What to Look for in a Legionella Risk Assessment Template

Search for "legionella risk assessment template" and you will find dozens of free PDFs from councils, water treatment companies, and HR services. Most are generic forms with blank fields and no guidance on how to fill them in. Some are missing entire sections that ACoP L8 requires.

Here is what a complete legionella risk assessment template must include — and how to tell a useful one from a box-ticking exercise.

The 8 sections every legionella risk assessment template needs

A legionella risk assessment that meets ACoP L8 and HSG274 Part 2 requirements must cover:

1. Building and system description

The template should capture: building address, type (residential, commercial, healthcare), number of floors, number of water outlets, water supply source, and a description of the water system (combi boiler, stored hot water cylinder, cold water storage tank, instantaneous heaters).

Red flag: Templates that only ask for address and building name without a water system inventory are incomplete.

2. Responsible person details

ACoP L8 requires a named responsible person — the duty holder or someone they have appointed to manage legionella compliance. The template needs fields for: name, role, contact details, and the date they were appointed.

3. Water system schematic or description

For complex buildings, a schematic showing pipe runs, tanks, outlets, and dead legs is valuable. For simple domestic properties, a written description of the hot and cold water systems is sufficient — but it must identify every outlet and storage point.

4. Hazard identification

This is where most free templates fall short. The assessment must systematically check for:

Water stored between 20°C and 45°C (the legionella growth zone)
Stagnant water in dead legs, unused pipework, or infrequently used outlets
Scale and sediment build-up (provides nutrients for bacteria)
Biofilm in pipework (supports bacterial colonies)
Aerosol-generating outlets (showers, spa pools, cooling towers)
Materials that support bacterial growth (rubber washers, natural fibre gaskets)

A template with a simple "Yes/No — is there a risk?" checkbox does not meet this requirement.

5. Risk rating

Each identified hazard needs a risk rating — typically High, Medium, or Low based on the likelihood of legionella growth and the potential for exposure. The template should explain the rating criteria rather than leaving it to guesswork.

6. Control measures

For each hazard, the template must record what control measures are in place and whether they are adequate. This includes:

Temperature control (hot water stored at 60°C, delivered at 50°C at outlets, cold water below 20°C)
Flushing regime for infrequently used outlets
Cleaning and descaling schedule for showerheads
Dead leg removal or management
TMV servicing schedule

7. Monitoring schedule

The template needs to specify what checks are required and how often — temperature monitoring, flushing, cleaning — so the duty holder knows exactly what ongoing tasks the assessment has identified.

8. Review date and signature

Every assessment must be signed, dated, and have a next review date. Without these, the document has no status in an inspection.

Common problems with free templates

Looking at the templates currently available online for "legionella risk assessment template," the most common issues are:

Generic forms — designed for any building type, with no guidance specific to landlords, care homes, or dental practices
Missing hazard identification — a checklist of Yes/No questions rather than a systematic hazard review
No control measures section — identifies risks but does not record what is being done about them
No monitoring schedule — the assessment stops at identification without creating an ongoing compliance plan
Static PDF format — cannot be updated. Every review requires printing a fresh form and starting from scratch
No building-type context — a residential flat has different risks than a care home with a cooling tower

Static PDF vs interactive template

Most free templates are downloadable PDFs or Word documents. They work for a one-time assessment but create problems over time:

Factor	Static PDF/Word	Interactive tool
Fill in once	Works fine	Works fine
Review and update	Print again, re-enter everything	Update existing data, track changes
Multiple properties	Separate document per property	All properties in one view
Monitoring schedule	Manual tracking after assessment	Integrated reminders and tracking
Inspector-ready	Depends on how well you organise paperwork	Consolidates records in one place

The initial risk assessment is a point-in-time exercise. But ACoP L8 requires ongoing monitoring — temperature logs, flushing records, cleaning records — that a static template cannot manage.

Building-type-specific templates matter

A template designed for an HMO should pre-populate common outlet types (shared bathrooms, multiple kitchen taps), flag stagnation risks from vacant rooms, and include fields for tenant void management. A care home template should account for vulnerable occupants, TMVs at every outlet, and more frequent monitoring requirements.

Generic templates miss these nuances, which is exactly what HSE inspectors look for — evidence that the assessment is specific to your building, not a form downloaded and filed without thought.

Generate a template for your building type

LegioLog's Risk Assessment Template Generator creates a template tailored to your building type — HMO, care home, dental practice, hotel, school, or office. It pre-populates relevant hazards and control measures so you start with a complete document rather than a blank form.

For the full regulatory context behind these requirements, see our ACoP L8 and HSG274 guide.

This guide covers what a compliant legionella risk assessment template should contain under ACoP L8 and HSG274. This is general compliance guidance, not legal or professional advice — for site-specific assessments, consult a competent person.