Policies and Procedures for Construction
This page is for construction firms, building trades and engineering contractors that need their site documentation in order. Policy Pros writes bespoke health and safety policies, COSHH assessments, risk assessments and method statements for UK construction businesses, aligned to HSE guidance, the CDM Regulations and industry accreditation standards.
Whether you are a sole trader taking on your first employees, a subcontractor chasing SSIP accreditation or a principal contractor tightening up site paperwork, these are the documents clients, assessors and inspectors expect to see.
Bespoke, audit-ready policies from £65 + VAT per document. Get a quote or call 020 3951 2875 for a free scoping conversation.
Policies Construction Firms Need
Legally Required
- Health and Safety Policy Statement - required in writing once you have 5 or more employees (Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974)
- Risk Assessments - the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require every employer to assess workplace risks, with significant findings recorded once you have 5 or more employees
- COSHH Assessments - the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 require you to assess and control exposure to dust, fumes, solvents and other hazardous substances
- Construction Phase Plan - CDM 2015 requires one for every construction project, however small the job
- Written employment particulars and core HR policies - required from day one of employment (Employment Rights Act 1996)
Expected by Clients and Assessors
- Method Statements (RAMS) - principal contractors ask for a risk assessment and method statement before your team sets foot on site
- Site Induction and Toolbox Talk Programme - evidences your training arrangements and is checked at SSIP assessment
- Working at Height and Manual Handling Procedures - standard requests in pre-qualification questionnaires
- PPE Policy - who provides what, and the issue records that prove it
- Subcontractor Management Policy - how you vet and monitor the firms working under you
- Accident Reporting and Investigation Procedure - how incidents get recorded, reported and learned from
- Environmental and Waste Management Policy - increasingly requested in tenders and accreditation questionnaires
The CDM Regulations Apply to Every Project
The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 apply to every construction project, commercial or domestic, and set duties for clients, designers and contractors. A construction phase plan is required on every project: the principal contractor prepares it where more than one contractor is involved, and the contractor prepares it on single-contractor jobs.
Where more than one contractor is involved, the client must appoint a principal designer and a principal contractor. Projects scheduled to last longer than 30 working days with more than 20 workers on site at once, or to exceed 500 person days, must also be notified to HSE on form F10.
Our policies for construction companies page sets out the full document set for building firms, and our guide to health and safety policies in the construction industry explains how the pieces fit together.
COSHH Assessments Are a Legal Duty
Construction work generates silica dust, wood dust, cement, solvents and welding fume, all of which fall under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002. HSE's COSHH assessment guidance expects you to identify the substances in use, assess who is exposed and how, and put controls in place before relying on PPE.
Our COSHH policies service writes the policy and assessment framework, and our COSHH assessment template guide explains what a completed assessment should contain.
SSIP Accreditation Opens the Door to Contracts
Most main contractors and public sector clients now ask for an SSIP-member accreditation such as CHAS, SafeContractor or Constructionline before you can bid. The assessment is largely a documentation exercise: assessors want a current health and safety policy, risk assessments, method statements, training records and insurance details that match the work you actually do.
Our SSIP accreditation policies guide explains how the scheme works and what assessors check. For scheme-specific document lists, see our guides to CHAS accreditation documents, SafeContractor accreditation documents and Constructionline Gold requirements.
Health and Safety Documentation That Works on Site
A health and safety policy only earns its keep if it matches how your sites actually run. Assessors read them, and a document that names another company or describes work you do not do raises questions rather than answering them.
Our health and safety policies service covers the full framework, from the policy statement through to the procedures that sit behind it, and our plain guide to what a risk assessment is covers the basics for new employers.
Subcontractors and the Construction Industry Scheme
If you engage subcontractors through CIS, employment status and payment compliance carry risks of their own alongside the site paperwork. Our CIS fraud liability guide explains the changes that took effect in April 2026 and what they mean for construction employers.
Engineering and Manufacturing Crossover
Many construction businesses also run fabrication workshops, machine shops or off-site manufacturing. Those environments carry documentation expectations of their own, from machinery safety procedures to workshop COSHH. Our policies for manufacturing and engineering page covers that side of the business.
Construction Policy and Procedure Writers
Policy Pros writes bespoke policies and procedures for construction businesses of every size, from single-trade subcontractors to principal contractors. Every document is written around your trades, your sites and your team, and delivered ready to show a client, an SSIP assessor or an HSE inspector.
- Bespoke documents written around the work you actually do, not a generic template
- A fixed-price quote before any work starts
- Review rounds included, so the final documents say what you need them to say
- Documents delivered on professionally branded templates, ready for site files and accreditation portals
Tell us whether you need a single method statement, the document set behind CHAS or SafeContractor, or a full health and safety framework, and we will scope exactly what you need. Get a quote or call 020 3951 2875.
Frequently Asked Questions
What policies does a construction company legally need?
The legal core is a written health and safety policy statement once you have 5 or more employees, recorded risk assessments under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, COSHH assessments for hazardous substances, and a construction phase plan for every project under CDM 2015. Written employment particulars are also required from day one of employment.
Beyond that, method statements, training records and subcontractor controls are driven by client requirements and accreditation schemes rather than statute, but in practice you cannot win work without them.
What documents do we need for CHAS or SafeContractor accreditation?
SSIP-member schemes assess broadly the same core: a current health and safety policy signed within the last 12 months, risk assessments and method statements for your actual activities, training and competence records, accident records and evidence of insurance.
Each scheme words its questionnaire differently, so documents need to map to the specific questions asked. Our CHAS and SafeContractor guides list what each assessor expects to see.
Do we need a construction phase plan for small jobs?
Yes. CDM 2015 requires a construction phase plan for every construction project, regardless of size or duration. On single-contractor jobs the contractor prepares it, and on multi-contractor projects the principal contractor does.
The plan should be proportionate to the job, so a small domestic project needs a short, focused plan rather than a lever-arch file. Notification to HSE on form F10 is a separate duty that only applies above set thresholds.
What is the difference between a risk assessment and a method statement?
A risk assessment identifies the hazards in a task, who could be harmed and the controls that reduce the risk. A method statement sets out step by step how the work will be carried out safely, putting those controls into a working sequence.
Clients usually ask for them together as RAMS. The risk assessment justifies the controls and the method statement shows the crew how to apply them on the day.
