The Risk Assessment Process

The risk assessment process

To complete a risk assessment, the HSE has recommended a five-step process, which should be suitable for most small, low risk businesses.

If the business is larger or is classed as high risk, then a more detailed assessment of the associated risks will be required. This would normally be undertaking a RAMS (risk assessment method statement).

Step 1: Look for the potential hazards

Step 2: Decide who might be harmed and how

Step 3: Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions

Step 4: Record your findings and implement them

Step 5: Review the assessment and revise if necessary

Step 1: Look for the potential hazards

This is the process of identifying all of the hazards that exist within the workplace that may cause harm to anyone that comes into contact with them. Remember the hazards may not always be obvious.

Step 2: Decide who might be harmed and how

Once the hazards have been identified, the risk assessment then needs to establish for each hazard who might be harmed and how, persons at risk could include on-site personnel, visitors, or members of the public.

Some hazards may present a higher and more significant level of risk to certain other groups including, young inexperienced workers, new or expectant mothers, new employees, or lone workers.

Step 3: Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions

This is the process of assessing the significance of the risks and establishing suitable and effective control measures to reduce this level of risk.

Consider what’s in place now and how the work is organised, then compare it to best practice and see what you need to do to bring yourself up to the required standard. This is likely to mean additional control measures are required.

Step 4: Record your findings and implement them

Employers with five or more employees have a legal duty to record their risk assessments in writing. Recording your findings on a risk assessment form is an easy way to keep a documented account of the risk assessments that are applicable to the workplace. You are also showing you have considered health & safety related issues and demonstrated action has been taken to mitigate these risks.

Step 5: Review the assessment and revise if necessary

All risk assessments should be seen as a live document and reviewed on a regular basis to ensure that the existing control measures remain appropriate and effective. Work with your employees who may be able to identify failings in the current measures to refine your assessments.