ontoworkers or overloadsthe floorStep 17Workers andpeople below ornearbyFollow the agreed top-down sequence. Stop if the item iscarrying load or is not what the plan shows.Cut hands at the gridedges, and grit in theeyes when workingoverheadStep 18Everyone strippingWear cut-resistant gloves and safety glasses. Pass grid down,never drop it.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 6 of 7
  7. Example: Stripping out a vacant single-storey workshopComplyOnSiteHazardWho might beharmed and howControls in placeMixed or unlabelledwaste iscontaminated andcannot be safelymanagedStep 19Workers andwaste handlersUse containers that prevent leakage or contamination. Limitaccess to people handling the waste.People suffer strains,cuts or are struck byfalling wasteStep 20Workers andpeople on theroutePlan the route before loading. Keep pedestrians away whilewaste is being moved.Settled dust raisedagain by sweepingStep 21Everyone in thebuildingM Class vacuum only, never a brush. Keep the hood on untilthe floor is done.Debris, tools orunfinished work leftin the areaStep 22Workers,occupants andvisitorsRemove waste by the agreed route. Record and protect anyunfinished work.Worked example. Change it to fit your job before you use it.Page 7 of 7

Method statement and risk assessment, side by side

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.

Use an example, then make it yours

HSE says not to just copy an example and put your company name on it: that would not satisfy the law or protect your people.

The builder asks about your site and rewrites the hazards and steps.

RAMS example questions

Are these real jobs?

No. Every job, company, person and address here is made up. Each one is a worked example written with our builder, and every page says so.

Can I use one as it is?

No. Your site, your people and your emergency arrangements will be different. Change it to fit your job before anyone works to it.

Why do they carry ComplyOnSite branding?

They are made with our builder and printed in its standard design. A RAMS you build yourself carries your company name.

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, then download your own copy.

Where is the blank?

On the RAMS template page. These examples are all filled in.

How were they checked?

Each one is read against published guidance, mainly from HSE, for its facts, the order of the work and its emergency arrangements. The sources are listed beside it. If a document changes, it comes off this page until it has been checked again. The check covers the example, not your job.