Definition

In an APC context, involvement in health and safety audits and reviews means taking an active, evidenced role in examining whether health and safety arrangements meet their legal requirements. The candidate identifies hazards, assesses compliance against frameworks such as the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and contributes to corrective action.

Why this matters for Health and Safety

  • Level 2 application: the competency requires you to apply health and safety knowledge in real situations, and audit involvement provides direct evidence of this.
  • Assessors want to hear what you personally did — a defined role in an audit gives you a clear, defensible answer.
  • RICS Surveying Safely, 2nd edition (2018) expects members to understand how health and safety performance is monitored; audits are the primary monitoring tool, and identifying a non-compliance generates concrete CPD evidence.

Key principles

Types of audit and review a candidate may join

Construction site safety audits check that CDM 2015 arrangements are in place: the construction phase plan is current, site inductions have been completed, and risk assessments cover current activities. Building surveys require the surveyor to identify hazards such as asbestos or fragile roofs. Fire risk assessment reviews examine whether adequate precautions are in place under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. Health and safety management system audits check that policies, procedures, training records, and incident logs form a coherent system.

What active involvement looks like

Passive attendance at a site walk is not sufficient evidence. Active involvement means: preparing a checklist against the applicable legislation; recording findings and photographs; classifying findings by severity; drafting a report with recommended corrective actions; and tracking closure. Contributing to any one of these steps, if you can articulate what you did and why, is APC-evidenceable involvement.

Documenting your role and demonstrating Level 2 competence

Record each audit in your CPD log with the date, your specific contribution, the key findings, and the outcome. When writing your summary of experience, link your role explicitly to the relevant legislation. Prepare to explain, at interview, the problem you found, the risk it created, your recommendation, and the result. This narrative structure is exactly how assessors probe Level 2 applied competence.

Relevant RICS guidance and legislation

  • Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 — the primary statute placing general duties on employers and employees; the baseline against which all audits are measured.
  • Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 — requires employers to carry out risk assessments and make arrangements for preventive measures; audits verify compliance with this duty.
  • Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015) — sets out the construction phase plan and principal contractor duties that site audits review.
  • RICS Surveying Safely, 2nd edition (2018) — the RICS professional statement on personal and site safety; covers the surveyor's duty to assess risk before and during inspections.
  • Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 — relevant to office and site welfare facilities checked during broader workplace audits.

Ethics and Rules of Conduct angle

Rule 5 of the RICS Rules of Conduct requires members to deliver competent service: undertaking a health and safety audit outside your training is a breach. If an audit reveals a serious hazard the client refuses to address, the duty under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 may require you to escalate or, in extreme cases, withdraw. Documenting audit involvement also supports the RICS CPD obligation under Rule 5.

APC-style Q&As

Q (Level 1)What is the purpose of a health and safety audit on a construction site?

A health and safety audit systematically checks whether the arrangements in place — risk assessments, method statements, CDM 2015 documentation, and site welfare — comply with legal requirements and the project's own health and safety plan. It identifies gaps so that corrective action can be taken before an incident occurs.

Q (Level 1)Name two types of health and safety review an APC candidate might be involved in.

A construction site safety inspection against CDM 2015 requirements and a fire risk assessment review under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 are two common examples. Others include asbestos management surveys and health and safety management system audits.

Q (Level 2)How did you contribute to a health and safety audit on one of your projects?

(example) On a school refurbishment I prepared a site safety checklist against the CDM 2015 construction phase plan. I identified that three risk assessments had not been updated following a change to the working-at-height method, classified the findings as high priority, and included corrective actions in my written report. The principal contractor revised the assessments within 48 hours.

Q (Level 2)What legislation governs the requirement for employers to carry out risk assessments, and how does this relate to audit activity?

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require employers to carry out suitable and sufficient risk assessments and review them when they are no longer valid. An audit verifies that assessments exist, are current, cover the activities being carried out, and have been communicated to workers. Findings of outdated or absent assessments constitute evidence of a legal breach requiring remedy.

Q (Level 3)During a site audit you identify an immediately dangerous condition — workers are operating beneath an unsupported excavation face. The site manager refuses to stop work. What do you do?

I would immediately instruct the site manager in writing to stop work in the affected area, citing the imminent risk to life and the duty under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. I would record the hazard with photographs and document the instruction. If the site manager refused to comply, I would notify the client and contact the HSE using the online notification route. I would advise the client that permitting work to continue in these conditions could expose them to criminal liability under Section 2 of the Act as the person in control of the site.