UK construction terms, explained

A confined space is a largely enclosed area where serious injury can arise from hazards such as a lack of oxygen or toxic gases.

COSHH is the UK law requiring employers to assess and control exposure to hazardous substances such as dust, fumes and chemicals.

A CSCS card shows a worker has the training and health and safety awareness needed for their role on a UK construction site.

The hierarchy of control is the order for dealing with a hazard: eliminate, substitute, engineering controls, administrative controls, then PPE.

Hot works are activities that create heat, sparks or flame, such as welding, grinding or cutting, and are a major cause of site fires.

LOLER is the UK law covering lifting equipment: it must be strong enough, positioned safely, and thoroughly examined at set intervals.

A method statement sets out, step by step, how a task will be carried out safely, using the controls identified in its risk assessment.

A near miss is an unplanned event that did not cause injury or damage but easily could have. Recording them helps prevent the accident next time.

A permit to work is a formal document that authorises specific high-risk work to start only once the required precautions are in place.

PPE (personal protective equipment) is the clothing and equipment worn to protect against site hazards, and the last line of defence in safety.

PUWER is the UK law requiring that work equipment is suitable, maintained, inspected and safe for the people who use it.

RAMS stands for Risk Assessment and Method Statement: two documents that set out the hazards of a task and the safe way to carry it out.

A toolbox talk is a short, informal safety briefing given on site to remind workers about a specific hazard or safe method before work.

Work at height is any work where a person could fall a distance liable to cause injury. It is governed by the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

The defects liability period is the time after completion during which the contractor must return to fix defects that appear in the work.

Handover is the point at which a completed project is passed to the client, along with the documentation they need to occupy and maintain it.

An O&M manual is the pack of information handed to a client at completion, covering how to operate and maintain the finished building.

Practical completion marks the point when construction work is finished enough for the client to take over the building, bar minor snags.

A site induction is the briefing every worker completes before starting on a site, covering its specific hazards, rules and arrangements.

Snagging is the process of finding and fixing minor defects and unfinished work before a construction project is handed over.

CVR (Cost Value Reconciliation) compares what a project has cost against the value of the work done, to show its true financial position.

The final account is the agreed statement of the total sum due on a construction contract once all work, variations and claims are settled.

A JCT contract is one of a widely used family of standard construction contracts published by the Joint Contracts Tribunal.

Preliminaries, or prelims, are the project-wide costs of running a construction site that are not tied to any single item of work.

A provisional sum is an allowance in a construction contract for work that cannot be fully defined or priced when the contract is agreed.

Retention is a percentage of payment held back on a construction contract until the work is confirmed complete and defects are put right.

A variation is an authorised change to the agreed scope of construction work, which usually affects the contract cost and programme.

The Building Safety Act 2022 is UK law that strengthens the regulation of building safety, especially for higher-risk buildings.

CDM 2015 is the main set of UK regulations for managing health, safety and welfare on construction projects, from design to completion.

An F10 is the form used to notify the HSE of a construction project that meets the notification thresholds under CDM 2015.

The golden thread is the up-to-date information about a higher-risk building, kept so its safety can be understood and managed over its life.

The HSE (Health and Safety Executive) is the UK's national regulator for workplace health and safety, including construction.

ISO 45001 is the international standard for an occupational health and safety management system, used to manage and reduce workplace risk.

RIDDOR is the UK law setting out which workplace injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences must be reported to the HSE, and when.