Free tool for UK builders

Scaffold inspection due-date checker

Enter when the scaffold was last inspected and anything that has happened since. You will see when the next inspection is due under the Work at Height Regulations 2005, and a record you can print.

When is the next scaffold inspection due?

Answer the questions about the scaffold. Your answers stay in your browser. Nothing you enter is sent to us.

Is it a working platform used for construction work, from which a person could fall 2 metres or more?

This is the platform that regulation 12(4) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 covers.

YesNoI'm not sure

Has it been inspected in position since it was put up?

YesNo, not yet

Answer the questions to see when the next inspection is due.

This tool covers Great Britain. Northern Ireland has its own Work at Height Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005. This is general guidance, not legal advice.

When a scaffold must be inspected

The rules are in regulation 12 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The tool uses these points:

Regulation 12(2): where the safety of work equipment depends on how it is installed or assembled, it is not used after installation or assembly in any position unless it has been inspected in that position. (Work at Height Regulations 2005 reg 12(2))
Regulation 12(4): a working platform used for construction work, from which a person could fall 2 metres or more, must not be used unless it has been inspected in that position within the previous 7 days. For a mobile working platform, the inspection is on the site. (Work at Height Regulations 2005 reg 12(4))
Inspect it again after any alteration, and after anything liable to affect its safety, such as high winds, an impact or ground movement. HSE says inspection may also be required after bad weather and always after any modification. (Work at Height Regulations 2005 reg 12(2) and 12(3))
Seven days is the maximum gap, not a target. HSE notes that a risk assessment may call for more frequent inspection. (HSE, Scaffolding FAQs)

The tool counts 7 days from the date of the last inspection. If a scaffold was inspected on a Monday, it can be used up to and including the following Monday; after that it needs a fresh inspection before anyone works from it.

What the inspection report must include

For a platform covered by regulation 12(4), the person inspecting writes a report before the end of the working period. It must contain the particulars in Schedule 7:

The name and address of the person for whom the inspection was carried out.
The location of the work equipment inspected.
A description of the work equipment inspected.
The date and time of the inspection.
Details of any matter identified that could give rise to a risk to the health or safety of any person.
Details of any action taken as a result of any matter identified in paragraph 5.
Details of any further action considered necessary.
The name and position of the person making the report.

The printable record from the tool lists these with space to fill in, but it is not the report itself. Only a competent person’s inspection can show the scaffold is safe to use.