How I Use the Working at Height Template with Customers in Pilla
Falls from height are still the single biggest cause of major injury in UK workplaces. That's not a new statistic. It's been true for years, and I still walk into businesses where a chef is standing on a beer crate to reach a top shelf, or a maintenance worker is using a domestic step ladder with a cracked stile. The policy exists somewhere in a folder. Nobody's read it since it was written.
The gap between having a working at height policy and actually controlling fall risk is where people get hurt. This article covers what the Work at Height Regulations 2005 require, gives you a template you can edit for your own operation, and flags the mistakes I see most often when I'm reviewing height safety with customers.
Key Takeaways
- What is working at height in health and safety? Working at height covers any task where a person could fall and be injured, even at or below ground level. It's the single biggest cause of major workplace injury, and your policy needs to cover risk assessment, the hierarchy of control, equipment standards, and responsible person duties
- Why do you need a working at height policy? The Work at Height Regulations 2005 require employers to assess and control fall risks following a strict hierarchy: avoid height work, prevent falls, then minimise consequences. An HSE inspector will check that you've followed this hierarchy and that your controls match the actual work being done
- How do you set it up in Pilla? Use the knowledge hub template below, edit it to match your operation, and share it with your team through the app so everyone has access and you can track who's read it
- How do you automate the follow-up? Set up Poppi to chase staff who haven't acknowledged the policy and flag when it's due for review
Article Content
Understanding What's Required of You
Working at height means any place where a person could be injured by falling from it. That includes standing on a step ladder, accessing a high shelf, or working near an open edge at floor level. The definition is broader than most people think, and it catches tasks that feel routine: changing a light bulb, cleaning above head height, restocking from a mezzanine.
The legal framework is the Work at Height Regulations 2005. They require you to follow a hierarchy of control for every task that involves height. First, avoid working at height wherever possible. Can the task be done from ground level? Can you use a long-handled tool instead of climbing? Second, where you can't avoid it, prevent falls using collective measures like guard rails, platforms, or scaffolding. Third, where you can't prevent a fall entirely, minimise the distance and consequences. Each level has to be considered before you move to the next. Skipping straight to step ladders without asking whether you could avoid the height work altogether is one of the most common failures I see.
Responsible persons have specific duties under the regulations. All work at height must be properly planned and organised. Only trained, competent people should carry it out. Equipment must be inspected before use. Risks from fragile surfaces and falling objects must be controlled. There must be suitable lighting. And where possible, height work should happen outside operating hours to reduce risk to others in the area. These aren't suggestions. An HSE inspector will expect to see evidence that each one is being managed.
I've reviewed working at height arrangements in pubs, restaurants, warehouses, and offices. The businesses that get this right treat height work as something that needs a decision, not something that just happens. The ones that get it wrong treat a step ladder like a piece of furniture: it's just there, anyone grabs it, nobody checks it, and the hierarchy of control is something they've heard of but never applied.
Step ladders come up in almost every working at height conversation. They're only appropriate for short-duration work, under 30 minutes, where no better form of access is available. They must be industrial standard, BS EN131. Three-point contact is required at all times: two hands and one foot, or two feet and one hand. The top three steps must not be used. Defective ladders come out of service immediately. I've lost count of the number of businesses I've visited where a step ladder with worn feet or a dodgy hinge is still in daily use because "it's been fine so far."
Setting It Up as a Knowledge Hub Entry
I've built a working at height template in Pilla covering the hierarchy of control, responsible person duties, planning requirements, step ladder safety standards, and equipment inspection. It gives you a structured starting point, but you need to edit it to reflect how your operation actually works.
In the knowledge hub, create a new entry and tag it with "Health and Safety System". Use the same tag across all of your health and safety policies so they are grouped together and Poppi can track them as a set. Assign the entry to all teams so that everyone in the business can access it.
The template is designed to be edited, not just filed. Read through every section. If your business doesn't use step ladders, remove that section and add what you do use. If you have specific access equipment for particular tasks, describe it. If your height work is limited to restocking shelves, say so. An HSE inspector wants to see that your policy reflects your actual operation.
