Scaffolding WHS Manual

This is the scaffolding edition of the WHS Manual. It has the same chapters as the general WHS Manual, written for scaffolding contractors, so you only need one of the two. It follows the work in the order a scaffold job runs, from measure-up and design through erection, handover and inspection to dismantling, with the Queensland rules for scaffolding work licences, the staged erect and dismantle method, ties and anchors, overhead lines and truck loading, and it points to the scaffolding SWMS, handover certificate and checklists in our range that match. The cover page is ready for your business name and logo. Part A is the management system, in 23 numbered chapters. Part B holds the full text of 69 policies and procedures (41 that apply to every business and 28 for scaffolding work), each on its own pages in the same editable file, so you can edit, issue and sign off each one without buying it separately.

Need the SWMS for your work? Browse scaffolding SWMS, or add policies, forms and registers with the Scaffolding WHS Management System.

What Is Included In Our Scaffolding WHS Manual?

• WHS policy statement with an approval sign-off
• Duties and roles for owners, supervisors, leading hands and scaffolders
• Scaffold plans, design, engineers and the duty ratings
• Foundations, sole boards, ties and anchors
• The staged method for erecting and dismantling, and the 2 m and 3 m fall rules
• Mobile, hung, cantilever, spur and swing stage scaffolds
• Handover certificates, tags and the 30-day inspection
• Scaffolding licence classes, dogging, rigging, crane and forklift licences
• Overhead power lines, with the exclusion distances
• Asbestos behind the wall, silica from anchor drilling, heat and storms
• A table of 44 scaffolding SWMS, permits, checklists and registers, and when to use each
• Definitions and the legislation and approved codes that apply to scaffolding
• Part B: the full text of 69 policies and procedures, from risk, hazard and incident management to manual handling, hazardous substances, emergencies and return to work, plus 28 for scaffolding work

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld): the meaning of reasonably practicable (s 18), our primary duty of care (s 19), duties of persons who manage or control a workplace (s 20), codes of practice (ss 26A, 274 and 275), duties of officers (s 27), duties of workers and others (ss 28 and 29), notifiable incidents (ss 35 to 39), consultation (ss 46 to 49), the right to cease unsafe work (ss 84 to 86), and no levy on workers (s 273)
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld): serious electrical incidents and dangerous electrical events (ss 11 and 12), and codes of practice (ss 44 and 45)
• Professional Engineers Act 2002 (Qld): registered professional engineers, who design and verify the scaffolds that need an engineer
• Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991 (Qld)
• Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (Qld): claims and the employer’s injury report (ss 131 and 133), and rehabilitation and return to work (ss 226 to 232)
• Heavy Vehicle National Law Act 2012 (Qld), which applies the Heavy Vehicle National Law (Queensland): the chain of responsibility (ss 26A to 26H) for the trucks that carry our components
• Environmental Protection Act 1994 (Qld) and Waste Reduction and Recycling Act 2011 (Qld): environmental harm and waste, including asbestos waste
• Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (Qld): the value of a penalty unit (s 5(1)(d))
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): managing risks (ss 32 to 38), information, training and instruction (s 39), facilities, first aid, emergency plans and personal protective equipment (ss 40 to 47), remote or isolated work (s 48), falling objects (ss 54 and 55), noise (ss 56 to 59), manual tasks (s 60), falls (ss 78 to 80), high risk work licences (ss 81 to 85 and Schedule 3), plant (chapter 5, including ss 203 to 205, 213, 219 and 225 on scaffolds and design registration in s 243 and Schedule 5), construction work and the Queensland rules for erecting and dismantling scaffolding, perimeter containment screening and falling objects (chapter 6, including ss 289 to 303, 306P and 306Q and 315E to 315M), hazardous chemicals (chapter 7), asbestos (chapter 8), crystalline silica (chapter 8A), and the dictionary (Schedule 19)
• Work Health and Safety (Codes of Practice) Notice 2022 (Qld): the list of approved codes of practice
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): overhead electric lines (ss 10 to 15 and Schedule 2), and notifying serious electrical incidents and dangerous electrical events (s 292)
• Building Fire Safety Regulation 2008 (Qld): evacuation routes (ss 5 and 7)
• Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Regulation 2025 (Qld): the criteria for appointing a return to work coordinator (s 149)
• Environmental Protection Regulation 2019 (Qld)
• 19 Queensland approved codes of practice, named in full in the manual

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word manual (464 pages), A4 portrait, with a cover page ready for your business name and logo, a contents list, Part A (23 numbered chapters) and Part B (69 policies and procedures)
• Business details and document control typed once and filled in on every page, plus a space for your logo
• A WHS policy statement with an approval sign-off
• Roles, procedures, a risk matrix, record-keeping periods, definitions and references
• Part B: the full text of 69 policies and procedures, each starting on a new page
• Links by name to the matching SWMS, forms and registers in our range

Review it and adjust it to suit your business, your sites and the way your team works, and talk it through with your workers. If you have any trouble downloading this template, you can contact us at any time. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading.