Schedule of Works Template: How to Phase a Renovation Properly

What Is a Schedule of Works?

A schedule of works is a structured list of every task in a building or renovation project, broken down by trade, with durations and sequence. It tells everyone involved — the principal contractor, each trade, the client and the site manager — what's happening, in what order, and roughly when.

It serves four key purposes:

1. Planning tool: forces you to think through the entire job before it starts, identify dependencies, and flag potential clashes or bottlenecks.
2. Trade coordination: every subcontractor knows when they're needed, how long they have on site, and what needs to be done before they arrive.
3. Client communication: clients can see what to expect week by week, which reduces the anxiety and the constant "what's happening this week?" conversations.
4. Dispute protection: when programme is incorporated into the contract, deviations from it have a contractual basis for resolution rather than a he-said-she-said argument.

On any job lasting more than two weeks with more than one trade, a written schedule of works isn't optional — it's professional management.

The Correct Trade Sequence for a Renovation

Getting the trade sequence right is the single most important part of scheduling a renovation. Get it wrong and you're paying trades to wait, ripping out work that was done in the wrong order, or watching a plasterer skim a wall that the electrician then has to chase out the following week. Here's the standard sequence for a full renovation:

Phase 1: Preparation and Demolition

• Site set-up: welfare facilities, material storage, protection of finished areas
• Asbestos survey and removal if required (must precede any demolition work)
• Demolition and strip-out: remove old kitchen and bathrooms, take up existing flooring, strip old plaster if needed, take down redundant walls (non-structural first, structural with temporary propping)
• Skip away: clear site before structural work begins

Phase 2: Structural and Groundworks

• Structural works: RSJs installed, padstones, temporary propping removed
• Groundworks (if applicable): extension foundations, drainage connections
• Damp proof course remedial works if required

Phase 3: First Fix Services

• First fix electrics: cables run, back boxes in, consumer unit position confirmed
• First fix plumbing: pipework run to kitchen and bathroom positions, soil stack alterations if needed
• First fix heating: pipework run, radiator positions confirmed
• Mechanical ventilation first fix if applicable

All three service trades can run in parallel if there are enough workers and the site is large enough to accommodate them without clashing. On a single room, run them sequentially.

Phase 4: Structural Joinery and Stud Walls

• Stud partition walls erected
• Staircase alterations if applicable
• Window and external door replacements
• Roof structure if extension is being built

Phase 5: Insulation

• Insulation to walls, floor and roof where required
• Building Control inspection at this stage if applicable

Phase 6: Plastering

• Plasterboarding and skimming of all walls and ceilings
• Allow drying time before second fix begins — typically one to two weeks for a full house plaster in a heated property

Phase 7: Second Fix Services

• Second fix electrics: sockets, switches, light fittings
• Second fix plumbing: sanitary ware, taps, shower fittings
• Boiler and heating system commissioning

Phase 8: Kitchen and Bathroom Fitting

• Kitchen units, worktops and appliances fitted
• Bathroom tiles, suite and fittings
• These two can run in parallel if separate teams are available

Phase 9: Second Fix Joinery

• Internal doors hung
• Skirting boards and architrave fitted
• Stair balustrading if applicable

Phase 10: Decoration

• Full repaint throughout
• Decoration should follow joinery — skirting and doors should be in before the decorator starts

Phase 11: Flooring

• Flooring laid last — after decoration is complete
• Carpet after flooring if applicable

Phase 12: Snagging and Completion

• Walk through with client to identify snagging items
• Snagging completed
• Building Control completion certificate obtained
• Site handed over

Managing Dependencies and Float

A dependency is a constraint — Task B cannot start until Task A is complete. In renovation scheduling, the most common critical dependencies are:

• Plastering cannot begin until first fix services are signed off
• Second fix cannot begin until plaster is dry (typically 7–14 days depending on drying conditions and ventilation)
• Flooring cannot go down until decoration is complete and dry
• Kitchen fitting cannot begin until second fix plumbing and electrics are ready at the kitchen positions
• Materials with long lead times — kitchens are typically 6–12 weeks from order to delivery, bespoke windows 4–8 weeks, specialist tiles 3–6 weeks

Float is the spare time built into the programme — the cushion between when a task finishes and when the next task must start. Float is not slack — it's deliberate management. Every programme should have float built in for:

• Weather delays (particularly for external works)
• Trade unavailability
• Client decision delays (choosing tiles, confirming appliances)
• Material delays
• Unforeseen site conditions

I typically build 10–15% programme float on a whole-house renovation. On a job lasting twelve weeks, that's one to two weeks of buffer. Without it, the first problem derails the entire schedule and the client sees the programme fail.

