Free sample lesson
Understand the theory before applying it
This complete first lesson demonstrates my teaching approach. Read the CDM foundations, check the concepts and then explore a fictional project. It is a sample of a paid course; the checks here do not award a certificate or establish professional competence.
Lesson 1: Trace a site risk back to the decisions behind it
Begin with the principles. First understand what the regulations are for, where they apply and how responsibilities work. You will check those ideas before meeting the teaching project.
What is CDM 2015?
The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 are legal requirements for managing health, safety and welfare in construction. The shortened name is CDM 2015. Construction work includes more than creating new buildings: relevant alteration, repair, maintenance and demolition work can also fall within the regulations.
The regulations address how projects are organised and how people make, manage and communicate decisions. They do not provide an engineering design for a particular structure or a complete method for every site task. A team must still use suitable technical knowledge, project information and appropriate working arrangements.
The regulations set legal duties. Guidance from the Health and Safety Executive explains those duties and ways of meeting them. A completed form can support the arrangements, but the form itself does not show that the underlying duty has been fulfilled.
Why do responsibilities start before site work?
A decision can create a risk long before anyone uses a tool. Choosing an asset’s location can affect how it will be installed, how people will reach it and how it will be maintained. Allowing too little time or withholding useful information can also affect what others are able to plan.
This is why CDM addresses the project team rather than treating health and safety as the concern of people physically carrying out construction. Those who commission, design and organise work can influence the conditions others face. The aim is to prevent harm through suitable decisions and arrangements, not simply react after an incident.
A simple example is an inspection point. Its location can influence exposure during installation and future access for maintenance. At this stage you do not need a site plan. The principle is that a design decision can affect different people at different times.
Where and when does it apply?
CDM 2015 is the framework for Great Britain, covering England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has separate construction regulations. The teaching examples in this course are set in England.
Small construction projects are not generally exempt. Relevant work for domestic clients is also covered, although special arrangements affect who carries out the client duties. You will study those arrangements later. Work an individual does themselves as private DIY is a different situation from having construction work carried out by others.
Do not confuse applicability with notification. Notification to the Health and Safety Executive has a separate threshold. A project that does not require notification can still have duties under CDM. The detailed appointment and notification distinctions are developed later in the course.
What is a dutyholder?
A dutyholder is a person or organisation on whom the regulations place responsibilities. To recognise a responsibility, examine the function performed and any relevant appointment requirements. A job title or company label alone is not enough.
| Role | The central idea |
|---|---|
| Client | Has the construction project carried out for them and must address the relevant client arrangements. |
| Designer | Prepares or modifies a design and must address relevant foreseeable risks. |
| Principal designer | Coordinates health and safety in the pre-construction phase on a multi-contractor project. |
| Contractor | Carries out, manages or controls construction work. |
| Principal contractor | Coordinates health and safety in the construction phase on a multi-contractor project. |
| Worker | Works for or under the control of a contractor and contributes through care, cooperation and reporting. |
This table introduces the roles; it is not a complete statement of their duties. Principal appointments depend on the project arrangements, including whether more than one contractor is or is likely to be involved. Later lessons explain the conditions and responsibilities in detail.
Separate responsibility, coordination and authority
Responsibility: a duty connected with your function. A designer and a contractor can both have responsibilities for the same issue, for different reasons.
Coordination: connecting the relevant contributions so decisions and activities work together. A coordinating role does not remove every other party’s duties.
Authority: permission to make or approve a particular decision. Recognising a problem, updating a record or being involved in a meeting does not automatically give someone approval authority.
One organisation can perform several functions if it satisfies the requirements for each. Conversely, appointing another organisation does not automatically transfer every responsibility to it. Appropriate skills, knowledge, experience and organisational capability also matter. This course develops knowledge; completion alone does not establish competence for a responsible appointment.
Clear up four common misunderstandings
| Misunderstanding | A sounder understanding |
|---|---|
| Health and safety begins when construction starts. | Earlier decisions and arrangements can influence risks during construction and later use. |
| Appointing a contractor transfers every duty. | Parties retain duties associated with their functions. |
| A small project has no CDM duties. | Size alone is not a general exemption. |
| A risk register or signature proves compliance. | Records support the work; the decisions and arrangements still need to be suitable. |
Before moving to a project, explain these distinctions in your own words. You do not need to memorise regulation numbers to demonstrate understanding.
Check your theoretical understanding
Use the explanation you have just read. You do not need any project records for this question.
From theory to the teaching project
You have now examined the framework without relying on a project story. Next, meet Brookfield. Use the information to recognise decisions, affected people and connections between responsibilities. The purpose is to apply the principles, not memorise fictional company names.
Brookfield access and drainage renewal
Brookfield Distribution operates a busy warehouse. It plans to renew its access road, replace drainage beside the delivery yard and construct a concrete base for new equipment. The warehouse must keep operating throughout the work.
