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The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, usually called CDM 2015, apply to construction work in Great Britain. That includes office refurbishment, fit-out, maintenance and alteration projects—not only major new buildings.

If your organisation commissions the work as part of its business, it is normally the commercial client. The client must make suitable arrangements for the project, appoint capable people, allow enough time and resources, provide relevant pre-construction information and make sure suitable plans and welfare arrangements are in place.

The duties should be considered while the scope and programme are being developed, not after work has started.

This guide is a practical starting point for business owners, landlords, facilities teams and occupiers. It is not a substitute for project-specific health and safety advice.

Does CDM 2015 apply to an office refurbishment?

Office refurbishment is construction work for the purposes of CDM 2015. The duties can apply whether the project involves a full strip-out or a smaller package of alterations, repairs, maintenance or services work.

Project size affects how the arrangements should be proportioned, but it does not create a blanket exemption for small jobs. A short project still needs suitable management, a clear scope, competent appointments and a construction phase plan before the construction phase begins.

The commercial client is the organisation or individual commissioning the project as part of a business. This could be the building owner, employer, tenant or another organisation with control over the work. Where more than one party could be considered the client, responsibilities should be resolved and recorded early.

1. Define the project before appointing the team

A useful brief gives designers and contractors enough information to understand what is being changed, the constraints around the work and the risks that may already exist.

Include:

• the areas included and excluded;

• the proposed layout and intended use;

• whether the office will remain occupied;

• permitted working hours and access routes;

• known building defects and service limitations;

• asbestos information and relevant surveys;

• fire strategy and escape-route information;

• landlord or managing-agent requirements;

• existing drawings, manuals and records; and

• the required completion, testing and handover information.

Unclear information creates assumptions. Those assumptions can affect safety, price, sequencing and programme.

Our guide to writing an office refurbishment brief explains how to bring cost, scope and programme information together before quotations are compared.

2. Appoint people with the right capability

Commercial clients must take reasonable steps to ensure that designers and contractors have the skills, knowledge, experience and organisational capability needed for their roles.

Ask for evidence relevant to the proposed work rather than relying on a generic capability statement. Depending on the scope, this may include comparable project experience, insurance, training, supervision arrangements, risk management processes and how specialist trades will be coordinated.

Where a project involves, or is likely to involve, more than one contractor, the client must appoint a principal designer and a principal contractor in writing. These are distinct CDM roles with responsibility for coordinating the pre-construction and construction phases respectively.

The appointment should be made early enough for each dutyholder to influence the work they are expected to manage.

3. Allow sufficient time and resources

An unrealistic programme can create avoidable risk. It can reduce the time available for surveys, design coordination, procurement, isolations, approvals and safe sequencing.

The client should allow enough time and resources for each stage of the project. Before fixing a start date, confirm:

• what surveys are still required;

• whether intrusive opening-up is needed;

• how landlord or building-management approvals will be obtained;

• whether long-lead materials or specialist components are involved;

• how staff and visitors will be separated from the work; and

• what testing and certification must be completed before occupation.

For planning purposes, Barry Turner & Son office refurbishment programmes commonly range from two to eight weeks, depending on the size, scope, access and level of service or fabric alteration. That is a project-planning guide rather than a promise for every site.

4. Provide useful pre-construction information

The client must provide relevant pre-construction information to designers and contractors who are considering or working on the project.

For an office refurbishment, useful information may include:

• an asbestos register and any refurbishment survey covering the areas to be disturbed;

• existing structural and building-services information;

• fire risk, compartmentation and escape-route information;

• known hazards, isolations and restricted areas;

• access, deliveries and waste-removal arrangements;

• rules for occupied areas and shared premises;

• welfare arrangements;

• existing health and safety file information; and

• requirements from the landlord, freeholder or managing agent.

Information should be relevant, current and easy for the project team to use. Issuing a large set of unreviewed documents does not automatically make the information suitable.

5. Make sure a construction phase plan exists

A construction phase plan is required before the construction phase begins. On a single-contractor project, the contractor prepares it. Where there is more than one contractor, that responsibility sits with the principal contractor.

The plan should be proportionate to the project and explain how health and safety will be managed. It may cover site rules, responsibilities, communication, inductions, access control, welfare, temporary works, service isolations, emergency arrangements, working at height, dust and noise, occupied areas and the coordination of different trades.

The client does not need to write the contractor's plan, but should make sure the appropriate contractor has prepared one before work starts.

6. Plan for an occupied workplace

If staff, tenants, visitors or customers remain in the building, the refurbishment plan must address the interface between the workplace and the construction site.

