Is a written risk assessment mandatory in the United Kingdom, and how often must it be reviewed?

Yes for most employers. Every employer in Great Britain must make a suitable and sufficient risk assessment, and an employer with five or more employees must record its significant findings in writing (Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3). The law sets no fixed review period: the assessment must be reviewed whenever it may no longer be valid or there has been a significant change.

Short answer

• Assessment: mandatory for every employer, whatever its size, covering employees and others affected by the work (regulation 3(1)).
• Written record: required where the employer employs five or more employees; it must record the significant findings and any group of employees identified as especially at risk (regulation 3(6)).
• Review: when there is reason to suspect the assessment is no longer valid or there has been a significant change; the employer must then make the necessary changes (regulation 3(3)).
• No fixed interval such as "every year" appears in MHSWR. An annual check is a common company practice, not a legal requirement.
• Specific assessments are also required under other regulations (COSHH, DSEAR, noise, manual handling, display screen equipment, fire safety), with their own recording rules.
• Young persons: an employer must not employ a young person until it has made or reviewed an assessment that takes account of their inexperience and immaturity (regulation 3(4) and (5)).

What the record must contain

MHSWR asks for the "significant findings", not a long document. HSE's guidance describes the record as the hazards, who might be harmed and how, and what is being done to control the risks, and recommends a simple template for small firms. An employer with five or more employees must also record its arrangements for planning, organising, controlling, monitoring and reviewing preventive measures (regulation 5(2)) and must have a written health and safety policy.

Some regulations require more detail. Under the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR), an employer with five or more employees must record the significant findings as soon as practicable, including the zones, the equipment needed for safe operation and the verification of explosion safety (regulation 5(4)). This record serves the purpose that the EU calls an explosion protection document.

When to review: legal triggers and good practice

The legal triggers in regulation 3(3) are broad. In practice they include:

1. a new process, machine, substance or work method;
2. changes in staff, especially new young workers or a worker who is pregnant;
3. an accident, near miss or case of work-related ill health;
4. a worker or safety representative reporting a problem;
5. new information, such as a revised safety data sheet or new HSE guidance;
6. an enforcement notice or inspection finding.

DSEAR adds that its risk assessment must be reviewed "regularly" to keep it up to date. Many organisations set a planned review date, often 12 months, so that slow changes are not missed; this is a management choice that also helps demonstrate compliance.

How the UK compares

Common mistakes

• Small firms not assessing at all. The exemption for fewer than five employees covers only the written record.
• Treating the paperwork as the goal. HSE warns that the priority is controlling the risks in practice.
• Never revisiting an assessment because "no review date is set in law". A significant change triggers a legal duty to review.

Related on excodex

• Occupational safety and health in United Kingdom: law, authorities and employer duties
• Workplace risk assessment process: team, records and review
• Turkish risk assessment regulation: team, renewal and records
• How are explosive atmospheres and Ex equipment regulated in the United Kingdom?

Standards and further reading

• Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulations 3 and 5: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1999/3242/regulation/3
• Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002, regulation 5: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/2776/regulation/5
• HSE, Managing risks and risk assessment at work: https://www.hse.gov.uk/simple-health-safety/risk/steps-needed-to-manage-risk.htm
• HSE, Prepare a health and safety policy: https://www.hse.gov.uk/simple-health-safety/policy/index.htm

This article is general occupational safety and health information prepared by the excodex editorial team. It does not replace the applicable legislation, standards, manufacturers' instructions or the assessment of a competent OSH professional or occupational physician.