Educational guidance on how workplace induction and safety instruction generally work — connected to workplace safety, occupations, industries, employment documents and company types. Informational only — not certified training, not an official qualification and not a substitute for mandatory workplace instruction; employers remain responsible for required training, competence and authorisation.
What this instruction covers
This page outlines, in general educational terms, the safety information around excavations — why they are dangerous, the main hazards, how the sides are supported, and the inspection involved.
It is awareness material, not training. Excavation collapse is sudden and often fatal; this page does not deliver, replace or satisfy the competence and controls the work requires.
The hazards
- Collapse of the sides, which can bury and suffocate or crush a worker in seconds.
- Striking buried services — electricity cables, gas, water and telecoms.
- People, plant or materials falling into the excavation.
- Flooding, fume build-up and the excavation becoming a confined space.
Who this is for
- Workers who dig, support or work in or around excavations.
- Plant operators and supervisors planning excavation work.
- Those who detect and locate buried services before digging.
- New starters before the instruction and training excavation work requires.
The safe system of work
- Plan the work, locate and mark buried services and dig with care near them.
- Prevent collapse by battering, benching or supporting the sides as the ground requires.
- Stop people, plant and materials falling in with barriers, edge protection and stop blocks.
- Provide safe access and egress, and watch for water, fume and unstable ground.
Required PPE & controls
- Hard hat, high-visibility clothing and footwear; gloves and eye protection for the task.
- Trench support systems, shoring or battered sides suited to the ground.
- Barriers and edge protection around the excavation and exclusion of plant from the edge.
- The controls set by the employer’s risk assessment and method statement.
Pre-task & inspection checks
- Confirm services have been located and the support method is in place.
- Inspect the excavation and its supports before each shift and after any event that may affect stability.
- Check access, egress and edge protection are safe before entering.
- Do not enter an unsupported or uninspected excavation.
Support, services & inspection
- The sides of an excavation must be made safe — by support, battering or benching — to prevent collapse.
- Buried services are located, marked and worked around using safe digging practices.
- Excavations are inspected by a competent person at set times, and a record is kept.
- Where dig-near-services permits apply, they are issued on site by competent people — not provided by this page.
What you are and are not authorised to do
- Work in an excavation only when it has been made safe and inspected, and you are instructed to do so.
- Do not enter an unsupported excavation or one that has not been inspected.
- Do not dig near buried services without locating them and following safe digging practice.
- Authorisation comes from competence and the employer, not from this page.
Emergency response & reporting
- On a collapse, raise the alarm and call the emergency services — do not dig with bare hands into unstable ground.
- Stop work and isolate the area if a service is struck — treat struck cables and gas as dangerous.
- Evacuate if water, fume or instability makes the excavation unsafe.
- Report collapses, struck services, near misses and inspection failures through the site’s reporting route.
Training & competence
Excavation work is generally expected to be planned and carried out by competent people, with support designed and installed correctly and inspections by a competent person. The competence covers ground conditions, support systems, services and emergency response.
Instruction such as this page is information, not competence. Reading it does not make anyone competent to plan, support or work in excavations; that comes from proper training, assessment and the employer’s arrangements.
Documentation
- The risk assessment and method statement for the excavation.
- Service drawings, location records and any dig permits.
- Inspection records for the excavation and its supports.
- A record documents what was done; it is not, by itself, proof of competence.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Entering an unsupported or uninspected excavation.
- Digging near services without locating them first.
- Storing spoil, plant or materials too close to the edge.
- Treating awareness material as the training and competence the work requires.
Who is responsible
The employer and, on construction, the principal contractor are responsible for planning excavation work, providing support and competent people, arranging inspections, and keeping records. This page is an educational outline only.
It does not deliver training, authorise anyone, satisfy any legal requirement, or transfer responsibility for excavation safety.
Free, printable HR & employment resources
Practical, ungated resources to put this into action — no signup.