Free Permit to Work Template (UK, HSE-Aligned)

If you manage high-risk work on UK construction or maintenance sites, you almost certainly need a permit-to-work (PTW) system. The problem is knowing where to start. Most contractors we speak to understand the concept — they just want a solid template they can put into use on Monday morning.

This guide walks through every section a good permit to work template should contain, explains why each part matters, and describes what an HSE-aligned form looks like in practice. If you would rather skip paper altogether, PermitPad offers a digital permit to work on the free plan with guided fields and automatic audit trails.

What is a permit to work template?

A permit to work template is a pre-formatted form used to authorise and control high-risk work on site. It is not a risk assessment, though it references one. It is not a method statement. It is a controlled document that records who is doing what, where, when, and under what safety conditions.

HSE guidance document HSG250 describes a permit to work as "a formal recorded process used to control work which is identified as potentially hazardous." The template is the practical tool that makes this process repeatable.

A single generic PTW template can cover multiple work types — hot work, confined space entry, electrical isolation, working at height — or you can use separate templates for each. Many contractors start with one general-purpose template and add specialist versions later.

What the template should include

A well-structured permit to work template has six core sections. Here is what each one covers and why it matters.

Section 1: Permit identification

Every permit needs basic administrative information:

Permit number — sequential numbering makes filing and auditing straightforward
Date and time of issue
Valid from / valid to — permits must have a defined time window. Open-ended permits defeat the purpose of the system.
Permit type — hot work, confined space, electrical, height, general high-risk, or other
Site and specific location — "Building A" is not enough. "Building A, basement plant room, south wall" is better.

Section 2: Description of work

A clear, plain-language description of the task being carried out and the equipment being used. This section should be specific enough that anyone reading the permit understands what is happening without needing to ask.

Section 3: Hazard identification

This section links the permit to the relevant risk assessment and identifies location-specific hazards. Typical items include:

Presence of combustible or flammable materials
Confined or enclosed spaces
Live electrical systems or buried services
Work at height with fall risks
Other workers or members of the public in the area
Environmental conditions (weather, ventilation, lighting)

The hazard identification should be completed fresh for each permit, not copied from a previous one. Conditions change.

Section 4: Precautions and controls checklist

This is the most important section. It lists the specific precautions that must be in place before work begins:

[ ] Relevant risk assessment reviewed and briefed to the work team
[ ] Area inspected by the permit authoriser
[ ] Isolation or lock-out/tag-out completed where required
[ ] Barriers, signage, or exclusion zones established
[ ] Correct PPE identified and available
[ ] Emergency equipment in place (fire extinguisher, rescue kit, first aid)
[ ] Fire detection or alarm systems isolated if necessary (with notification)
[ ] Atmospheric monitoring completed where applicable
[ ] Affected personnel and neighbouring trades notified

Each item should be individually confirmed — not bulk-ticked. A checklist where every box is marked in the same pen stroke, at the same angle, suggests nobody actually checked anything.

Section 5: Authorisation signatures

A permit requires at least two signatures:

Permit applicant (or permit holder) — the person carrying out the work, or their supervisor. They confirm the precautions are in place and they understand the conditions.
Permit authoriser — the person responsible for checking the area and authorising the work to proceed. This should be someone with the competence and authority to make that judgement.

This dual-signature requirement is the backbone of any PTW system. It forces a face-to-face conversation and a physical inspection before high-risk work starts.

Section 6: Close-out and handback

When the work is finished, the permit must be formally closed. The close-out section records:

[ ] Work completed or suspended
[ ] Area inspected and left in a safe condition
[ ] Isolations removed or systems re-energised
[ ] Fire watch completed for the required period (if applicable)
[ ] Fire detection and alarm systems re-activated
[ ] Permit signed off by the holder and the authoriser

A permit without a close-out is incomplete. This is the most commonly missed step on paper-based systems — the work gets done, everyone moves on, and nobody signs off the permit. It creates gaps in your audit trail that are difficult to explain during an inspection.

Common mistakes with PTW templates

Too generic. A template that tries to cover every scenario with vague wording ends up covering none of them well. If your team regularly does hot work and confined space entry, consider having dedicated templates for each.

No time limit. Permits valid "until further notice" are not real permits. Best practice is to limit validity to a single shift or a single day.

Checklist treated as a formality. If the checklist is not actually driving behaviour — if people tick the boxes after the work is done rather than before — the system has failed. Training and regular audits are the fix.

Single-signature permits. A permit signed only by the person doing the work provides no independent check. The dual-signature model is essential.

HSE references

HSG250 — Guidance on permit-to-work systems (HSE). The primary UK reference for PTW design and implementation.
Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 — the legal basis for formal risk management systems.
L121 — Safe work in confined spaces (Approved Code of Practice).

Paper or digital?

Paper PTW books are available from safety suppliers for a few pounds and they work. But they have well-known limitations: permits go missing, handwriting is illegible, close-outs get forgotten, and retrieving records for an audit means rifling through a box of carbon copies.

A digital permit to work solves these problems. Structured fields replace free-text scrawl, mandatory steps cannot be skipped, signatures are time-stamped, and every permit is stored and searchable instantly.

PermitPad is a digital permit to work system designed for small UK contractors. It follows the same section structure described above — identification, hazards, checklist, signatures, close-out — with guided fields on any phone or tablet. The free plan covers up to 2 users and 5 permits per month, so you can try it without spending a penny.

Specific permit templates

For detailed, type-specific templates with section-by-section walkthroughs:

Hot work permit template — welding, cutting, grinding, and brazing permits
Confined space permit template — gas testing, rescue plans, and atmospheric monitoring
Working at height permit template — scaffold inspection, fall protection, and rescue planning
Electrical isolation permit template — lock-out/tag-out procedures and proving-dead verification