Consider:

• secure separation and controlled access;

• temporary pedestrian routes;

• fire exits and evacuation procedures;

• dust, noise and vibration;

• service shutdowns;

• deliveries and waste movements;

• daily cleaning and handback standards;

• vulnerable building users; and

• communication when the work area or programme changes.

The safest solution may be phased working, out-of-hours activity or a temporary closure of part of the office. That decision should be based on risk and practicality rather than convenience alone.

7. Check whether the project is notifiable

Not every CDM project must be notified to HSE. Notification is required where construction work is scheduled to last longer than 30 working days and have more than 20 workers on site at the same time, or where it is expected to exceed 500 individual worker days.

Notification does not replace the wider CDM duties. Projects below the notification thresholds still require suitable arrangements and a construction phase plan.

8. Review arrangements throughout the work

CDM is not a one-off paperwork exercise. The client must maintain and review the management arrangements for the duration of the project.

Review points may include:

• changes to the design or scope;

• unexpected building conditions;

• new contractors or specialist trades;

• programme changes;

• incidents, near misses or access problems;

• changes to occupation or escape routes; and

• whether the planned welfare and site controls remain suitable.

Clear reporting and decision-making help the team respond before a change becomes a safety, cost or programme problem.

9. Plan testing, certification and the health and safety file

The handover requirement should be agreed before work begins. Depending on the project, the client may need drawings, product information, inspection records, electrical certificates, commissioning results, fire-stopping evidence, warranties, maintenance instructions and other completion documents.

Where a principal designer is appointed, the client must ensure that the health and safety file is prepared, reviewed and made available for later work on the building.

A complete handover helps facilities teams operate and maintain the finished workplace safely. It also gives future designers and contractors better information when the office is altered again.

Commercial client checklist before work starts

Before authorising mobilisation, confirm:

• Is the client organisation and decision-maker clear?

• Is the scope defined well enough to plan safely?

• Have suitable designers and contractors been appointed?

• If more than one contractor is involved, are the principal designer and principal contractor appointed in writing?

• Has enough time and resource been allowed?

• Has relevant pre-construction information been issued?

• Is the asbestos information suitable for the proposed disturbance?

• Have fire safety, access and occupied areas been considered?

• Is there a construction phase plan?

• Are welfare arrangements in place?

• Is the project notifiable to HSE?

• Are review, change-control and communication arrangements clear?

• Are testing, certification and handover requirements written into the scope?

• Is the health and safety file requirement understood?

Planning an office refurbishment?

Barry Turner & Son supports commercial clients with coordinated office refurbishment and fit-out work across London and the South of England. Our team can review the site, proposed scope, access restrictions and programme so the practical delivery requirements are understood before work begins.

Projects vary considerably. Approved budgets can range from approximately £5,000 to £120,000 including VAT, while programmes commonly range from two to eight weeks. Office size, redecorating, electrical work, flooring, suspended ceilings, glazed partitions, wall alterations, plumbing and toilet facilities can all affect the final quotation and timescale.

Explore our commercial refurbishment and fit-out service, review the Heathrow office refurbishment project, or contact Barry Turner & Son to discuss the next step for your workplace.

Frequently asked questions

Does CDM 2015 apply to a small office refurbishment?

CDM 2015 can apply to construction work of any size. The arrangements should be proportionate to the scale and risk, but a small project is not automatically exempt.

Who is the commercial client?

The commercial client is the person or organisation commissioning the construction project as part of a business. Where ownership, occupation or procurement arrangements make this unclear, responsibilities should be agreed and recorded early.

When do we need a principal designer and principal contractor?

Where a project involves, or is likely to involve, more than one contractor, the commercial client must appoint a principal designer and principal contractor in writing.

Does every project need a construction phase plan?

Yes. HSE guidance states that the principal contractor, or the contractor on a single-contractor project, must prepare a construction phase plan before the construction phase begins.

When is an office refurbishment notifiable to HSE?

Notification is required when construction work is planned to last longer than 30 working days and involve more than 20 workers at the same time, or when it is expected to exceed 500 individual worker days.

Does the client need to manage the site day to day?

The client is not expected to supervise construction work personally. The client must make suitable arrangements, appoint appropriate people, provide information, allow sufficient time and resources, and make sure the appointed dutyholders carry out their roles.

Sources and further guidance

• HSE: Commercial clients—roles and responsibilities under CDM 2015: https://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/cdm/2015/commercial-clients.htm

• HSE: A short guide for clients on CDM 2015: https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg411.htm

• HSE: Managing health and safety in construction (L153): https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l153.htm