Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2007

Construction is a dangerous industry with a disproportionate level of fatalities, major injuries and incidents of ill-health. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) last year (July 2009 – June 2010) 42 people people died from injuries they received as a result of construction work. Many more have been injured or made ill.

The Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2007 (CDM 2007) apply to all construction work.  Their objectives are to deliver improved health and safety in the construction sector by:

  • Encouraging everyone to work together to make health and safety an integral part of the design, construction and management of projects.
  • Having the right people for the right job at the right time to manage risks on site.
  • Encouraging co-operation and co-ordination of the project, particularly between designers and contractors.
  • Focusing on effective planning and managing risk to identify hazards so that they can be eliminated or properly managed.
  • Reducing bureaucracy and paperwork.Duties and Dutyholders

CDM 2007 places legal duties on virtually everyone involved in construction work. Those with legal duties are commonly known as ‘dutyholders’. Most duties remain on clients, designers and contractors regardless of notification. However, notification triggers the appointment of additional dutyholders and duties as outlined in Part 3 of the Regulations, including:

  • The appointment of both a principal contractor and a CDM co-ordinator.
  • Construction phase plan to be in place.
  • Notification of the construction project to HSE.
  • Health and safety file to be retained and updated and made accessible.

Further information about CDM2007, including details of dutyholders and a summary of the duties under these Regulations, can be found on the HSE’s website.

Last reviewed 5/5/2011

Contains public sector information published by the Health and Safety Executive and licensed under the Open Government Licence v1.0

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