Digital COSHH Assessment Templates

In this article

• What is a COSHH Assessment?
• Why Should You Perform This Process?
• Advantages of Using a Template for COSHH Assessments
• 6 Essential Elements of a COSHH Assessment Template
• How to Use This Template
• FAQs About COSHH Assessment
• How to Conduct a COSHH Assessment with SafetyCulture Templates & Tools
• Top COSHH Assessment Templates

What is a COSHH Assessment?

A COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) Assessment, or COSHH Risk Assessment, is a health and safety evaluation process and document. It aims to identify and evaluate hazards and risks from hazardous substances used in the workplace or produced during operational processes and devise control measures to reduce or eliminate identified risks. 

The UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) requires a COSHH assessment as a standard safety measure to protect employees from harmful substances and avoid adverse health effects.

Why Should You Perform This Process?

Exposure to chemical substances is a common occupational hazard. An HSE report found 6,000 self-reported cases of skin disease from 2015 to 2018 due to hazardous substance exposure. Skin disease from chemical exposure has profound detrimental effects on workers’ daily activities, ability to work, and self-image. Occupations most affected include metalworkers, machine operators, and other industrial workers dealing with hazardous substances. Performing COSHH assessments can ensure a safer workspace that can help boost employee productivity and morale.

Advantages of Using a Template for COSHH Assessments

COSHH assessments are crucial for identifying hazards associated with hazardous substances. This audit can, however, be time-consuming and complex if you lack the necessary expertise and knowledge. In those situations, a COSHH assessment template can be incredibly useful. 

Using a COSHH assessment template can help you:

• Save time – With a template, you no longer have to spend hours creating a new file from scratch, as it already covers the necessary information and sections for a COSHH assessment. Instead, you simply need to record the specific details about your workplace and the hazardous substances you use or handle.
• Improve accuracy – Apart from speeding up the process, using a template also reduces the risk of overlooking crucial information or sections in the assessment. Throughout this document, prompts or questions help you identify all potential hazards, ensuring that all sections are completed as required.
• Ensure consistency – The standardized format of these templates creates a structure for COSHH assessments, making them more systematic and organized. This way, it becomes easier to determine anything that stands out or common themes/trends across assessments.

6 Essential Elements of a COSHH Assessment Template

An efficient COSHH assessment should document these 6 essential elements:

1. Detailed listing of hazardous substances present in the workplace
2. Workplace Exposure Limits (WELs) and health risks
3. Control measures to be implemented (PPE, First Aid Measures)
4. Information on proper storage, handling, and disposal of chemicals
5. Authorization by employer or supervisor

How to Use This Template

Using a COSHH assessment template is easy once you have your template ready. Below is a step-by-step guide:

1. Identify existing hazardous substances.

Start filling out the COSHH assessment template by identifying all hazardous substances at work, such as chemicals, dust, fumes, and biological agents. Even small amounts of hazardous materials pose a threat, so it is crucial to identify them comprehensively.

2. Assess the risks.

After identifying all hazardous substances, the next step is evaluating their risks. This involves considering factors like potential exposure, toxicity, and likelihood of harm associated with each substance. Apart from considering the work being done by workers, the assessment should also look at their specific tasks and activities, since these can affect the risk level.

3. Implement controls.

Using the results of the risk assessment, the team can develop and implement controls to manage or eliminate the identified risks, such as but not limited to:

• Using personal protective equipment (PPE)
• Changing work practices or procedures
• Modifying the physical environment

4. Review and revise.

Lastly, COSHH assessments are not one-off events. Therefore, they must be reviewed and revised regularly to ensure they remain valid and effective. These revisions can happen due to new hazardous substances in the workplace or changes in work procedures.