What Is a Baseline Risk Assessment?
A baseline risk assessment is a structured assessment of the hazards and risks associated with an organisation’s or project’s planned work before the detailed task controls are applied. It establishes the risk picture that later assessments and controls can build on.
Direct answer
What is a baseline risk assessment?
It is the starting assessment of foreseeable hazards and risks for the defined work scope. It should state its boundaries, use a consistent method, identify controls and lead to further task-specific assessment where the baseline is not detailed enough.
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Baseline is not task-specific
A baseline assessment gives the broad picture for the defined work. A task or issue-based assessment examines a particular activity, change or hazard in more detail. One should not be used as a substitute for the other when the work needs more control detail.
- Define the site, activities and people included
- Identify hazards and who may be exposed
- Evaluate risk using the organisation’s chosen method
- Record existing controls and further actions
- Link high-risk activities to task assessments and method statements
Keep the assessment alive
Review it when the scope, site, sequence, equipment, materials, people or controls change. A signed first version is not evidence that later changes were assessed.
Practical checklist
- State the assessment scope and exclusions.
- List routine and foreseeable non-routine activities.
- Identify affected workers, contractors and other persons.
- Record existing and additional controls.
- Assign actions to functional roles with target dates.
- Link the result to task assessments, method statements and inspections.
Common mistakes
- Calling a blank risk matrix a completed assessment.
- Using one baseline for materially different sites without checking the differences.
- Recording controls without checking whether they are actually implemented.
- Failing to trigger a fresh assessment after a material change.
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Use the related resources as a starting point, then adapt the documents to your work, risks, client requirements and operating arrangements.
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