Stairs Risk Assessment Template for New Zealand

A Stairs Risk Assessment is a mandatory safety document that helps you identify, evaluate, and control hazards associated with stairs in your workplace or building. Under New Zealand law, this assessment is essential for meeting your health and safety obligations and protecting anyone who uses your stairs from potential injuries.

When do you need this document?

You must conduct a stairs risk assessment when installing new stairs in any workplace, following significant modifications to existing stairways, or when usage patterns change substantially. Regular reviews are also required as part of ongoing safety management, typically annually or after any incident. If you're a building owner, facilities manager, or employer, you need this assessment to demonstrate compliance with your duty of care obligations. The assessment is particularly crucial for high-traffic areas, older buildings, or stairs exposed to weather conditions that may create additional hazards.

Key legal considerations

Your stairs risk assessment must thoroughly document all potential hazards, from structural issues to environmental factors like lighting and weather exposure. You need to evaluate the likelihood and severity of each identified risk using a systematic approach, then implement appropriate control measures following the hierarchy of controls. The assessment must clearly identify responsible parties for ongoing maintenance and monitoring, with specific timelines for review and updates. Documentation requirements are strict - your assessment must be detailed enough to demonstrate due diligence in court if challenged, and all recommendations must be tracked through to completion.

Legal requirements in New Zealand

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, you have a primary duty of care to ensure the safety of workers and visitors, which specifically includes safe access via stairs. The Building Act 2004 and New Zealand Building Code D1/AS1 set mandatory standards for stair design and construction that your assessment must verify compliance with. Your assessment must align with AS/NZS 1657:2018 standards for fixed platforms and stairways, covering everything from dimensional requirements to slip resistance. The Health and Safety at Work Regulations 2016 require you to regularly review and update risk assessments, maintain records for specified periods, and ensure all identified control measures are properly implemented and maintained. WorkSafe NZ can request your assessment documents during inspections, and non-compliance can result in significant penalties including prosecution for serious breaches.