Letterbox and Garden Structure Construction SWMS

Suits landscapers, builders, handymen and concreters who build letterboxes, planter walls, garden edging and other small garden structures from masonry or timber. It follows the job in order, from checking services and the site through digging post holes, cutting, concreting, building, fixing and finishing to clean-up. Retaining walls, bricklaying as a trade, powered augers and larger timber structures each have their own SWMS.

Building a letterbox, planter wall or small garden structure is construction work, but it is not high risk construction work by itself, so no item is pre-ticked. A SWMS is legally required under WHS Regulation s 299 only when the work is high risk construction work (s 291): tick the fall item if a person could fall more than 2 metres, the powered mobile plant item when a machine or truck works in the area, the shaft or trench item for a hole deeper than 1.5 metres, the energised electrical item when working on or near energised installations or services, and the contaminated atmosphere item if cutting, drilling or grinding brick, block or concrete creates silica dust, as the Queensland silica code advises. Otherwise this document works as a written safe work procedure and task risk assessment.

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

What Is Covered In Our Letterbox and Garden Structure Construction SWMS?

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

• Striking underground cables and pipes when digging
• Contact with overhead power lines
• Open post holes and footings
• Silica dust from cutting and drilling masonry
• Saw, grinder and drill injuries
• Wet cement and mortar burns
• Electric shock from mixers and leads
• Fresh walls and pillars collapsing before they set
• Heavy blocks, pavers and posts
• Falls from steps and ladders
• Drilling into hidden services and asbestos in older walls
• Sealers, adhesives and treated timber dust
• Public, children and pets near open work

High Risk Construction Work

None of the high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are pre-ticked, because this job is not high risk construction work by itself. Tick any that apply on your site.

Licences, Training and Competency

• General construction induction training card (white card) for every worker, because building a letterbox or garden structure is construction work (WHS Regulation ss 316 and 317)
• Trade qualification or experience in masonry, carpentry or concreting, checked by the PCBU; any licence or approval that building or local government law requires for the job is outside this SWMS
• No high risk work licence class applies to this work (WHS Regulation Schedule 3)
• Training in the tools used: masonry or brick saw, angle grinder, circular saw, concrete mixer and powered auger or post hole digger (each has its own SWMS)
• A licensed electrical worker for any mains wiring, such as the supply to a letterbox light or doorbell (Electrical Safety Act 2002 s 55)
• Crystalline silica training (a VET accredited course or training approved by the regulator) for workers who do silica processing that the written assessment finds high risk, such as regular cutting or grinding of brick, block or concrete (WHS Regulation s 529CD)
• Respirator fit test and training for each wearer where a respirator is used
• Workers trained in first aid, or access to trained persons (WHS Regulation s 42)
• Site induction

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 289, 291 and 299: construction work, high risk construction work and the SWMS duty
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 304 and 305: underground services information and excavation risks (a post hole is a shaft)
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 78, 79, 306C, 306D and 306M: falls in construction work and ladders
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) chapter 8A (ss 529A to 529CD): crystalline silica, including cutting, drilling and grinding brick, block and concrete
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 56, 57 and 60: noise and hazardous manual tasks
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 344 and 351: safety data sheets and managing hazardous chemical risks
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 422: asbestos identified or assumed in an older building
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld): s 55 (electrical work licence)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): ss 10 to 15 and schedule 2 (overhead lines and underground electric lines), s 140 (construction work: electrical equipment complies with AS/NZS 3012 (Electrical installations – Construction and demolition sites))
• Excavation Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing respirable crystalline silica dust exposure in construction and manufacturing of construction elements Code of Practice 2022
• Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Safe Design of Structures Code of Practice 2021
• 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
• Traffic Management for Construction or Maintenance Work Code of Practice 2008 (work beside a road, driveway or footpath in use)
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2020 – Working near overhead and underground electric lines (distances come from the 2026 Regulation)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (15 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 9 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 toe protection; leather or cut-resistant gloves for blocks, pavers and timber, and alkali-resistant gloves with long cuffs for wet cement and mortar
• Emergency arrangements for: underground cable or pipe struck, wall, pillar or load collapses or crushes someone and cement, mortar or sealer in the eyes or on the skin
• 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.