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RAMS for a Hoarding Licence Application

Has the council asked for a risk assessment and method statement before it will issue your hoarding licence? We write project-specific hoarding RAMS from your drawings, remotely, for any UK council. From £120, usually within 72 hours.

🚧 Hoarding licence 📍 Any UK council 💷 From £120

If you're refitting a shopfront, building next to a pavement or demolishing near a street, you'll usually need a hoarding licence from the council. Many councils ask for a risk assessment and method statement (RAMS) with the application. It's often the one document a shop owner or small contractor doesn't already have.

Why the council asks for it

Under section 172 of the Highways Act 1980, anyone carrying out building or demolition work next to a street must normally put up a hoarding or fence first. The council, as highway authority, licenses it. The council also has to protect the public, so it wants to see how you'll:

  • keep a safe, clear route for pedestrians, including wheelchair and pushchair users
  • put the hoarding up and take it down without endangering passers-by
  • keep it secure, maintained and lit during the hours of darkness
  • handle deliveries, waste and site access across the footway
  • respond to an emergency or a damaged panel

What your hoarding RAMS covers

  • Project details, licence reference and the contractor carrying out the work
  • Hoarding dimensions, projection and the clear footway that remains
  • Step-by-step method for erection, inspection, maintenance and removal
  • Pedestrian management, signage and lighting
  • Risk assessment scored before and after controls
  • Emergency, first aid and welfare arrangements
  • Notes for listed buildings or conservation areas where consent conditions apply

How it works

  1. Send what you have. The hoarding drawing, a few photos of the frontage and the council's licence form or email.
  2. Answer a short set of questions. Who's building it, how long it's up and how people will get past.
  3. Receive a signed, submission-ready PDF, usually within 72 hours.
  4. Submit it with your application. If the highways team asks for changes, one revision round is included.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does the council want a RAMS for a hoarding licence?
A hoarding on or next to the highway affects pedestrians and road users. The RAMS shows the council the hoarding will be put up, kept safe and removed properly, with a safe route kept for the public.
Do you need to visit the site?
No. We work from your drawings, photos and answers, so we can cover any council in the UK.
Who should apply for the licence, me or my contractor?
It depends on the council. It's often the contractor, sometimes the building owner. We write the RAMS around whoever is named on the application and whoever does the work.
How much does it cost?
From £120 for a standard single-site hoarding, with a fixed quote before we start.
What if the council asks for changes?
One revision round is included. We update the RAMS at no extra cost.

Need something else on the highway? See RAMS for scaffold licences and RAMS for skips, MEWPs and other highway licences, or read RAMS explained.

Please note: requirements differ between councils, and the licence decision rests with the highway authority. AB SiteSafe prepares the RAMS. The applicant submits the licence application and any insurance or fees the council requires.

Need Hoarding RAMS?

Send your drawing and we'll quote the same day, from £120.

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