Monitoring and closing the permit

Issuing a permit is not the end of your involvement. From the moment work begins until the permit is formally closed, you have ongoing obligations to monitor the work, respond to changes, and confirm the worksite is restored when the job is done.

Monitoring during work

Monitoring means visiting the worksite at regular intervals while work is in progress. You are checking that the conditions of the permit are being followed: gas testing, housekeeping, safety equipment, safety clothing, scope of work, currency of the permit, and reinstatement of plant and equipment.

In practice, that means walking to the job and looking at what is actually happening. Are the workers staying within the permitted scope? Are the controls still in place? Are the isolations intact? Is the required PPE being worn? If atmospheric testing is required, are the results being recorded at the prescribed intervals? Is the permit still within its validity period and displayed at the worksite?

You must also be available to respond to issues. If the Permit Receiver reports a problem, you need to be able to get to the site and make a decision. If a new hazard appears that was not in the risk assessment, the work must stop, the hazard must be assessed, and the permit may need to be updated or cancelled and reissued. If conditions on site have changed because of weather, nearby work, or a change in plant status, the permit may no longer be valid.

Scope creep

Scope creep is one of the most common ways permits fail, and it is something you will encounter on monitoring visits. It happens when workers extend beyond the authorised scope because the extra work seems small, obvious, or convenient.

Consider a scaffolder permitted to erect a scaffold on the east wall of a building for painters to use the following week. During the build, they notice a damaged downpipe bracket on the wall and decide to reattach it while they are up there. It takes two minutes and a single bolt. But the downpipe bracket was not in the scope. The risk assessment did not cover it. The bracket is fixed to a fascia board that may contain asbestos-containing material, and nobody has checked. A two-minute task done outside the permit conditions has introduced a hazard that could trigger a notifiable event.

The moment someone picks up a tool on something that is not covered by the permit, every control you put in place stops applying. The isolation does not cover it. The risk assessment does not cover it. If something goes wrong, the permit provides no protection. If you find scope creep during a monitoring visit, stop the work, assess what has happened, and determine whether a new permit or an amendment is required before it continues.

Handling deviations

Not every deviation is scope creep. Sometimes conditions change in ways that affect the permitted work without anyone doing anything wrong. A rainstorm floods an excavation. A process upset in an adjacent area changes the atmospheric conditions near a confined space entry. A crane on a neighbouring permit swings its load closer to the work area than expected.

When you identify a deviation, the response depends on the severity. A minor housekeeping issue may be corrected on the spot. A missing piece of PPE may be resolved by getting the worker to put it on. But a deviation that changes the risk profile of the work, such as a failed ventilation system during confined space entry or an isolation that has been interfered with, requires the work to stop immediately. The permit is suspended, the situation is assessed, and the work does not restart until the deviation is resolved and the permit is revalidated or reissued.

Record every deviation and the corrective action taken. These records feed into the audit process and help identify patterns that may indicate systemic problems.

Suspension over shift breaks

If the work is not complete at the end of the shift, the permit is suspended rather than closed. The worksite must be left in a safe condition, with isolations maintained and the area secured. Both copies of the permit are returned to the permit control point, and the permit status is updated on the register.

Before work recommences the following shift, the permit must be revalidated. Revalidation isn’t automatic. You must confirm that the hazards, controls, and site conditions remain as they were when the permit was last active. If anything has changed, you deal with it before work restarts. If the Permit Issuer or Permit Receiver changes between shifts, a full handover is required and both the incoming issuer and receiver must verify the isolations.

The close-out process

When the work is complete, the Permit Receiver notifies you that the job is finished and returns the permit. You then go to the worksite to conduct a final inspection together. You are confirming that the work has been completed as described on the permit, the site is safe and tidy, all tools and equipment have been removed, and housekeeping is acceptable. This process is covered in permit issuer training courses.

Specific close-out checks depend on the type of work. For hot work, confirm the fire watch period has been completed with no signs of ignition. For confined space entry, confirm that all personnel who entered have exited and are accounted for. For any work near product-contact surfaces in a food processing environment, confirm the area has been cleaned and is free of foreign material before the system is returned to service.

De-isolation

Isolations are removed in a controlled sequence. You and the Permit Receiver jointly confirm it is safe to remove locks and tags and restore energy sources. Each lock is removed only by the person who placed it, and each removal is recorded on the isolation certificate. No one removes another person’s lock. If a lock has been left on an isolation point and the person who placed it cannot be contacted, the forced removal procedure applies. This requires management authorisation in writing, confirmation that no risk to people, plant, or process exists, and full documentation of the decision.

Closing the permit

Once you are satisfied that everything is in order, both you and the Permit Receiver sign the completion section of the permit. The permit register is updated to show the permit is closed, and all copies of the permit and associated certificates are returned and filed according to your organisation’s document control requirements. Completed permit documentation must be retained for the period your organisation specifies, as it may be needed for auditing, incident investigation, or legal proceedings.

The permit is now closed. Normal operations can resume.