For contractors
Who prepares the construction phase plan?
Short answer
On a project with more than one contractor, the principal contractor must draw up the construction phase plan or make arrangements for it to be drawn up, under regulation 12(1). Where there is only one contractor, that contractor must, under regulation 15(5). The client must make sure a plan is drawn up before the construction phase begins, but does not write it. The principal designer supplies the information it is built from, under regulation 12(3).
Who does what
| Party | Their part |
|---|---|
| Principal contractor | Draws up the plan, or makes arrangements for it to be drawn up, before setting up the site. Reviews, updates and revises it through the project |
| Contractor, single contractor project | Draws up the plan themselves, as soon as is practicable before setting up the site |
| Client | Must ensure a plan is drawn up before the construction phase begins, and that the principal contractor has the information needed to write it |
| Principal designer | Provides the pre-construction information and the designers' risk information, under regulation 12(3). Does not write the plan |
| Consultant | Can help. Cannot take the duty, and a plan written without the person running the site is a worse document |
Make arrangements for it to be drawn up
Regulation 12(1) allows the principal contractor to make arrangements for the plan to be drawn up rather than writing it personally. That is what makes consultant help lawful. What it does not do is move the duty: the principal contractor remains responsible for the plan existing, being adequate, and being kept up to date under regulation 12(4).
The practical test is whether the plan describes how this site will actually be run. If the person who will run it has not shaped the content, it usually does not.
ClearCDM's position
We do not write construction phase plans and we do not take the duty. What we do is give the contractor the project information regulation 12(3) requires, and tell them plainly which Schedule 3 categories are live on this project, so the plan they write is about this job. There is a structured plan builder in development that will carry the project information across rather than making anybody type it twice.
Sources
- CDM 2015, regulation 12: construction phase plan and health and safety file legislation.gov.uk
- CDM 2015, regulation 15: duties of contractors legislation.gov.uk
- CDM 2015, regulation 4: client duties in relation to managing projects legislation.gov.uk
- Managing health and safety in construction, L153 HSE guidance on the Regulations
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