What it covers
The sequence for setting out, mixing, applying and finishing the plaster, and for keeping an occupied home clean and protected. It records how bags are handled and mixed, how spillage is cleared, and how work at height on hop-ups and mobile towers is set up and inspected.
Plastering method statement steps
Plastering walls and ceilings in an occupied home usually follows these steps. The plastering sample sets out each one in full.
- Check the asbestos survey. Confirm the survey covers the walls and ceilings before anything existing is disturbed.
- Protect and cordon the rooms. Sheet the floors and route in, seal door openings and keep the household out of the work area.
- Check the power and tools. Use a 110V transformer, and check the leads and paddle mixer for damage before use.
- Inspect the access. Check the tower and hop-ups before each use, on a level floor clear of cables and buckets.
- Prepare the surfaces. Remove loose material by hand or vacuum, using wet methods and extraction for any cutting back.
- Mix in one place. Mix in a set area, lowering the plaster into the water, with a splash guard on the bucket.
- Apply without overreaching. Work ceilings from the tower and walls from hop-ups, and move the platform rather than stretch.
- Clean down safely. Clean with a damp wipe or vacuum, never dry sweeping, and fold sheeting inwards to remove it.
Dust from cutting back and chasing
Cutting back, chasing or drilling brick, block and concrete creates silica dust. HSE guidance CIS36 says to limit the need for chasing first. Where you still cut, use on-tool extraction with an H or M class unit, not a general commercial vacuum. Respiratory protection with an assigned protection factor of 20 is the general level for construction dust, and tight-fitting masks need a face fit test.
Source: HSE, Construction dust (CIS36)
Hazards and controls
Dust from mixing and sanding, including respirable crystalline silica in cement products, controlled by low-dust methods, ventilation and the right respiratory protection. Skin damage from cement and gypsum, controlled by gloves and washing. Then slips from spillage and falls from towers. Controls follow the hierarchy, so dust control comes before PPE.
Competence and training
Plastering needs a competent operative, trained in the mixing and application method and in work at height. The method statement names the competence required and the standards it works to, so a principal contractor can check it at a glance.
FAQ
- Does it cover dust and silica?
- Yes. Dust control for mixing and sanding, including respirable crystalline silica in cement products, is part of the numbered method, and it is in the risk assessment with the matching controls.
- Is a RAMS a legal requirement?
- The risk assessment is a legal duty under the Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999. The method statement is not named in law, but it is standard practice and principal contractors require it to get on site.
- Can I add my own steps?
- Yes. Download it as Word and edit anything to match the rooms, the materials and the access you are using.
- Will it be accepted on site?
- It follows the HSE five steps and the CDM 2015 framing site managers expect. A competent person still has to review and sign it off before use.
- What does it cost?
- Your first document is free. After that, £15 each, three for £35, or ten for £89. No subscription. You can read a full sample before you decide.