Free Hot Work Permit Template (UK, HSE-Compliant)

Hot work is one of the most common causes of fire on construction and maintenance sites. Every year in the UK, welding, cutting, grinding, and brazing cause fires that destroy buildings, injure workers, and shut down projects. A hot work permit is the standard way to control these risks — and if you do not currently use one, this guide will help you start.

Below, we walk through what a good hot work permit includes, explain each section, and describe what an HSE-compliant template looks like. If you would prefer to skip the paper entirely, PermitPad offers a digital hot work permit with guided checklists on the free plan.

What is a hot work permit?

A hot work permit is a formal written authorisation to carry out work that produces sparks, flames, or significant heat. It documents the hazards, the precautions taken, and the people involved. It is valid for a specific location and time window only.

The term "hot work" covers:

Welding (MIG, TIG, MMA, oxy-acetylene)
Thermal cutting and gouging
Grinding and disc cutting (angle grinders, cut-off saws)
Brazing and soldering with a torch
Bitumen heating (roofing work)
Any work with open flames or sparks near combustible materials

If the work produces enough heat to ignite something nearby, it needs a permit.

Why bother with a permit?

You might think that an experienced welder does not need a piece of paper to tell them how to weld safely. And you would be right — the permit is not about teaching them to weld. It is about making sure the environment is safe before they strike an arc.

Consider the common fire scenarios:

Grinding sparks travel through a gap in a wall and ignite insulation behind the plasterboard.
Welding spatter falls through a floor grating and lands on oily rags two storeys below.
Hot cutting on a pipe that was not properly purged and still contains flammable residue.
A fire starts two hours after hot work has finished, because nobody checked for smouldering material.

Every one of these has happened in the UK. A hot work permit forces you to think about these scenarios before work starts, not after a fire has started.

What the template should include

A good hot work permit template has these sections:

Section 1: Permit details

Basic information that identifies the permit:

Permit number — sequential numbering helps with filing and audit
Date and time of issue
Valid from / valid until — hot work permits should not be open-ended. A typical duration is one shift or one day.
Site and location — be specific. "Main building" is not enough. "Ground floor plant room, east wall" is better.
Description of work — what is being done and with what equipment

Section 2: Hazard identification

This section references the risk assessment and identifies specific hazards at this location:

Combustible materials nearby (timber, insulation, packaging, chemicals)
Flammable atmospheres (solvent vapours, gas leaks, fuel stores)
Concealed spaces behind walls, above ceilings, or below floors where sparks could travel
Other workers in the area who could be affected
Fire detection systems that may need to be isolated (and re-activated after)

Section 3: Precautions checklist

This is the heart of the permit. A checklist of precautions that must be confirmed before work starts:

[ ] Combustible materials removed or covered with fire-resistant sheeting within a minimum radius (typically 10 metres, or as far as sparks could reach)
[ ] Floor swept clean of dust, shavings, and debris
[ ] Gaps, cracks, and openings in walls and floors sealed or covered
[ ] Fire extinguisher (CO2 or dry powder, appropriate to the work) present and accessible within 5 metres
[ ] Fire watch person designated and briefed
[ ] Fire detection / sprinkler systems isolated in the immediate area (with notification to the fire alarm monitoring company)
[ ] Affected personnel notified
[ ] Screens or welding curtains in place to contain sparks and UV
[ ] Equipment inspected and in good condition (regulators, hoses, flashback arrestors)
[ ] Gas cylinders secured upright with caps in place when not in use
[ ] Adequate ventilation for fume extraction

Each item should be individually ticked and initialled. A permit where every box is ticked in a single pen stroke is a red flag — it suggests the checks were not actually done.

Section 4: Signatures — Issue

Two signatures are required:

Permit applicant — the person (or their supervisor) requesting the hot work. They confirm the precautions have been implemented.
Permit authoriser — the person authorising the work. They confirm they have inspected the area and are satisfied that the precautions are adequate.

This dual-signature requirement is the core control. It forces a conversation and a physical inspection before any ignition source is introduced.

Section 5: Fire watch

Hot work permits should require a fire watch during the work and for a period after the work finishes. The standard fire-watch period is 60 minutes after hot work ceases, though some sites and insurers require longer.

The fire watch section should record:

Name of the fire-watch person
Time hot work ceased
Time fire watch completed
Confirmation that the area was inspected and found safe

Section 6: Close-out

When the work is complete and the fire watch has finished, the permit must be formally closed:

[ ] Hot work completed
[ ] Fire watch completed for the required period
[ ] Area inspected — no signs of fire, smouldering, or heat damage
[ ] Fire detection systems re-activated
[ ] Equipment removed and area left clean

The close-out should be signed by the permit holder and, ideally, the authoriser or their delegate.

Common mistakes to avoid

Having audited many paper permit books, these are the mistakes we see repeatedly:

Open-ended validity. A permit that says "valid until further notice" is not a permit — it is a blank cheque. Hot work permits should be limited to a single shift or a single day. If the work continues tomorrow, issue a new permit tomorrow.

Missing close-out. The permit is issued, the hot work happens, and nobody closes it. This means the fire watch was not completed (or was not recorded). This is the single most common failing.

Rubber stamping. The authoriser signs the permit without actually visiting the work area. If the authoriser has not physically seen the conditions, the permit is worthless.

Wrong extinguisher. A water extinguisher next to an electrical panel, or no extinguisher at all. The type and location of the fire extinguisher should be verified, not assumed.

No notification. The fire alarm company is not told that detection has been isolated. Hours later, when nobody re-activates it, the entire building is unprotected overnight.

Paper vs digital

Paper hot work permit books are widely available from safety suppliers and cost a few pounds per book. They work, but they have limitations we covered in our permit-to-work system guide.

A digital hot work permit on PermitPad guides you through each section with structured fields, enforces the checklist, captures digital signatures with timestamps, and stores everything in a searchable audit trail. The free plan includes hot work permits for up to 2 users and 5 permits per month.

Key references

HSG250 — Guidance on permit-to-work systems (HSE)
Fire Prevention on Construction Sites (Joint Code of Practice) — the construction industry fire safety guide, jointly published by the FPA, the Construction Confederation, and the Loss Prevention Council
BS EN ISO 5765 — Flashback arrestors for welding equipment
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 — fire safety duties for the responsible person

Summary

A hot work permit is not optional paperwork — it is a safety-critical control that prevents fires. The template should cover permit details, hazard identification, a precautions checklist, dual signatures, fire-watch records, and a formal close-out. Whether you use paper or digital, the important thing is that the permit is completed properly, every time, before any hot work begins.