Guide
Risk assessment vs method statement
They are named together so often that many people assume they are one document. They are two, with two different jobs.
The short answer
A risk assessment identifies the hazards in a task, who could be harmed and the controls needed. A method statement sets out the safe step-by-step sequence for carrying out the task with those controls in place. The risk assessment is the analysis; the method statement is the plan of action that follows from it. Because they depend on each other, they are usually supplied together as RAMS.
The difference in one table
| Risk assessment | Method statement |
|---|---|
| Identifies hazards and who is at risk | Describes how the task is carried out |
| Decides the control measures | Applies those controls step by step |
| Answers what could go wrong | Answers how we do it safely |
| Required under Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 | No single statute, but required by main contractors and expected by accreditation schemes |
Which does a task need?
Most tasks that carry real risk need both. The risk assessment is the legal baseline, required for the significant hazards of the work. The method statement is added where the safe way to do the job needs to be spelled out as a sequence, which is most higher-risk site work: electrical isolation, work at height, hot works, or anything a principal contractor controls through a permit. For low-risk, routine work a risk assessment alone may be enough, but on site you will usually be asked for both.
For electrical contractors
Electrician CHAS pack · £95
Matching risk assessments and method statements for electrical work, written to be consistent with each other, ready to adapt to your jobs.
Why consistency between them matters
The most common problem is not missing documents but documents that contradict each other. If your risk assessment names a control that your method statement never applies, or your method statement refers to a hazard your risk assessment never assessed, an assessor or a site manager will notice. Good RAMS read as one coherent set: every control in the assessment appears in the method, and every step in the method is justified by the assessment.
Related guides
Read what a risk assessment is, what a method statement is, and what RAMS means.
Common questions
What is the difference between a risk assessment and a method statement?
A risk assessment identifies the hazards, who could be harmed and the controls needed. A method statement sets out the safe step-by-step sequence for doing the task with those controls in place. The assessment is the analysis; the method statement is the plan of action.
Do I need both a risk assessment and a method statement?
Most tasks that carry real risk need both. The risk assessment is the legal baseline; the method statement is added where the safe way to do the job needs to be set out as a sequence, which covers most higher-risk site work. On site you will usually be asked for both.
Why are they supplied together as RAMS?
Because they depend on each other. The controls named in the risk assessment only make sense when the method statement shows how they are applied, and the method statement's steps are only justified by the assessment behind them.
Which comes first, the risk assessment or the method statement?
The risk assessment comes first. It identifies the hazards and decides the controls, and the method statement is then written to carry out the task with those controls in place.