Method statement checker
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Paste the method statement, or tick what it covers, and see which of the fourteen reviewer sections are missing, which phrases will get it sent back, and whether it would pass.
What the checker looks for
A method statement is not a legal document with a prescribed form. The law requires a risk assessment (Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 regulation 3, recorded in writing where you have five or more employees) and, under CDM 2015 regulation 15(2), that every contractor plans, manages and monitors their work so it is carried out without risks to health or safety. The method statement is how contractors show the planning was done, and every principal contractor's reviewer reads it against the same list: scope, sequence, plant, materials, PPE, competence, supervision, permits, emergency and rescue, first aid, welfare, environmental, monitoring and sign-off. The checker tests the pasted text for each of those, then scans for the phrases that get a document sent back.
The four sections a reviewer will not do without
The sequence of work, as numbered steps in the order it will actually happen - it is the part that proves you understand the job. A named supervisor on the ground, because CDM 2015 regulation 15(8) requires every contractor to give each worker appropriate supervision, and "the site manager" is not a name. Emergency and rescue arrangements - the Work at Height Regulations 2005 regulation 4(2) require planning for work at height to include planning for emergencies and rescue, and the Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 regulation 5 prohibit entry without suitable rescue arrangements in place. And a sign-off and briefing record, because a method statement nobody has been briefed on is a document, not a control.
Why "call 999" gets flagged
Because it is the whole of the rescue plan in most of the method statements we see, and it is not a rescue plan. A person suspended in a harness can lose consciousness within minutes, and HSE research (RR708) found no reliable time limit to plan around; you cannot rely on the fire service reaching a construction site in time, and in a confined space the people who go in to help without a plan are the ones who die. The rescue plan says who, with what equipment, in what time, and that they have practised it. Our guide to how to write a method statement covers the sequence, and the RAMS checklist covers the risk assessment half of the document.
What the checker cannot do
Read the job. It can tell you the section on plant is missing; it cannot tell you the excavator you have listed is the wrong size for the trench box. The pasted text is checked in your browser and goes nowhere. Word counts and step counts are indicators, not rules - a short, specific method statement for a simple task beats a long generic one every time.
FAQs
What sections should a method statement have?
Scope of works, the sequence of work step by step, plant and equipment, materials and substances, PPE listed by item, competence and training, a named supervisor, permits, emergency and rescue arrangements, first aid, welfare, environmental controls, monitoring and review, and a sign-off with a briefing record. That is the list a principal contractor's reviewer works through.
Is a method statement a legal requirement?
Not by name. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require a risk assessment, and CDM 2015 regulation 15 requires every contractor to plan, manage and monitor their work. A written method statement is the accepted way of showing that for anything beyond routine low-risk work, and principal contractors require one before work starts.
How long should a method statement be?
As long as the job needs. A one-trade, one-day task can be done properly in two or three pages; work involving excavation, height, lifting or services usually runs to eight or more. Length copied from a template with the job name changed is what reviewers notice.
Why is 'call 999' not an acceptable rescue plan?
Because it leaves the casualty where they are until someone else arrives. For work at height the Work at Height Regulations 2005 require planning for emergencies and rescue; for confined spaces the Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 require rescue arrangements before anyone enters. The plan names who does the rescue, with what equipment, and how quickly.
Get the documents ready-made
If the draft is missing half the sections, start from a document that already has them. Our method statement templates by trade carry every section on this list, with the sequence, the hazard controls and the briefing record laid out for you to make job-specific.
Editable Word method statements for the common construction trades and tasks, each with the fourteen reviewer sections, a numbered sequence and a briefing record.
See the Method Statement LibraryBuilt by Pro Site Docs from the HSE guidance and regulations named on the page. Published 3 September 2026. It is a planning aid, not a substitute for a competent person's assessment of the actual work.
Keep reading
General guidance only. This article explains how the rules generally work in UK construction. It is not advice for your specific site, task or project, and it is not legal advice. Your own risk assessment, method statement and arrangements must be prepared and checked by a competent person for the actual work being done.