Delivery drivers will still arrive. Employees will need access. Construction workers must install the new assets, and maintenance workers will later inspect and repair them.
| Decision or activity | Who could be affected? |
|---|---|
| Locating the inspection chamber near the delivery route | Construction workers, delivery drivers and warehouse employees. |
| Planning drainage installation | The installation team and people moving around the operating site. |
| Providing access to the completed chamber | Future inspection and maintenance workers, as well as delivery drivers. |
A drainage system can work hydraulically and still create difficulties if its location makes installation or maintenance unnecessarily hazardous.
Responsibilities connect across the project
Consider the people who will build, use and maintain the asset. An early layout choice can shape the activities and risks encountered much later.
At Brookfield, different people hold different parts of the picture:
“The warehouse cannot stop taking deliveries.”
“The proposed drainage crosses the main delivery entrance.”
“I need to understand the operating restrictions before planning installation.”
“There is another entrance, but large vehicles cannot currently use it.”
No single statement resolves the issue. The team needs to share information and examine possible changes to the layout, delivery arrangements or construction sequence.
Each party must understand its own responsibilities and cooperate with others. Coordination connects their decisions; it does not make everyone responsible for everything.
A worked example: access to a chamber
The designer initially places an inspection chamber in the busiest part of the delivery route. During a review, the warehouse supervisor explains the delivery pattern. The contractor raises a construction-access concern. A maintenance representative explains that future inspections would also affect vehicle movements.
A useful response
- Establish the constraint. Record how and when the route is used, and identify what remains unknown.
- Examine options. Ask the designer to consider whether the chamber location or arrangement could change.
- Coordinate the decision. Involve those responsible for design, construction and warehouse operations.
- Communicate what remains. Explain unresolved matters and significant remaining risks to those who need to act on them.
The original location is not automatically unlawful, and relocation is not automatically the right answer. The team needs enough information to compare options and their consequences.
Designers have responsibilities for considering risks associated with their designs and sharing relevant information. See HSE’s explanation of designer responsibilities.
Look at the activity, not just the job title
A contractor’s engineer who changes the equipment-base design may be performing a designer function. A person does not need “designer” in their job title to carry out design work. Later pages will explain each role in detail.
Check your understanding
Select one answer for each question, then check its answer and reasoning. These practice questions do not determine course completion.
“Safety belongs to the contractor.”
Brookfield’s project manager says:
“I have appointed a contractor. Health and safety is their responsibility now. The designer can finish the drawings, and the contractor can deal with anything unsafe on site.”
Write a short response addressing these questions:
- What is misleading about the statement?
- How could one decision made before construction affect people’s safety?
- Who needs to share information, and for what purpose?
Sample practice is not saved or submitted. Copy your response into your own document before leaving.
Reveal the model response: after your attempt
Appointing a contractor does not remove the client’s and designers’ separate responsibilities. The contractor has responsibilities associated with construction, while other parties retain duties associated with their functions.
For example, placing an inspection chamber in the delivery route could affect installation workers, drivers and future maintenance workers. The designer needs information about warehouse operations to assess suitable options.
The client, designer, contractor and relevant operational representatives should share information. They should establish the constraint, consider options and communicate remaining concerns to those who need to address them.
Other answers can be valid. Your example should link a decision, the people affected and a clear reason for coordination. You do not need to reproduce this wording or cite regulation numbers.
Mark your response
Use the rubric, then select the score you judge your answer has earned for each criterion. The page adds your three self-selected scores, out of six. This is your own assessment; the page does not automatically mark your writing.
| Criterion | 0 marks | 1 mark | 2 marks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Responsibilities | Assigns safety solely to the contractor. | Recognises others have duties, without explaining them. | Explains that duties remain with different parties according to their functions. |
| Practical example | No relevant example. | Identifies a concern but not the people affected. | Connects a specific decision, an activity and the people potentially affected. |
| Coordination | No relevant information exchange or action. | Suggests discussion without a clear purpose. | Explains who should share information and how it supports a decision. |
5 to 6: review any gaps and continue. 3 to 4: strengthen your explanation. 0 to 2: revisit the worked example. These are practice guides, not assessment pass marks.
Who can influence this issue, what information do they need, and who else could be affected?
References and scope
This page introduces responsibilities; later pages develop the roles and their legal detail. It does not establish competence for an appointment or approve decisions on a live project.
- HSE: What do I need to do? CDM roles and responsibilities
- HSE: Designers: roles and responsibilities
- Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015
Original fictional examples and schematic illustrations. No employer endorsement or external accreditation is implied.
Continue with the complete course
The £250 course includes 19 practical lessons, eight portfolio pieces with templates and model answers, CV and interview guidance, a separate final assessment, my written feedback and one resubmission. You keep ongoing access to the lessons and submit your assessment within 12 months of enrolment.