SPI

Special Processes Institute

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Workplace Risk Assessment Report

Suitable and sufficient workplace assessment

Workplace Risk Assessment Information, Guidance & Project

Learn how to identify hazards, assess who may be harmed, select proportionate controls, create a task-specific workplace risk assessment, manage improvement actions, calculate initial and residual risk, save portable JSON and produce a professional SPI report.

Identify · Assess · Control · Review 5 × 5 risk matrix Competent review required

Hazards assessed

Open actions

Assessment completeness

Not rated

Highest residual risk

What is a workplace risk assessment?

A systematic examination of work activities to identify hazards, decide who may be harmed and how, evaluate the likelihood and severity of harm, and implement controls. It must reflect the real task, people, workplace and conditions rather than being a generic paperwork exercise.

UK legal foundation: employers must make a suitable and sufficient assessment of risks to employees and others affected by their undertaking. Significant findings should be recorded where required, communicated and kept under review.

Hazard and risk

Hazard

Something with the potential to cause injury, ill health or other harm: machinery, chemicals, electricity, vehicles, work at height, stress or poor ergonomics.

Risk

The combination of how likely harm is and how severe the outcome could be, taking account of the controls actually in place.

Five-step method

1. IdentifyHazards, hazardous events and foreseeable misuse

2. AssessWho may be harmed, likelihood and severity

3. ControlEliminate or reduce using the hierarchy

4. RecordSignificant findings, actions and ownership

5. ReviewCheck controls, changes, incidents and learning

Common physical hazards

Slips, trips and falls
Machinery and stored energy
Vehicles and workplace transport
Noise, vibration and temperature
Work at height and falling objects

Health hazards

Hazardous substances, dusts and fumes
Manual handling and repetitive work
Display screen and ergonomic factors
Biological agents
Stress, fatigue and lone working

People to consider

Employees and agency workers
Contractors, visitors and public
Young or inexperienced persons
Pregnant workers and new mothers
People with disabilities or health needs

Hierarchy of control

Work from the most effective control downward. PPE should not be the default where higher-order controls are reasonably practicable.

1. Eliminate — remove the hazard or task

2. Substitute — use a safer process, material or method

3. Engineering — guard, enclose, segregate or ventilate

4. Administrative — procedures, permits, training and supervision

5. PPE — protect the individual; last line of defence

Suitable and sufficient

Proportionate to the nature and scale of the risk.
Based on observation, workforce knowledge and credible evidence.
Task-specific and clear about normal, abnormal and emergency conditions.
Includes existing controls and tests whether they are effective.
Produces actions with owners and due dates.
Considers human factors, competence, workload and foreseeable error.
Links to specialist assessments where general assessment is insufficient.

Specialist assessments

COSHH, DSEAR, fire, machinery, manual handling, work at height, noise, vibration, DSE, lifting operations, pressure systems, confined spaces, asbestos, radiation, stress and lone working.

Review triggers

Change to process, equipment, layout, material or staffing; accident or near miss; control failure; new legal or technical information; employee concern; or evidence that the assessment is no longer valid.

Verification

Do not close an action simply because a document was issued. Verify the control at the workplace through observation, inspection, testing, maintenance data, exposure monitoring or worker feedback.

Best-practice questions

Topic	Questions to ask
Task	What happens before, during and after the job? What about setup, cleaning, maintenance, breakdown and disposal?
People	Who performs the task, who is nearby, and who may be unusually vulnerable?
Controls	Are controls present, suitable, used correctly, maintained and independently checked?
Human factors	Could time pressure, poor interfaces, fatigue, unclear instructions or supervision contribute?
Emergency	What credible failures could occur and are isolation, rescue, spill, fire and first-aid arrangements adequate?

5 × 5 risk matrix

Risk score = likelihood × severity. Use the matrix as a prioritisation aid, not a substitute for professional judgement or legal compliance.

Scoring guidance

Score	Likelihood	Severity
1	Rare	Minor discomfort / no lost time
2	Unlikely	Minor injury / short-term effect
3	Possible	Injury or ill health requiring treatment
4	Likely	Major injury or long-term ill health
5	Almost certain	Single or multiple fatality / life-changing harm

Important: A low numerical score does not legitimise non-compliance. Mandatory precautions and reasonably practicable higher-order controls remain necessary.

Assessment details

Project record

Assessment title

Assessment reference

Site / department

Activity / task

Assessor

Assessment date

Review date

Approved by

Scope and boundaries

People exposed

Relevant information and references

Emergency arrangements

Hazard register

Create one row for each credible hazard or hazardous event.

Hazard / event	Potential harm	Who may be harmed	Existing controls	L	S	Initial	Further controls	Hierarchy	Residual L	Residual S	Residual	Owner / due

Improvement actions

Track implementation and verify effectiveness before closure.

Action	Owner	Due date	Priority	Status	Verification / evidence

Professional assessment report

Complete the assessment and select “Refresh Report”.