Pregnant and new parent worker risk assessment

When a worker tells you they are pregnant, have recently given birth or are breastfeeding, the general duty under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 applies with specific attention to risks affecting them or the pregnancy. This is an individual assessment, done with the worker, and revisited as the pregnancy progresses because what is manageable early often is not later.

Who it's for: People leaders, HR business partners and health and safety managers, particularly in healthcare, community services, retail and any role involving standing, manual handling, chemicals or exposure to aggression.

Free to use and adapt · Last updated 2026-08-02 · No email required

How to use this well

Do the assessment with the worker, not about them. They know their symptoms, their clinical advice and their own capacity, and the assessment exists to keep them working safely rather than to remove them from work.

Keep health information confidential and separate from the general health and safety file, share only what a manager needs to implement an adjustment, and do not record clinical detail here.

Nothing in this template is medical advice. Where there is any question about fitness for a specific task, the worker's own medical practitioner is the source, and this assessment records the workplace response to that advice.

Assessment details

Worker name and role

Manager completing the assessment with the worker

Stage Pregnant, returned after birth, or breastfeeding

Date of assessment

Next review date Review at least each trimester, and whenever duties, symptoms or clinical advice change

Any workplace adjustments already agreed

Physical hazards

Manual handling: lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling, and patient or client handling
Prolonged standing, and whether seating is genuinely available and usable
Prolonged sitting without the ability to move regularly
Working at height, on ladders, or where balance changes matter
Slips, trips and falls, including wet floors and cluttered routes
Working in confined or restricted spaces where a changing body shape matters
Whole-body vibration, including from vehicles and mobile plant
Extremes of heat or cold
Noise exposure
Ionising radiation, and any radiation-related work
Long shifts, night work and shift patterns
Access to toilets, rest breaks and somewhere to sit and eat

Chemical and biological hazards

Hazardous chemicals used or present, with the safety data sheets checked for reproductive hazard information
Cytotoxic drugs, anaesthetic gases or sterilising agents
Lead and other heavy metals
Pesticides and agricultural chemicals
Infectious agents, and exposure risk in clinical, laboratory, childcare or animal work
Immunisation status reviewed against exposure risk, with clinical advice
Sharps and body fluid exposure risk
Adequate ventilation, and whether existing controls remain adequate

Psychosocial and work organisation

Frequently the most significant category, and frequently the one skipped.

Exposure to violence, aggression or threatening behaviour, including from clients or the public
Lone or isolated work, and the ability to summon help quickly
Work-related stress, workload and time pressure
Fatigue, including from symptoms and disturbed sleep
Travel requirements, including remote travel and time away
Ability to attend appointments without difficulty
Support from the manager and team, and how the worker feels about disclosure
Concerns raised by the worker about their own safety

Agreed adjustments

Adjust the work first. Removing someone from work should follow genuine attempts to make the work safe, not precede them.

Hazard or difficulty	Adjustment agreed	Start date	Review date	Owner	Worker agrees (Y/N)

Return to work and breastfeeding

Return-to-work discussion held before the return date
Phased return considered where appropriate
Manual handling and fatigue reviewed against the worker's current capacity
Private, clean space available for expressing milk, that is not a toilet
Refrigeration available for storing milk
Break timing flexible enough to be usable in practice
Roster and shift pattern reviewed against feeding and sleep
Adjustments reviewed rather than assumed to have lapsed on return

Sign-off

Worker signature and date Signing records agreement with the adjustments, not disclosure of any medical detail

Manager signature and date

Where this assessment is stored, and who can access it

How to use it

Getting the most out of this template

Start the assessment as soon as the worker tells you, and make clear it is about keeping them working safely.
Do it with the worker and let them lead on what is difficult. Symptoms and capacity vary enormously between people and across a pregnancy.
Review each trimester at minimum. An adjustment that worked at twelve weeks may not work at thirty.
Change the work before you change the worker's role, and never treat removal from duties as the default response.
Keep health information confidential and out of the general safety file.

This template is general information, not legal advice. Requirements differ by jurisdiction and industry; check the guidance published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and seek advice for your specific circumstances.

Questions

Frequently asked

Do we have to do a specific assessment for a pregnant worker?

The general duty under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 to manage risk applies, and once you are aware of the pregnancy the risks specific to it come within it. Some jurisdictions have more specific requirements. Confirm the position with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). In practice a documented individual assessment is the accepted way of showing the duty was met.

When should the assessment happen?

As soon as the worker tells you, and repeated as the pregnancy progresses because both the hazards and the worker's capacity change. Also review on return to work, and again if the worker is breastfeeding.

Can we move a pregnant worker to different duties?

Adjusting the work is the first step, and moving duties should follow only where the risk cannot be controlled in the current role. Do it in consultation with the worker, not unilaterally. Removing someone from their role without genuinely trying to make it safe can raise discrimination issues as well as failing the safety duty.

What if the worker does not want any adjustments?

Discuss it, record the discussion, and keep the assessment open for review. The duty to provide a safe workplace remains with the employer, so where a genuine risk exists you still need to act, but the great majority of cases resolve through a conversation about what would actually help.

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The template covers the paperwork. Duress covers the response.

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