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TBT-03: Working at Height

Reference: TBT-03 | Issue Date: 14/03/2026 | Review Date: Sep 2026 Applicable Standards: ISO 45001 Cl. 8.1.2 | Work at Height Regulations 2005 Related Documents: HPOL04, HPOL22, HFORM15, RA010

Role-Specific

This toolbox talk applies to staff who may need to access elevated areas during client site visits — including roofs, platforms, scaffolding, mezzanines, or any position where a fall could cause injury.

What Counts as Working at Height?

Under the Work at Height Regulations 2005, working at height means any work where a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury. This includes: work on ladders, scaffolding, roofs, platforms, mezzanine floors, open edges, fragile surfaces, and even work at ground level near an opening or excavation.

Falls from height remain one of the biggest causes of workplace fatalities and serious injuries in the UK.

The Hierarchy of Control

The Regulations require a clear hierarchy when planning any work at height:

  1. Avoid working at height wherever possible — Can the task be done from ground level? Can equipment be lowered rather than accessed in place?
  2. Prevent falls using collective protection — Guardrails, barriers, edge protection, scaffolding with full platforms
  3. Minimise the consequences if a fall occurs — Safety nets, airbags, personal fall arrest systems (harnesses)

Personal fall protection (harnesses) is the last resort, not the first option. If someone suggests "just clip on", ask whether collective protection has been properly considered.

CRGI Staff and Working at Height

As engineering consultants, your work at height typically involves: inspecting equipment or structures at client sites, accessing plant rooms on roofs or mezzanines, surveying facilities during design phases, and observing manufacturing processes from elevated positions.

Before Accessing Any Elevated Area

  • Check the risk assessment — Is working at height covered in the RAMS (HFORM15) or site-specific assessment?
  • Confirm competency — Have you received working at height training? If not, do not proceed.
  • Inspect access equipment — Check ladders, scaffolding, platforms, and any fall protection before use
  • Confirm the client's arrangements — The client site should have their own working at height procedures. Follow them.
  • Tell someone — If working alone at height, ensure someone knows your location and expected duration

If You Haven't Had Training

If you arrive at a client site and are asked to access an elevated area without having received working at height training — decline and contact your line manager. This is not optional. Untrained access to height is a serious risk and a legal compliance failure.

Ladders

Ladders should only be used for short-duration work (less than 30 minutes) at low risk, or as access to a platform. They are not a substitute for proper scaffolding or platforms.

Ladder Safety

  • Use an industrial-grade ladder appropriate for the task — not a domestic stepladder
  • Place on firm, level ground. Use a ladder mat or board on soft ground.
  • Secure the top or have someone foot the base
  • Maintain three points of contact at all times
  • Don't overreach — move the ladder instead
  • Don't carry heavy items or tools that prevent you maintaining grip
  • Don't use a ladder in strong wind, rain, or icy conditions
  • Inspect the ladder before each use — check stiles, rungs, feet, and locking mechanisms

Scaffolding

If work at height involves scaffolding at a client site:

  • Only use scaffolding that has been erected by a competent person (CISRS-trained scaffolder)
  • Check for a scaffold inspection tag showing the last inspection date
  • Scaffolding must be inspected at least every 7 days and after adverse weather
  • Never alter scaffolding yourself — report any defects to the site supervisor
  • Don't overload platforms beyond the rated capacity
  • Use the designated access points — don't climb the outside of scaffolding

Fall Protection Equipment

If personal fall protection is required:

  • Harnesses must be correctly fitted, inspected before each use, and within their inspection date
  • Lanyards must be appropriate for the fall distance available — a 2m lanyard needs more than 2m of clear space below
  • Anchor points must be rated for the load and correctly positioned — above your working position
  • You must be trained in the use of fall arrest equipment before using it
  • Fall arrest equipment is single-use after a fall — report any activation immediately

Fragile Surfaces

Some roofs, skylights, and panels cannot support body weight. Falling through a fragile surface is one of the most common causes of fatal falls.

  • Never step on any surface unless you're certain it can support your weight
  • Skylights, corrugated cement sheets, and liner panels are common fragile materials
  • If in doubt, ask the site contact. If still in doubt, don't walk on it.
  • Use crawling boards or staging if you must cross a fragile surface

Weather Conditions

Weather affects the safety of all work at height:

  • Wind — Do not work at height in strong winds. Gusts can unbalance you.
  • Rain and ice — Surfaces become slippery. Grip is reduced. Metal structures and ladders are particularly affected.
  • Lightning — Do not work on exposed structures during electrical storms.
  • Low visibility — Fog, early darkness, or bright sun affecting vision all increase risk.

If conditions deteriorate while you're working at height, descend safely and reassess.

Emergency Planning

Before starting work at height, ensure a rescue plan exists. If someone falls and is suspended in a harness, rescue must happen within minutes — suspension trauma can be fatal within 15–20 minutes.

  • Know the site's rescue arrangements for work at height
  • Know who to call and how to raise the alarm
  • If you're the first to notice a fallen worker, call for help immediately — do not attempt an unplanned rescue

Key Takeaways

  • Avoid working at height wherever possible
  • Never access height without a risk assessment and appropriate controls
  • If you haven't been trained, don't go up — contact your line manager
  • Inspect all equipment before use
  • Follow the client site's working at height procedures
  • If conditions change, come down and reassess
  • Report any defects, near misses, or incidents

CRGI Solutions HSQE Department | HSQEMS v2.0 | Classification: CRGI Information