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Risk assessment template

A blank risk assessment form to print and fill in by hand, or fill it in online with the hazards and controls from a library and download a finished PDF. Follows HSE's five steps.

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Free, no signup, no watermark. Follows the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3.

Hazards at a glance · Office work

  • Slips, trips and falls on the same level9→6
  • Display screen equipment and desk work8→4
  • Electrical equipment and installations8→4
  • Fire10→5
  • and 2 more

Rated before and with controls, likelihood × severity out of 25.

Next review15 September 2027
OutputPDF, numbered and dated

Controls in place

32

across 6 hazards, each one ticked as actually in place

Slips, trips and falls on the same level

  • Spills are cleaned up straight away and the wet area is signed or cordoned until it is dry
  • Walkways are kept clear of boxes, stock and equipment, and cables are routed away from walkways or covered
  • Lighting is good enough to see the floor, including on stairs and outside at night

Anything not ticked goes on the further action list with an owner and a date.

See the completed office example

Completed examples

Real workplaces, hazards filled in, controls ticked, rated. Read one, then edit it for your own site.

All examples

How the generator works

Three steps. The hazards and controls come from a library that follows HSE guidance; you say what is in place.

  1. Step 1Start from an example or from blankPick an activity like office work, a kitchen or ladders and the hazards come filled in, or name your own and add hazards from the library.
  2. Step 2Tick what is in place and rate the riskEach hazard lists the controls a small employer is expected to have. Tick only what you actually do. Anything unticked becomes an action with an owner and a date.
  3. Step 3Download the PDF and set the review dateNumbered, dated and ready to sign. Save it to the register on this site and it 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.

  • HSE's five steps, in order

    Identify the hazards, decide who might be harmed and how, evaluate the risks and decide on precautions, record the findings, review. The form follows the steps and prints them.

  • One row per hazard

    What could happen, who could be harmed, the controls in place, the rating before and after, and what is still to do. The layout an inspector expects.

  • Rated before and after controls

    Likelihood times severity, scored twice, so the finished form shows the controls made a difference and which hazard still needs work.

  • Briefing record

    A page for the people who do the activity to sign. Proof that the assessment was explained and not just filed.

  • Three pages, A4

    A front sheet, a landscape hazard table and a sign off page. Prints on any printer in black and white.

  • Free, no signup

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

How to do a risk assessment: the five steps

Last reviewed 15 September 2026

HSE describes risk assessment as five steps. They are not a legal form of words, but they are what inspectors, insurers and clients recognise, and the template follows them.

  1. Identify the hazards. Walk around the workplace and look at what could cause harm. Ask the people who do the job, check accident and near miss records, read manufacturers' instructions and data sheets. Think about long term harm as well as accidents: noise, vibration, dust, stress, repetitive work.
  2. Decide who might be harmed and how. Groups, not names: staff who do the task, others nearby, cleaners, contractors, visitors, the public. Say how each group could be harmed. Some people need particular thought: new and young workers, expectant mothers, lone workers, people with disabilities, and anyone who does not share a language with the rest of the team.
  3. Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions. For each hazard, look at what you already do and whether it is enough. The law asks for everything reasonably practicable, which means the cost and effort must be weighed against the risk. Try to remove the hazard first, then reduce it, then protect people from it, then equip them. A rating of likelihood times severity helps you compare hazards and show that controls reduce the risk.
  4. Record your findings and implement them. If you have five or more employees you must write down the significant findings. A good record shows a proper check was made, who could be affected, that the obvious hazards were dealt with, that the precautions are reasonable and the remaining risk is low, and that staff were involved. Then do what the record says: the further action list with an owner and a date is where most assessments succeed or fail.
  5. Review and update. Workplaces change: new equipment, new staff, new products, a different way of working. Review the assessment at least once a year, and whenever something changes or after an accident or near miss. Keep the old revision so you can show what changed and when.

