Builder sent your SWMS back? The usual gaps and how to fix them

Start with the builder’s comments. Work through each gap, then send a version that matches the job.

Ask the builder which parts need changing. Check the site details, work steps, hazards, controls and signatures against the job. Edit the same SWMS, talk through the changes with your crew, collect fresh signatures and send the updated PDF. Corrections to the same job are free.

A$39per job

However many high-risk activities it covers.

However many high-risk activities it covers.
3 for A$99
10 for A$249
Yearly A$129 for 120
Monthly A$60 for 10

Two supervisors discuss a clipboard at a planning table.

Find the gap

What usually sends a SWMS back?

Old site detailsThe address or job description still belongs to the last job.
Missing work stepsThe page skips part of the work or lists tasks you are not doing.
Vague controlsPhrases like “take care” do not explain how the crew will manage a hazard.
Site hazards left outOther trades, shared access or nearby services are missing from the plan.
Signatures on an earlier versionThe signed copy and the version sent to the builder are different.

Work through it

How do I fix each gap?

1
Correct the job details
Check the site and scope against the builder’s request. Remove details carried over from another job.
2
Walk through the work
Put the tasks in order, from set-up to pack-up. Add missing tasks and remove ones outside this job.
3
Make each control specific
Name the equipment, method and person checking it. Check that each control is practical on this site.
4
Check the site with the builder
Discuss shared access, nearby work and services. Add the arrangements you agree to use.
5
Brief the crew and send the new version
Talk through the changes, have the crew read and re-sign, then send the updated PDF. Tell the builder which comments you addressed.

Can I re-issue the same job free?

Edit and re-issue free

You pay once for each job. Corrections to that job are free. Your crew re-signs the new version, and the register keeps both.

What are the review rules?

Read the wording for your state or territory below, quoted from its regulation.

The SWMS must be reviewed, and revised as needed, when the relevant control measures are revised.

NSW s302 Qld s302 WA r302 SA r302 Tas r302 ACT s302 NT r302read 21 Oct 2026

Review and, if needed, revise the SWMS whenever the high-risk construction work changes, or when there is a sign the controls are not working, including after an incident.

Vic r328read 21 Oct 2026

Start here

Start with the job you are doing

Describe the work for a free preview. Check the draft against the site before you finalise it.

Sources

Where this guide's information comes from

1.Safe Work Australia · Model Code of Practice: Construction work · accessed 21 Oct 2026

Last reviewed: 21 October 2026
How: Practical guidance for preparing the job document. The legal wording on this page is quoted with its source and the version read.
Next review: January 2027, or sooner when a regulation changes