RAMS · Excavations & Trench Work
RAMS for Excavations & Trench Work
A combined Risk Assessment & Method Statement, the site-ready document a principal contractor or client asks for before you start. Below: what a RAMS for excavation must contain, why they get rejected, and the hazards it has to cover, or generate one for your exact job in a couple of minutes.
What a compliant RAMS must contain
- A hazard table with a likelihood × severity score before and after controls
- Controls in the correct hierarchy (eliminate → substitute → engineering → admin → PPE last)
- A numbered, step-by-step method statement for the actual task
- PPE to BS EN standards, emergency arrangements, and an operative sign-off
Why a RAMS for excavation gets rejected
- Residual risk dropped from high to low on PPE or 'competent operatives' alone
- Generic hazards that could apply to any job
- No method statement, or one too vague to follow on site
- The wrong legal basis cited (e.g. 'CDM 2015 requires a RAMS')
Already have one? Check it against the standard, free.
Paste your RAMS into the free checker and it scores it the way an inspector would, and flags exactly what would get it rejected. No sign-up.
Check yours freeExcavations & Trench Work hazards it must cover
Excavation, meaning digging trenches and pits by hand or machine for foundations, drainage and services, brings hazards a RAMS has to address:
- trench collapse and burial
- striking buried services (HSG47)
- falls into excavations
- plant and vehicles working near the edge
- flooding and contaminated ground
Generate your RAMS in minutes
Built to the correct published standard for excavation: specific controls, the right legal basis, a review date and a sign-off section you can operate.
Start your RAMSFAQ
Do you need a RAMS for excavation?
A combined Risk Assessment & Method Statement, the site-ready document a principal contractor or client asks for before you start. For excavation, meaning digging trenches and pits by hand or machine for foundations, drainage and services, it is the document a client, principal contractor or inspector expects to see, grounded in MHSWR 1999 reg 3 (HSE): the combined risk assessment + method statement contractors submit.
What makes a RAMS for excavation fail?
The usual reasons: Residual risk dropped from high to low on PPE or 'competent operatives' alone; Generic hazards that could apply to any job; No method statement, or one too vague to follow on site. RAMSReady generates one to the correct published form and avoids these.
How fast can I get a RAMS?
A couple of minutes. Describe the job, and RAMSReady writes a RAMS for your exact excavation live against the correct standard, with a review date and a sign-off/records section.