When is an F10 notification required?

A construction project is notifiable under CDM 2015 if the work is scheduled to last longer than 30 working days with more than 20 workers working simultaneously at any point, or if it is scheduled to exceed 500 person-days. Meeting either test makes the project notifiable.

This guide concerns projects in Great Britain. For most notifiable projects, the commercial client gives written notice to HSE as soon as practicable before the construction phase begins, normally using the online F10 form.

What are the two F10 notification thresholds?

HSE guidance says every day on which construction work is likely to take place counts towards the period, including weekends and bank holidays. Use the actual proposed programme rather than assuming that only Monday-to-Friday dates count.

How should clients calculate the thresholds?

Use the current construction programme and workforce forecast for the whole project, not just the first contractor's package or the busiest trade. Revisit the assessment as procurement, sequencing and staffing become clearer.

Working-days and workforce test

Ask two questions:

1. Is construction work scheduled on more than 30 days?
2. Will more than 20 workers be on the construction site at the same time on at least one of those days?

A 40-day project peaking at 20 workers does not meet this test because the workforce is not more than 20. A 30-day project peaking at 25 does not meet it because the duration is not longer than 30 days. Either project may still cross the person-days threshold.

Person-days test

Add the number of people scheduled to carry out construction work on each day. A simple steady-workforce estimate can multiply workers by days, but a phased project should total the forecast for each period. Ten workers for 50 days equals 500 person-days and does not exceed the threshold; ten workers for 51 days equals 510 and does.

Record the programme revision, assumptions, workforce peaks and calculation. This gives the client a defensible basis for the decision and makes later review easier.

Who is responsible for submitting the F10?

Commercial clients

The commercial client holds the notification duty. The client may ask a Principal Designer, consultant or another person to complete and submit the online form on its behalf, but that practical arrangement does not remove the client's legal responsibility.

Domestic clients

For work carried out on a person's home outside any business activity, the domestic client's notification duty normally transfers:

• to the contractor on a single-contractor project;
• to the Principal Contractor where more than one contractor is involved; or
• to the Principal Designer where a written agreement states that the Principal Designer will fulfil the client duties.

HSE's current online-form guidance also explains how to complete an F10 for a notifiable single-contractor project. Naming the sole contractor in the form fields does not create Principal Designer and Principal Contractor appointments that CDM does not otherwise require.

What information is needed for an F10?

Schedule 1 of CDM 2015 specifies the particulars to notify. Before starting the form, assemble:

• the notification date, construction-site address or precise location, and local authority;
• a brief description of the project and construction work;
• the client's contact details;
• the Principal Designer's and Principal Contractor's contact details where those roles apply;
• the planned construction-phase start date, time allocated and planned duration;
• the estimated maximum number of people at work on the site;
• the planned number of contractors and details of contractors and designers already appointed; and
• a declaration, signed by or on behalf of the client, that the client is aware of its CDM duties.

HSE says paper forms, email and postal notifications are no longer processed. The current route is the HSE online F10 service, which issues a unique serial number for retrieving or amending the notification.

When must the F10 be submitted, displayed and updated?

The notification must be given as soon as practicable before the construction phase begins. Do not treat the form as a last-day mobilisation task: duty-holder details, programme information and the client declaration should already be understood.

If a project was not notifiable at first but changes in scope, duration or workforce later bring it within a threshold, the client must notify the relevant enforcing authority as soon as possible. Material changes to a submitted notice should be made as updates linked to the earlier notification.

An up-to-date copy must be displayed in the construction-site office in a comprehensible form where workers can read it. The client may arrange for the contractor or Principal Contractor to display it, but should verify that this has happened and that later changes are reflected.

What does an F10 notification not change?

Notification does not determine whether the rest of CDM 2015 applies. HSE expressly states that CDM requirements apply whether or not a project is notifiable.

An F10 is a notification, not HSE approval of the project, its appointments or its management arrangements. Submitting it does not confirm that the Principal Designer decision, pre-construction information or Construction Phase Plan is suitable.

A practical client review before construction starts

Before deciding and submitting, check that:

• the notification assessment covers the whole project and current programme;
• working days, peak simultaneous workers and person-days have been calculated separately;
• the client classification and person responsible for notification are correct;
• Principal Designer and Principal Contractor appointments have been considered under their separate legal trigger;
• the project description, dates, workforce and appointed parties are consistent with the latest information;
• the F10 serial number and PDF copy will be retained;
• an up-to-date copy will be displayed in the site office; and
• someone is responsible for reviewing whether programme or workforce changes require an update.

IMERI H&S Partners provides CDM Principal Designer and pre-construction support for clients, developers, architects and project teams in Watford, Hertfordshire, London and across the South East. Support can include reviewing the notification assessment and coordinating the wider CDM mobilisation information; the client retains its applicable legal duties.