Documentation
Within the CDM 2015 regulations there are three significant pieces of CDM documentation produced when undertaking a construction project – Pre-Construction Information, the Construction Phase Plan and the Health and Safety File.
We believe an acceptable interpretation of CDM planning is as follows:
Event Build & Dismantle Phase
(aligned with CDM regulations)
| Plan | Purpose | Who Prepares It | Who is it for? | When does it need to be completed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre- Construction Information
|
A communication to contractors detailing any health & safety considerations or risks that need to be taken into account when planning the project.
This includes ensuring that costs for delivering the project safely have been factored into the budget. |
Client and principal designer must work together to:
|
Principal Contractor, Contractors and Designers | Provided for the initial briefing phase |
| Construction Phase Plan | To explain in detail the risks involved in the construction and dismantle of the project and the measures being taken to control & eliminate those risks. | The client must ensure that the principal contractor prepares the Construction Phase Plan, in collaboration with the principal designer | Everyone | Before construction starts |
Event Open Phase
(not part of CDM legislation)
| Plan | Purpose | Who Prepares It | Who is it for? | When does it need to be completed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event Management Plan | Plan to explain in detail how the live period of the event will be safely run | Person(s) responsible for the safe running of the event | Client, venue, licensing authorities, insurance companies etc | Before the event opens |
Pre-Construction Information
Pre-Construction Information should be provided to contractors prior to them preparing their own safety arrangements, to ensure they are aware of site specific hazards or considerations that need to be made along with information about how the site will be managed.
Due to the way the events industry works (usually standardised venues, short lead times, standard working methods etc) we have found that the Pre-Construction Information is usually produced as part of a invitation to tender document or RFQ (Request for Quote) to contractors, or as a draft of the construction phase plan.
The roots of the legislation are in the construction industry where a client (eg. A developer) would be required to provide information to their principle contractor about potential safety issues on site (eg. asbestos, underground electrical cables or contaminated ground) to allow them to make provisions in their costs and safety planning to be able to carry out the job safely. In an events industry context, relevant information might include access for vehicles or what permanent utilities are available (eg. mains water or electricity).
When preparing Pre-Construction Information, consider what your contractors will need to know when they are planning how they are going to deliver their scope of work. This might include:
- Project information like dates, schedules, key contacts
- Sequence of work for the build / dismantle
- How the site & project are going to be managed
- How the site is designed / laid out and how it can be accessed by pedestrian and vehicle traffic
- Site specific hazards eg. ground conditions, nearby roads or public walkways near the site, buried mains cables etc.
- Site rules and any mandatory PPE
- What services and welfare facilities are already in place and what needs to be brought in
Pre-Construction Information could be communicated in a number of different ways depending on the timeframe and the amount of information you have available. For example the information could be contained within a detailed brief or tender that is sent out to contractors to allow them to take into consideration any safety issues when compiling their quotes, or it could be within a briefing email or written letter.
Much of the information in the Pre-Construction Information can also used in the Construction Phase Plan.
Creating Pre-Construction Information with Event Safety PlanChose the appropriate headings from the CDM template headings and fill in the information you have available. Then export a copy of the safety plan to send to your contractors as your Pre-Construction Information.
Your contractors should be able to use your information to prepare their risk assessments and method statements for the project which they should then send to you for review.
Once you’ve received your contractor’s risk assessments and method statements then collate them in your document appendices and as required, update your safety plan by editing or adding in additional headings as appropriate.
Construction Phase Plan
Under CDM regulations the Principal Contractor must produce a Construction Phase Plan.
The Construction Phase Plan must set out the health and safety arrangements and site rules being applied during the build and dismantle phases. It must take account of the construction activities taking place on the site and, where applicable, must include specific measures concerning work that is considered high risk.
Information in the Construction Phase Plan might include:
- Pre-Construction Information prepared either by the client or their nominated person
- Any information received from the designers relating to complex installations
- Health and safety arrangements for the site
- Site Rules
- Overview of production schedule
- Access information
- Welfare, security and first aid information
- Emergency Procedures
- Organogram depicting project management team roles and responsibilities
- Detail of how changes to the design will be managed on site and what steps will be taken to ensure that changes to agreed installation methods will be suitably risk assessed.
Throughout the project the Principal Contractor must review and update the Construction Phase Plan so that it continues to be relevant for the duration of build and dismantle.
In addition, the appendices of the construction phase plan might include:
- A site management risk assessment and method statement
- All contractor risk assessments, method statements, insurance documentation and other health & safety documents pertaining to their activities on site (for example evidence of plant training, COSHH information or fire retardancy certification)
- A copy of the site rules
- Intended site induction content
- Site layouts
- The emergency evacuation plan
- Full production schedule
The principal contractor should work with the principal designer and client to ensure that all relevant information is handed over to contractors and workers. This might take the form of a crew briefing document sent out prior to commencement of the build and an onsite safety induction.
The Health & Safety File
In the events industry where builds are very temporary, this plan seems to have less relevance.
Although on a construction project this is a separate file under CDM, current events industry interpretation seems to be that the information collected for the Health & Safety File is best fed in to the Event Management Plan, which deals with the live phase operations of an event.
We interpret this document to be
- Safety information appropriate to the characteristics of the event and completed build. For example it might detail and Adverse Weather Plan or checks and maintenance for temporary structures.
- Information, learnings or data that could be useful for subsequent or similar event builds and can be passed on to future project team members.
Event Management Plan
This is not a requirement of CDM 2015, however there should be a document that includes health & safety and event management information to be produced by a responsible person for the live phase of the event. For more information see our Event Management Plan help page.