A template is useful for making sure nothing is missed and useless for deciding anything. The COSHH assessment is a judgement about your work with that substance in your workplace, and the two commonest failures both come from treating the form as the deliverable: filing the supplier's safety data sheet as though it were the assessment, and completing a template for substances nobody actually uses.
What the form has to capture
The substance and what it is used for. Its hazards, taken from the supplier's safety data sheet. Who is exposed, how, how often and for how long. The route of exposure, meaning inhalation, skin, ingestion or injection. Any relevant workplace exposure limit. The controls in place and their hierarchy, from elimination and substitution through engineering controls to personal protective equipment last. Whether monitoring or health surveillance is needed. And who signed it and when.
Why a COSHH data sheet template is not the assessment
The data sheet describes the substance. The assessment describes your work. The same solvent used with a brush in a ventilated workshop and sprayed in a small unventilated room produces the same data sheet and completely different assessments. A file of data sheets with no assessments is one of the first things an inspector notices, precisely because it looks like compliance.
The COSHH register template, and what it is for
A COSHH register or inventory is the list of hazardous substances held on site, where they are kept, in what quantity, and which assessment covers each. It is what lets you find out quickly whether you still use something, what the fire service would meet, and which assessments are now orphaned. Keeping the register current is usually what triggers the review of the assessments.
Using a free COSHH risk assessment template without letting it think for you
Fill in the work first and the form second. Walk the process, watch who is exposed and when, then write it down. If a row of the template does not apply, say so rather than leaving it blank, because a blank reads as not considered. And date it, because an undated assessment cannot be shown to have been reviewed.
Questions people ask about COSHH assessment template
Is there an official COSHH template?
HSE publishes example assessments and guidance rather than a single mandatory form. Any format is acceptable provided it records the significant findings and the controls.
What should a COSHH risk assessment include?
The substance, the work, who is exposed and how, the exposure route and duration, any workplace exposure limit, the controls in the correct hierarchy, monitoring and health surveillance where needed, and a date and signature.
What is a COSHH register?
An inventory of the hazardous substances held, where and in what quantity, linked to the assessment that covers each one. It is a management record rather than a legal form.
How often should a COSHH assessment be reviewed?
When there is reason to suspect it is no longer valid or there has been a significant change: a new substance, a new process, a change in quantity, or a health effect appearing in the workforce.
Is a COSHH sheet template the same thing as a safety data sheet?
No, and mixing them up is the commonest COSHH failure. The safety data sheet comes from the supplier and describes the substance in sixteen prescribed sections. The assessment is yours and describes the use: who handles it, how much, how often, in what space, with what ventilation and what protective equipment, and what happens if it is spilled or somebody is exposed. A template gives you the shape of the second. Filing the supplier's sheets in a folder and calling it a COSHH assessment is the thing enforcement notices are written about, because nobody has assessed anything.
What goes in a COSHH inventory template, and is it the same as the assessment?
Different documents. The inventory lists what you hold: the product name, the supplier, where it is stored, the quantity, the hazard classification and the date of the safety data sheet you have on file. The assessment is about using each one. The inventory earns its place for two reasons: it is what you hand an inspector or a fire officer who asks what is in the building, and it is how you notice that you are storing three products where one would do, which is the cheapest control there is. Review it when something new arrives rather than annually.