Client Clarity and Dispute Prevention

Most client disputes on renovation projects come from one of three sources: cost disagreements, quality disagreements, and programme disagreements. A good schedule of works directly prevents the third and reduces the first two by creating a clear reference point for what was agreed.

When I hand a schedule of works to a client at the start of a project, I walk through it with them and explain three things:

1. What the schedule covers: every phase, what's included, what's excluded. If something isn't on the schedule, it wasn't priced and won't happen without a variation.
2. What the client's obligations are: decisions that need making before specific phases begin (tile selection before tiling phase, kitchen selection before kitchen-fit phase), access requirements, payment milestones tied to programme phases.
3. What happens when the programme slips: the contingency float, what events extend the programme legitimately, and how variations will be handled if scope changes mid-project.

The schedule should also be incorporated into the building contract. If you're using the domestic building contract template we reference elsewhere, attach the schedule as a contract appendix and reference it in the contract terms. That way, if a dispute arises over whether the job was completed on time, both parties are arguing from the same written reference rather than from different memories.

Example Schedule of Works: Three-Bed Semi Refurb

Here's an example schedule for a mid-range whole-house refurb on a three-bed semi, from strip-out to handover. Durations are approximate based on a standard property at mid-range spec with subcontractors readily available:

Common Scheduling Mistakes

After years of running renovation projects, here are the scheduling mistakes I see most often — and how to avoid them:

1. Not accounting for material lead times

A kitchen on a 10-week lead time can't be fitted in week 6 if it was ordered in week 4. Order all long-lead materials before the job starts. For a full refurb, the kitchen, windows and any bespoke joinery should be ordered before the strip-out begins.

2. Ignoring drying times

Plaster drying is the most commonly skipped constraint. Fresh plaster is wet — laying flooring on it, painting over it or fixing joinery against it causes problems. Two weeks minimum drying time for a full house re-skim in a heated, ventilated property. Rushing this causes adhesion failures in flooring, paint issues and swelling in joinery.

3. Not confirming trade availability before booking

The schedule says the tiler starts on Monday. You haven't actually confirmed Monday with the tiler since you booked them six weeks ago. They've taken another job. Now you have a bathroom with no tiles and a decorator starting in a week. Confirm trade start dates one week out and again 48 hours before. Don't assume.

4. No client decision points in the schedule

A client who hasn't chosen their tiles by the time the tiler arrives isn't just a mild inconvenience — they can halt an entire trade sequence. Put client decision deadlines explicitly in the schedule and make them a contractual obligation. Tile selection confirmed by Week 3. Kitchen selection confirmed and ordered by Week 1. No decision, no responsibility for programme delay.

5. No float

A schedule with zero contingency assumes nothing will go wrong. Something will always go wrong. Trade availability, material delays, unforeseen site conditions, client changes of mind. Ten to fifteen percent programme float is not pessimism — it's reality. A schedule that arrives on time despite having used its float is a well-run project. A schedule with no float that hits its first problem is a failed programme before you're halfway through.

Want your quote and project scope to drive your schedule automatically? Use RenoCalc to generate a trade-by-trade quote from your floor plan — then use the trade sequence from your quote to structure your schedule of works. Both documents are built from the same underlying project data.

For more on producing the supporting documents that sit alongside your schedule, see the method statement template guide — the trade sequence in your schedule feeds directly into your RAMS documentation. And if you're still working on getting the cost right before you write the programme, the full house refurbishment cost guide gives you the trade-by-trade pricing framework to work from.