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Community worker home safety checklist

When support is delivered in a client's home, that home is a workplace, and under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 a PCBU must assess it like one. This checklist is the standing record for each client environment: physical hazards, household and behavioural factors, and the agreed arrangements under which visits go ahead. It sits behind your per-visit routine; this is the assessment that routine draws on.

Who it's for: Community, disability and aged care support workers and their coordinators. Completed at service start and reviewed as circumstances change.

Free to use and adapt · Last updated 2026-07-27 · No email required

Assessment details

Client identifier Use your service's ID, not the full record
Address and access notes Unit numbers, key safes, which door to use
Completed by and role
Date of assessment
Review date 12 months, or immediately after any incident, hospitalisation or change in household

Access, exit and communications

  • Safe parking available; the vehicle can leave without being blocked in
  • Path, steps and entry adequately lit for early morning and evening visits
  • Entry door and screen open freely; the worker cannot be locked in during the visit
  • At least one exit reachable from the main service area
  • Mobile coverage inside the home confirmed, with dead spots noted
  • Key safe or entry arrangement documented and working
  • Neighbouring risks noted (dogs next door, common stairwells, isolated block)
  • The worker can call out during the visit, or carries a monitored duress alarm or safety app

Inside the home

  • Animals secured or manageable during visits; dog behaviour observed, not just owner-reported
  • Weapons, or tools and items positioned as weapons, absent from service areas
  • Smoking materials managed around any oxygen equipment
  • Floors passable: trip hazards, hoarding and clutter do not block work areas or exits
  • Hygiene and biological hazards (sharps, waste, vermin) at a level where service can proceed
  • Electrical safety: leads, heaters and appliances in the work area appear sound
  • Adequate space and lighting for any manual handling the care plan requires
  • Drug or alcohol paraphernalia in service areas noted and reported
  • Temperature liveable for the visit length in summer and winter

Household and behavioural factors

  • Everyone who lives at or regularly visits the home is known and recorded
  • Any history of aggression toward workers, family or previous providers is documented with dates
  • Substance use patterns that affect behaviour are recorded, including time-of-day patterns
  • Known triggers are listed (medication changes, money, specific topics, changes to visit times)
  • The behaviour support plan, if one exists, has been read by every worker who attends
  • Other services attending the home have been asked about incidents and flags
  • The client's communication needs are understood well enough to detect escalation early
  • Any household member who must not be present during visits is named, with the action if they are

Agreed service arrangements

Record what the risks above mean for how visits run. These conditions bind scheduling, not just the worker on the day.

Risk identifiedAgreed arrangementApproved byReview date
    
    
    
    

Sign-off

Completed by [worker] and reviewed by [coordinator] on [date]. Any item that could not be assessed is recorded as unknown, not assumed safe. Visits proceed only under the arrangements above; a change in the home or household reopens this assessment before the next visit.

How to use it

Getting the most out of this template

  • Complete it on the first or second visit while impressions are fresh, and involve the client where appropriate; most access fixes are cooperative.
  • Record unknowns as unknowns. 'Not observed' is information; a blank looks like a pass.
  • Make the agreed arrangements visible to whoever schedules. A condition scheduling cannot see will be broken by the next roster change.
  • Reopen the assessment on any incident, hospital discharge, new household member or worker concern, not just at the annual date.

This template is general information, not legal advice. Requirements differ by jurisdiction and industry; check the guidance published by WorkSafe New Zealand and seek advice for your specific circumstances.

Questions

Frequently asked

Is a client's home really a workplace?
Yes. When workers deliver services in a home, the PCBU's duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 follow them through the door. The client's control over their own home limits what can be physically changed, which is exactly why this assessment focuses on agreed arrangements and service conditions rather than modifications alone.
How is this different from a pre-visit checklist?
A pre-visit checklist is the two-minute routine before every visit. This is the standing assessment of the environment and household, completed at service start, that the pre-visit routine draws on. One documents the risks; the other checks them on the day.
What if the client refuses a safety condition?
Service conditions protect the worker and are a term of service delivery, not a preference. Escalate to the coordinator and record the refusal. Options include modified service, a different location, paired visits or, as a last resort, suspending in-home service until the condition is met.

The template covers the paperwork. Duress covers the response.