Digging safely near our pipes

What we’ll need to know

It’s very important that you give us as much information as possible when you let us know about your plans to dig. We need this to be able to keep you safe.

• What you’re doing
• Where you’re going to be digging, including the grid reference and postcode
• The direction and depth
• Your planned start date
• How long it will last
• Site location plan that's clearly marked out

Before you dig

Before you start digging you must:

• have confirmation from us that it is safe to dig
• have full colour plans, generated within the last 28 days of where our gas pipes are
• have our supervision to:
  • clearly mark out the pipes on the land
  • dig trial holes to find the exact position of the pipes using recognised and agreed safe hand digging techniques.

The online portal at LinesearchbeforeUdig can guide you through parts of this. You must not start any work until we confirm it's safe to do so.

When you dig

When you start digging you must:

• have read and understood the guidelines we sent you when we confirmed it was safe to dig
• follow the relevant guidance at all times
• keep all Cadent correspondence on site at all times
• not remove concrete blocks near gas pipes
• not use a mechanical excavator within
• 0.5 metres of a low/medium pressure gas pipe
• 3 metres of an intermediate/high pressure gas pipe 
• not carry out hand digging within 3 metres of a high pressure gas pipe 

make sure gas pipes are supported

• avoid trench collapse
• use PPE
• not use an exposed gas pipe as a hand hold or step
• report all damage no matter how slight