Filling it in
Have the product label and the safety data sheet in front of you. Copy the hazard classes and H statements from section 2 of the data sheet into the hazards box, the exposure limit and PPE from section 8, and the first aid from section 4. If the data sheet from the supplier is more than a few years old, ask for a current one.
Describe the task as it is actually done, not as the manual says it should be done. Say who does it, how often, how much is used and for how long, and whether the room has extraction or just an open window. Those details decide the risk rating and which controls matter.
Rate the risk before and after controls. If the score with controls in place is still medium or high, the further action box is where you write what will change, who will do it and by when. If you are unsure of anything, write that down rather than guessing.
The employer signs it off, everyone who does the job signs page 3, and the form goes in the COSHH register with the data sheet. Set a review date, a year at most, and sooner if the product, the task or the people change.
What COSHH means and what it covers
COSHH stands for Control of Substances Hazardous to Health. The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (as amended) require every UK employer to prevent or adequately control their staff's exposure to hazardous substances, and to write down how they do it. They apply to any substance that can harm health:
- Chemicals and products that carry a hazard symbol on the label, such as bleach, oven cleaner, solvents and hair developer.
- Dust and fume produced by work, such as wood dust, silica dust, welding fume and flour dust.
- Biological agents, such as bacteria and viruses in care and cleaning work.
- Substances with a workplace exposure limit listed in HSE document EH40.
Asbestos, lead and radioactive substances are covered by their own regulations, not COSHH.
What the law requires
The regulations set out a sequence. Each step is a legal duty on the employer.
- Assess the risk before work starts and record the significant findings (regulation 6).
- Prevent or adequately control exposure, following the hierarchy of control (regulation 7).
- Use and maintain the control measures, including examining local exhaust ventilation at least every 14 months (regulations 8 and 9).
- Monitor exposure where needed (regulation 10) and provide health surveillance where appropriate (regulation 11).
- Inform, instruct and train everyone who may be exposed (regulation 12).
- Plan for accidents, incidents and emergencies (regulation 13).
The full text is on legislation.gov.uk and HSE publishes the Approved Code of Practice, L5, which explains how to comply. The assessment is the first step, and this template is that assessment. The substances are one part of the picture: for everything else in the workplace, slips, lifting, ladders, fire and the rest, do a risk assessment and point it at your COSHH assessments.