Risk Assessment Examples (UK)

The quickest way to understand a risk assessment is to see one filled in. Below are short worked examples for everyday jobs, showing the hazard, who could be harmed and the controls. Use them as a pattern, never as a copy, because a good assessment names your site and your task.

Example 1: replacing guttering on a house

Hazards: falling from height, dropping tools or materials, manual handling of lengths. At risk: two operatives and passers by. Controls: a tower scaffold rather than a ladder for the run, a clear exclusion zone below with cones, tool lanyards, and two people on the heavier lengths. See our working at height guide.

Example 2: office move with heavy boxes

Hazards: manual handling, trailing cables, blocked fire exits. At risk: all staff and movers. Controls: trolleys and smaller boxes, a planned route kept clear, exits never blocked, and a quick brief before starting. See our manual handling guide.

Example 3: using a cleaning chemical

Hazards: skin and eye contact, fumes in a small room. At risk: the cleaner and building users. Controls: follow the safety data sheet, ventilate, wear gloves and eye protection, store securely and never decant into unlabelled bottles. This overlaps with a COSHH assessment.

Example 4: lone evening reception shift

Hazards: violence or aggression, no help if taken ill. At risk: the lone worker. Controls: a check in system, a personal alarm, a locked door policy after hours and training in de-escalation. See our lone working guide.

How to use these

Each example is deliberately short. On your own form you would add the specific site, the names, the exact equipment and a risk score before and after controls. The point of an example is to show the shape of good control measures, not to hand you a finished document that pretends to describe a job you have not looked at.

Start from the template

Our risk assessment template gives you the five by five scoring and example rows laid out, so you can turn any of the patterns above into a proper assessment for your job. For the method, read our guide to writing a risk assessment.