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New method statement

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Free method statement template and generator

A blank method statement to print and fill in by hand, or write it online step by step, from your risk assessment, and download a finished PDF. The sequence of work with the controls built in.

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Free, no signup, no watermark. A safe system of work under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, section 2.

Sequence of work · Electrical installation works

  1. 1Arrive, sign in and inductSlips and trips; unfamiliar site
  2. 2Isolate and prove deadElectric shock and burns from live conductors
  3. 3Strip out existing circuitsElectric shock from circuits assumed dead; cuts from cable and fittings
  4. 4Install containmentWorking at height; dust from drilling
  5. 5Pull and terminate cablesCuts; manual handling of cable drums
  6. and 3 more
Next review17 September 2027
OutputPDF, numbered and dated

Controls

15

across 5 hazards, ticked into the steps where they apply

Electric shock and burns from live conductors

  • Safe isolation procedure followed before any work on a circuit
  • Personal locks and tags on isolators, keys held by the electrician working
  • Voltage indicator proved on a proving unit before and after each test

From the risk assessment for the job, in the words the team uses.

See the completed electrical example

Completed examples

Real jobs, every step written, hazards and controls filled in. Read one, then edit it for your own job.

All examples

How the generator works

Three steps. The hazards and controls come from your risk assessment; you write the order of work.

  1. Step 1Start from an example, a risk assessment or blankPick a job like electrical installation or hot works and every field comes filled. Or start from a risk assessment in your register and the hazards and controls come across.
  2. Step 2Write the steps in orderSay what is done at each step and how, then tick the controls that apply. Add, remove and reorder steps as the job takes shape.
  3. Step 3Download the PDF and add it to the registerNumbered, dated and ready to sign. Saved to the register it keeps every revision and tells you when the review is due.
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What is on the form

The same sections whether you print it blank or fill it in online.

  • The sequence of work

    The job in the order it is done, one step per row, with the hazards each step meets and the controls for them. The part a site manager reads first.

  • Written from the risk assessment

    Bring the hazards and controls in from a risk assessment in your register, then tick the controls that apply at each step. The two documents agree because they share the same words.

  • Hazards and controls up front

    The significant hazards and the controls for each, before the sequence, so the reader knows what to look for in the steps.

  • People, plant, PPE and permits

    Who does the work and what they are competent to do, what is used, what is worn, and what permits are needed. The questions a principal contractor asks.

  • Three pages, A4, with a briefing record

    Front sheet and resources, the sequence table, emergency arrangements and sign off, then a page for the team to sign that it was briefed.

  • Free, no signup

    Download it as many times as you need. No account, no watermark, no email address.

How to write a method statement

Last reviewed 17 September 2026

A method statement describes how a job will be done safely, in the order it will be done. It is written from the risk assessment for the job, so do that first. Then work through the sections in order.

  1. Scope of work. What the job is, where it starts and stops, and what it does not include. One paragraph. A client reads this to check the method statement matches the job they ordered.
  2. People, plant and materials. Who does the work and what they are trained or qualified to do, who supervises, what equipment is used and whether it is inspected or certificated, what materials are brought to site, what PPE is worn and when, and what permits or access arrangements the work needs.
  3. Hazards and controls. The significant hazards from the risk assessment and the controls for each. Not a copy of the risk assessment: the controls that are actually in place, in the words the team will recognise. The sequence refers back to these.
  4. Sequence of work. The job in the order it is done, from arriving on site to leaving it safe. Each step says what is done and how, which hazards it meets, and which controls apply. This is the part that makes a method statement different from a risk assessment: the controls are built into the order of work, so isolating comes before stripping out and the cordon goes up before the lift.
  5. Emergency arrangements. Who to call, where the first aid kit, the extinguishers and the assembly point are, and what happens if someone is hurt, if there is a fire, or if the work has to stop.
  6. Sign off and briefing. Who prepared it and who approved it, with a date. Then the briefing record: everyone who does the work signs to say it was explained to them. Without that page a method statement is a document nobody read.

What the law requires

No regulation names a method statement. Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 requires every employer to provide and maintain systems of work that are, so far as is reasonably practicable, safe and without risks to health. Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 requires the risks to be assessed, and regulation 5 requires arrangements for planning, organising, controlling, monitoring and reviewing the preventive measures. A method statement is how a contractor shows those arrangements for one job.

On construction projects the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 require a construction phase plan and, under regulation 15, that contractors plan, manage and monitor their work so it is carried out without risks to health or safety. Principal contractors ask for risk assessments and method statements from every contractor as the way of checking that before work starts. HSE guidance L153 says the level of detail should be proportionate to the risk: a short job with a low risk needs a short method statement.

Risk assessment and method statement together

The pair is often called RAMS. They are two documents with two jobs. The risk assessment records what could go wrong and what is done about it, and is reviewed when the work changes. The method statement is the order of work for one job on one site, with those controls placed where they are needed. Writing the method statement from the risk assessment, rather than from scratch, keeps them consistent: the same hazards, the same controls, the same words. The generator brings the hazards and controls across from a risk assessment in your register for that reason.

Keeping it useful on site

A method statement that is written to satisfy a client and then filed is a wasted hour. Write it in the words the team uses. Brief it before work starts and have them sign the briefing record. Keep a copy on site. If the job cannot be done as written, stop, change the method statement, and brief it again. The revision history on the document is where that shows.

Common questions

Is a method statement a legal requirement?
Not by name. The law requires employers to provide a safe system of work (Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, section 2) and to assess and control risks (Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999). On construction sites CDM 2015 requires arrangements for managing the work. A method statement is the standard way of showing how a task will be done safely, and most principal contractors will not let work start without one.
What is the difference between a risk assessment and a method statement?
A risk assessment says what the hazards are, who could be harmed, and how the risk is controlled. A method statement says how the job will be done, step by step, with those controls built into the sequence. Together they are RAMS. Write the risk assessment first; the method statement is written from it.
What should a method statement include?
The scope of the work, who does it and their competence, who supervises, the plant, materials, PPE and permits, the significant hazards and their controls, the sequence of work with the controls at each step, emergency arrangements, and who prepared and approved it. A briefing record for the team to sign is not required but is what makes it useful.
Who should write a method statement?
Someone who knows how the job is actually done: usually the supervisor or contracts manager, not a consultant who has not seen the site. It should be written in the words the team will use on the day, and read back to them before work starts.
How long should a method statement be?
As long as the job needs and no longer. A one day repair might be two pages. A site manager reads the sequence of work and the emergency arrangements; padding around them makes the important parts harder to find.
Can I get it in Word?
A Word version is coming. Until then the online generator lets you edit every field and produces a PDF, which is what most clients ask for.

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