25. Working at Height – access equipment
The Work at Height Amendment Regulations (2007)
Falls from height continue to be the single biggest cause of major injury. As part of our cleaning schedules and maintenance like changing a light bulb, our activities will involve short periods where staff will have to work or access materials/stock at height. Company Name understand that in order to manage the safety and health of our workforce and that of those affiliated or frequenting our venue, that we must consider working at height as part of our business undertakings.
Work at height is a place 'at height' if (unless these procedures are followed) a person could be injured falling from it, even if it is at or below ground level.
In accordance with the above regulations a risk assessment must be conducted for all working at height, which must consider the following hierarchy of control:
Avoid working at height wherever possible.
Use work equipment or other measures to prevent falls where they cannot avoid working at height.
Where they cannot eliminate the risk of a fall, use work equipment or other measures to minimise the distance and consequences of a fall should one occur.
*Responsible Persons must ensure the following:
All work at height is properly planned and organised.
All work at height to take place outside of opening hours to reduce risk to clientele.
Those involved in work at height are trained and competent.
The place where work at height is done is safe.
Equipment for work at height is properly inspected.
The risks from fragile surfaces are properly controlled.
The risk from falling objects is properly controlled.
Suitable light levels to allow working at height to undertaken safely.
Step Ladders
Only to be used for short duration work (less than 30 minutes)
Step ladders will be industrial standard only (BS EN131), be the correct size for the task to be carried out, used correctly and only utilised where no other suitable form of access can be used.
A 3-point contact is required at all times and the top three steps must not be used
Defective step ladders to be removed from service immediately.
Inspected prior to use.
Step ladders to be kept clean and free of grease (to avoid slips and falls from height)
*Responsible Persons are identified in the House Responsibility Chart section of the health & safety policy
This is a preview of the template. In Pilla, you can edit this to match your business.
What I'd want to see when reviewing this:
The hierarchy of control section matters most. I'd want to see that you've genuinely considered whether height work can be avoided before jumping to equipment selection. Most businesses I review go straight to "we use step ladders" without documenting whether the task could be done from ground level or with a long-reach tool. The hierarchy isn't a formality. It's the structure the whole policy hangs on.
The responsible persons section should name who's accountable for planning height work, checking equipment, and making sure only competent people carry out the tasks. Vague language like "management will ensure" doesn't cut it. I want names or roles, and I want it clear that those people know their responsibilities.
Common mistakes I see:
The step ladder section often says "step ladders must be inspected before use" but doesn't say what to check. I want to see stiles checked for cracks or corrosion, steps checked for damage, hinges and spreaders checked for proper locking, and feet checked for wear. A one-line instruction to "inspect" doesn't tell anyone what they're looking for.
The planning requirement gets ignored for routine tasks. Changing a light bulb still counts as work at height. It still needs someone to have thought about which equipment to use, whether the area is clear, and whether the person doing it is competent. I regularly see policies that cover major height work in detail but say nothing about the day-to-day tasks where most falls actually happen.
The three-point contact rule and the top-three-steps restriction are in the template, but I still find businesses where staff don't know what three-point contact means. If your team uses step ladders, make sure they've been shown the technique, not just told about it.
Automate the Follow-Up with Poppi
Writing the policy is one thing. Making sure your team has actually read it is another. Poppi can handle the chasing so you don't have to.
If you mark the knowledge hub entry as mandatory, Poppi will track who's read it and who hasn't. You can set up automations to chase staff who are behind, notify managers when someone completes the policy, and get a regular report showing where the gaps are.
Here are three automations I'd set up for any knowledge hub policy:
Tom, you have 2 overdue policies to read and acknowledge
Overdue training reminders
Automatically chase team members who have mandatory policies they haven't read yet. Poppi sends the reminder so you don't have to.
Tom, you have 2 overdue policies to read and acknowledge
Emma has completed a mandatory policy
Video completion alerts
Get notified when a team member finishes reading or watching a policy, so you can track progress without chasing.
Emma has completed a mandatory policy
Training Report: 87% team completion. Tom and Sarah behind on 2 mandatory policies, due 3 days ago.
Training gap analysis
Get a regular AI report showing which team members are behind on mandatory policies and where the gaps are across your team.
Training Report: 87% team completion. Tom and Sarah behind on 2 mandatory policies, due 3 days ago.