Lifting operations risk assessment template

A lifting operations risk assessment identifies what could go wrong on this lift and which controls are needed before anyone raises the load. The form below prompts the competent planner to record the load, lifting equipment, accessories, ground, travel path, nearby people, services, weather and emergency arrangements. It is a working assessment, not a substitute for a lift plan. A complex crane lift may require engineering calculations, drawings, a separately approved plan, site coordination and specialist supervision that this worksheet cannot supply.

In Great Britain, HSE's LOLER overview says lifting operations involving lifting equipment must be properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out safely. The level of planning and supervision should fit the operation's complexity. A routine lift by trained workers may need a simpler documented arrangement than an unusual lift across a public interface, but neither should be guessed at from an empty template. Northern Ireland has a separate regulatory regime and is outside this page's legal scope.

Use this page to prepare the risk input for a lift plan or agreed routine method. If the operation changes, stop and review the assessment and plan. A signed blank form does not establish that equipment is suitable, that a person is competent or that a load can be safely lifted.

What information the planner needs

Start with the actual lift: where the load is now, where it must go, its verified weight and centre of gravity, dimensions, lifting points, packaging and potential movement. Record the machine and configuration, lifting accessories, rated capacities, radius and travel route. The planner needs the current equipment examination and inspection information, not a claim that “all gear is certified”. Confirm whether an accessory is designed and rated for the load and how it will be attached. HSE's LOLER guidance distinguishes equipment suitability, marking, examination and the planning of the lift; one does not replace another.

Survey the actual site. Look at access, slope, soft ground, buried voids and services, support beneath outriggers or stabilisers, overhead cables, buildings, scaffolds, vehicles, pedestrian routes and adjacent operations. The assessment must address both lifting and any transport or setup movement. Where ground-bearing capacity or support details are unknown, obtain competent engineering advice rather than assigning a guessed value. If a crane's setup location or ground conditions change after approval, do not keep using the original plan; the existing Complys changed-ground guide is a related owner for that specific decision.

Agree roles before the team arrives: who plans, who supervises, who operates, who slings/signals, who controls the exclusion zone and who can stop the lift. Record the communication method and contingency if radios fail. HSE's construction lifting guidance identifies competent operators and slingers, a plan that addresses assessed risks and supervision proportionate to the lift. Do not assume a hired crane supplier has taken responsibility for planning: HSE says crane-hire responsibility normally remains with the user unless the hire company explicitly assumes it under a contract lift.

Hazards to consider

Dropped or swinging load. Assess attachment points, load security, slinging angles, sharp edges, loose components, potential rotation and the landing arrangement. Check the capacity of the equipment and accessories for the actual configuration. Keep non-essential people out of the danger zone. HSE's planning guidance warns against suspending loads above occupied areas where it can be avoided. Where that cannot be avoided, the risks to people need specific precautions, not an ordinary barrier line copied from another job.

Machine stability and ground. Record the evidence for the setup ground, outriggers, spreader arrangement, slope and proximity to trenches, basements or buried structures. Capacity tables depend on configuration and radius; do not write a generic “within safe working load” statement without the figures used by the competent planner. Stop if the ground deteriorates or the machine shifts.

Collisions and services. Assess the pick, slew, travel and landing envelope. Identify overhead power lines, other cranes, structures, scaffold, temporary works and vehicle routes. Agree the clearance, isolation or exclusion arrangements with the relevant controller. Do not infer a universal safe distance from this template. A changed route or nearby activity requires reassessment.

People and interfaces. Consider workers, delivery drivers, public users, occupants, neighbouring premises and other contractors. Mark the exclusion boundary and who will police it. Plan a safe route for pedestrians and traffic. Never rely on a sign alone where an active exclusion is needed. Coordinate the lift with other site activities and permissions.

Weather and visibility. Record the machine manufacturer's limits and any site-specific triggers for wind, lightning, rain, darkness or poor visibility. A large, light panel behaves differently from a compact dense load. Set the person who checks weather and the point at which the team pauses. Do not invent a universal wind-speed threshold.

Human factors. Check competence, briefing, fatigue, line of sight, language/communication and a single clear signal system. Identify what happens if a signal is lost. A rushed lift at the end of a shift is a change in conditions, not a reason to bypass the plan.

Emergency and recovery. Describe what the team will do if a load is stuck, an accessory fails, the machine loses power, someone enters the danger zone or an injury occurs. The safest response may be to lower or secure the load and keep people away pending competent intervention. The plan must include site-specific emergency contacts and access. Do not ask an untrained person to improvise a recovery under a suspended load.

Copy-and-complete risk assessment worksheet

This is a prompt form. The lift planner must add drawings, calculations, equipment data and a separate lift plan as the operation requires. Blank entries are unresolved hold points.

Assessment conclusion: identify the residual risks and whether a competent planner has enough verified information to proceed to a lift plan. Mark HOLD if load mass, ground support, equipment rating, people exclusion or a critical interface is unknown. Do not complete those fields with estimates merely to release the lift.

Briefing record: planner/version/date; lift-plan reference; people briefed; equipment and accessory IDs; pre-use checks; weather and ground recheck; supervisor's go/no-go decision. Record changes and withdraw superseded versions. The team should be able to describe the same route, boundary and stop signal. If they cannot, the briefing has not achieved control.

Risk assessment versus lift plan and permit

The risk assessment identifies hazards, affected people and necessary controls. The lift plan translates those controls into an executable method with responsibilities, resources and procedures. A permit may be a separate site authorisation for the operation and does not replace either document. HSE's planning guidance says a routine operation can sometimes be covered by a generic initial plan that forms part of the normal assessment, while a complex or unusual operation needs more detailed planning. This distinction should be decided by a competent person for the actual lift, not by the title of a template.

The existing LOLER explanation owns the broad regulatory question. The live LOLER software page covers equipment records and examinations. This page serves the narrower risk-assessment form task. The Complys templates directory lists a “lifting operations plan” as in the pipeline, so do not claim that a plan generator or download is live. The proposed risk assessment software route and any product CTA require current implementation and canonical verification; a neutral CTA is to keep the approved assessment with the lift plan and equipment records in the organisation's verified system.

Source, claim and writer-side QA register

Cannibalisation: no exact indexed Complys lifting-operation risk-assessment template owner was found on the two observed hosts on 5 October 2026. The /templates directory lists a lifting operations plan as future content; this form must not be presented as that plan or create a competing plan page. Current repo and in-flight ownership require recheck. Product truth: no live lifting-plan or risk-assessment feature is asserted. Links: LOLER guide, LOLER software, changed-ground guide and proposed risk-assessment money page only after route check. CTA: evidence organisation, no pricing/trial claim. Writer-side QA: scoped primary-source, GB jurisdiction, form utility, intent and product boundary passed; independent competent lifting, product and canonical review remains required before publication.