Elevated Deck and Balcony Construction SWMS

For builders, carpenters and deck contractors who build raised decks and balconies on houses and units. It follows the work in order, from checking the structure and services to fixing the ledger and posts, edge protection, framing, lifting materials, decking and hand-over. Ground-level decks and pergolas use the Timber Deck and Pergola SWMS.

The fall of more than 2 metres item is pre-ticked because raised decks and balconies have open edges and open frames. If a particular deck is never more than 2 metres above the ground, untick it. Tick any other item that applies, such as energised electrical services near the work or powered mobile plant moving in the area.

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Elevated Deck and Balcony Construction SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the job and check the structure, site and services” to “Hand over, clean up and remove temporary controls”. The hazards and controls include:

• Falls from open deck and balcony edges
• Falls through gaps in the open frame
• Edge protection that is incomplete or removed too early
• Objects falling on people below
• Collapse from poor fixings or an overloaded incomplete structure
• Contact with overhead power lines and underground services
• Asbestos in older walls and eaves where fixings are made
• Silica dust from drilling masonry
• Treated timber dust and preservatives
• Nail gun and saw injuries
• Manual handling of heavy bearers and joists
• Ladder falls and wet, windy or hot conditions

High Risk Construction Work

These high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are already ticked because they are part of this work. Tick any others that apply to your job:

• Involves a risk of a person falling more than 2m

Licences, Training and Competency

• General construction induction training card (white card) for construction work, and site induction
• Queensland Building and Construction Commission licence where the work requires one (check the QBCC requirements for your job)
• Carpentry experience or supervised training for working on open frames at height; new workers work under an experienced carpenter
• A competent person (or the edge protection supplier’s instructions) for erecting and checking edge protection (WHS Regulation s 306E)
• High risk work licence in the scaffolding class that matches the scaffold, for whoever erects, alters or dismantles a scaffold where a person or object could fall more than 4 m (erecting scaffold is covered by a separate SWMS)
• High risk work licence for the boom-type elevating work platform class where the boom length is 11 m or more; trained and familiarised operators for scissor lifts and smaller platforms
• High risk work licence in the dogging class, or a higher rigging class (Schedule 3), for anyone who slings a load or directs a crane or hoist operator when the load is out of the operator’s view; crane and hoist operators hold the licence for their class
• Nail gun, saw and power tool training with competency verified before working unsupervised
• Training in the fall arrest system and rescue plan for anyone who uses a harness system
• First aid equipment and trained first aiders as the first aid assessment shows the site needs (WHS Regulation s 42)

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 78 to 80 and 306C to 306J (managing fall risk, rescue, thresholds of 3 m for housing construction work and 2 m for other construction work, edge protection and other fall controls)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 306K to 306M (ladders), 54 and 55 (falling objects) and 315E to 315M (falling object controls in construction work)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 56 and 57 (noise)
• Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces Code of Practice 2021
• Scaffolding Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing respirable crystalline silica dust exposure in construction and manufacturing of construction elements Code of Practice 2022
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage and Control Asbestos in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021 (older houses and units)
• Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2024 (where a crane lifts beams or materials)
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): overhead power line exclusion zones in schedule 2
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2020 – Working near overhead and underground electric lines (distances come from the 2026 Regulation)
• Safe Work Australia model Code of Practice: Managing the risk of falls in housing construction (guidance)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (16 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 10 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: safety boots with slip-resistant soles; safety glasses; gloves for timber and sharp-edged fixings; hearing protection when sawing, nailing or using powered tools
• Emergency arrangements for: fall from the deck or balcony, structure movement, cracking or collapse and contact with a power line
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed November 2026.