What the law requires

Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 requires every employer and self employed person to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to their employees and to anyone else affected by their work. Where there are five or more employees the significant findings must be recorded, and the assessment must be reviewed if there is reason to think it is no longer valid or there has been a significant change.

The duty sits on top of section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, which requires employers to ensure the health, safety and welfare of employees so far as is reasonably practicable. The assessment is how you work out what reasonably practicable means for your business. Some hazards have their own regulations with their own assessment duties: hazardous substances (COSHH), fire, manual handling, display screen equipment, noise, vibration and asbestos among them. A general risk assessment records that those specific assessments exist and points to them.

Suitable and sufficient

The assessment does not have to be perfect, and it does not have to cover every trivial risk. It has to show that a proper check was made, that you asked who might be affected, that you dealt with the significant hazards taking account of how many people could be affected, that the precautions are reasonable and the remaining risk is low, and that you involved your staff. A short assessment that does those things is better than a long one that does not.

Risk assessment or method statement?

A risk assessment says what the hazards are and how they are controlled. A method statement says how the job will be done, step by step, with the controls built into the sequence. Construction clients usually ask for both together, as RAMS. Start with the risk assessment; the method statement is written from it.

Hazards in the library

Each one carries what could happen, who is usually at risk, the controls a small employer is expected to have, and the HSE guidance it follows. Add any of them to an assessment in the generator.

  • Slips, trips and falls on the same level8 controls · Slips and trips
  • Manual handling of loads7 controls · Manual handling at work
  • Working at height8 controls · Work at height
  • Electrical equipment and installations7 controls · Electrical safety at work
  • Fire8 controls · Fire safety
  • Display screen equipment and desk work6 controls · Display screen equipment
  • Vehicles and workplace transport7 controls · Workplace transport
  • Violence, aggression and abuse6 controls · Violence at work
  • Work related stress6 controls · Work related stress
  • Lone working6 controls · Lone working
  • Hazardous substances6 controls · COSHH basics
  • Noise5 controls · Noise at work
  • Hand arm vibration5 controls · Hand arm vibration
  • Machinery and work equipment6 controls · Work equipment and machinery
  • Burns and scalds from hot surfaces, liquids and steam6 controls · Catering and hospitality
  • Knives, blades and sharp objects6 controls · Catering and hospitality
  • Moving and handling people6 controls · Moving and handling in health and social care
  • Infection and biological hazards7 controls · Health and social care
  • Fire and explosion from hot work7 controls · Welding
  • Burns, eye damage and fume from welding and cutting6 controls · Welding
  • Skin damage from wet work and products5 controls · Hairdressing
  • Prolonged standing and repetitive work4 controls · Musculoskeletal disorders
  • Gas appliances and carbon monoxide4 controls · Gas safety
  • Storage and falling objects5 controls · Workplace health, safety and welfare

Common questions

Is there an official HSE risk assessment template?
HSE publishes a template and example assessments, but there is no mandatory form. Any format is acceptable as long as it records the significant findings: the hazards, who could be harmed and how, what you are already doing, what more is needed, and who did the assessment and when. This template follows that structure.
Do I legally need a written risk assessment?
Every employer and self employed person must assess the risks from their work. If you have five or more employees the significant findings must be written down. Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 is the duty; the record is the evidence.
How is a risk assessment different from a COSHH assessment?
A risk assessment covers every hazard from an activity or a workplace. A COSHH assessment covers one hazardous substance in detail. A risk assessment that involves cleaning products or dust will say the substances have their own COSHH assessments, and point to them.
What is the 5 by 5 risk matrix?
A way to rate risk by scoring likelihood from 1 to 5 and severity from 1 to 5 and multiplying them. 1 to 7 is low, 8 to 14 medium, 15 to 25 high. It is not required by law, but it helps you compare hazards and show that controls made a difference. The generator uses it; the blank form has space for it.
How often should a risk assessment be reviewed?
At least once a year, and whenever the activity, the equipment, the products or the people doing it change, or after an accident, near miss or a health problem. Many businesses review on the anniversary and after every incident.
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 inspectors and clients ask for.

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