RAMS — Refurbishment in occupied / domestic premises

What you need to know

The plain-English guidance that comes with this document.

• The occupants are the difference — you're sharing the space. Unlike a closed site, there are people (often not your workers) living or working feet from the job. Separating the work area, protecting routes, and making safe every single day is what keeps a householder, a customer or a child from wandering into a hazard.
• Pre-2000 building? Sort the asbestos first. Refurbishment is exactly when hidden asbestos gets disturbed — in artex, floor tiles, boards, lagging. Get the asbestos information before you break into the fabric, and stop for anything suspect. Don't "just get on" and find out later.
• CDM applies even in someone's home. On a domestic job, the client's duties usually pass to you (or the principal contractor if there's more than one contractor). You're responsible for planning and managing the work safely, and for protecting the people around it.
• Protect their home and their trust. Floor and furniture protection, dust control and tidy working aren't just safety — they're the difference between a happy customer and a complaint. Communicate about noise, mess and any services going off.
• Make it safe at the end of every day. No open holes, no reachable tools, no trip hazards, nothing a child could get into. You're leaving it with people in it.
• Starting point — get it signed off. Edit for the specific home/premises and have a competent person review it. Pair it with the asbestos record.