3 ways to automate a knives risk assessment

#1 - Simple assessment

Who it's for: Single-site kitchens recording the knives assessment themselves, where you know the kitchen and just need a clear, structured record.

What it is: A knives risk assessment records each cut hazard, the people it could harm, the controls in place, and any further action. This version is structured around the 8 areas a knife safety assessment should cover: the cutting tasks themselves, training, blade condition, protective equipment, storage, cleaning, first aid, and ongoing monitoring. Each area is a small group of three prompts written for that area. Cutting tasks asks you to identify the cutting tasks and their hazards, decide who might be harmed and how, and evaluate the cutting risks and decide on precautions; Storage asks about the knife storage hazards and who is at risk from unsafe storage; and so on through all 8, so every question tells you exactly what it's about. Assessing the risk from knives and other sharp equipment is part of your general risk assessment duty under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and knives themselves count as work equipment under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER).

In practice: A single-site kitchen works down the 8 areas. Under Cutting tasks: the hazards (chopping and filleting with chef's knives, mandolin work), who's at risk (kitchen staff, plus bar staff who cut fruit), and the precautions (task-specific training, mandolin guards, closer supervision for less experienced staff). Under Storage: knives kept on a magnetic strip away from the prep bench, and staff confirmed to return them there straight after use. Three short answers per area, and the whole assessment gets covered.

Why it works: The 8 areas follow how cuts actually happen in a kitchen, from the tasks themselves through training, condition, equipment, storage, cleaning, first aid and review, so nothing gets missed: the assessment covers where knives are used AND how they are controlled and monitored, not just the hazards someone happened to think of. And splitting each area into three prompts means nobody has to remember what a good answer contains; the structure asks for hazards, people, and precautions separately, which is what makes the record defensible.

Steps included:

• 8 assessment areas: from the cutting tasks themselves through training, condition, storage and cleaning, to first aid and ongoing monitoring
• Each area is a group of 3 prompts written for it: identify the hazards, decide who might be harmed and how, evaluate the risks and decide on precautions

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Kitchens where a manager, not a specialist, completes the assessment and needs the method in front of them.

What it is: The same 8 areas and three prompts, but each area's group now carries its own written guidance: why that area matters and what to check before you answer. The training group carries what good training covers and how it should be documented; the storage group carries where knives should be kept and why; the injuries and first aid group carries the duties under the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981.

What it adds to the simple assessment:

1. Guidance for every area, on screen exactly where you answer it
2. What to check before answering, not just a blank box
3. An assessment that's consistent whoever completes it

Why it works: Generic guidance at the top of a form gets skimmed once and forgotten by area 6. Guidance attached to each area gets read at the moment it's needed, so a manager who isn't a knife safety specialist still asks the right questions about blade condition, protective equipment, and what to do after a cut.

Steps included:

• The 8 assessment areas, each a group of 3 prompts
• 8 guidance notes, one per area: why it matters and what to check

#3 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Kitchens that want visual proof of each area's condition alongside the written record.

What it is: The same 8 areas and three prompts, but each area's group now carries a photo step. As you assess each area you photograph it: the storage strip, the protective equipment, the first aid kit, the blade you've flagged as damaged. The record shows the condition of each area at the time, not just a description of it.

In practice: A kitchen manager works through the assessment with their phone. At Storage they photograph the magnetic strip with the knives in place; at Protective equipment, the cut-resistant gloves on their hook; at Knife condition, the blade they've flagged for sharpening. Every answer now has a picture next to it.

What it adds to the simple assessment:

1. A photo per area, captured as you assess it
2. Proof of conditions that holds up to an inspector, not just a written claim
3. A visual baseline to compare against at the next review

Why it works: A written assessment says the knives are stored safely; a photo shows it. When the assessment is reviewed next quarter, the photos also show what changed. And because the photo step sits with its area, the evidence files itself against the right risk instead of landing in a camera roll.

Steps included:

• The 8 assessment areas, each a group of 3 prompts
• 8 photo steps, one per area: the hazard or the control in place, captured at the time

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the same 8-area assessment; the additions change who can run it and what the record proves.

Do other people run the assessment?

If you run it yourself and know the method, the plain steps are enough: #1. The moment a manager who isn't a specialist does it, the guidance needs to be on screen next to each area: #2.

Do you need photo proof?

A written assessment meets the duty; photos show the actual condition of each area. If a written record is enough, #1 or #2. If you want the storage, the protective equipment, and the blades themselves on camera next to their answers, #3.

Need both? Open the version that matters most in the playground and add the other's steps. That is how the product works anyway: every option here is the same assessment with steps added.

Related workflows

• Kitchen risk assessment - the wider kitchen assessment knives sit within
• Work equipment risk assessment - the slicer and other machinery in equipment terms
• Cuts and lacerations first aid - when prevention fails

Conclusion

Cuts are common, sometimes serious, and almost always preventable with the right controls. Every version above is the same 8 areas a knife safety assessment should cover, each a group of three prompts; the additions put guidance or a photo inside every area's group. Pick the one your business needs and build on it in the playground.

→ Build your own knives risk assessment on Pilla.