What to record in a site diary

A site diary is a record of what actually happened on site each day, written on the day by someone who was there. Most of the time nobody reads it. Then, months later, someone asks why a concrete pour was late or what a gang was doing on a Tuesday in March, and the diary is the only record that can answer.

Few contracts say exactly what a diary must contain. Even so, when you need to prove what happened, for example in a claim for delay or extra cost, the diary is the best place to start. Without records like it, you can't prove what happened.^[1] When people's memories and the written records disagree, courts usually believe the records.^[2]

Write it on the day

An entry written on the day is evidence. An entry written up from memory at the end of the week is much easier to challenge, and it usually shows. The Society of Construction Law's guide on delay claims, which is widely used across the industry, says records must be made while the work is happening, “and not afterwards”. ^[3]

On a big site, keep a separate diary for each area, written by whoever runs that area. That is usually an engineer or a supervisor. A manager should then check it and sign it off before the end of the shift.

What to record

The industry guide and construction lawyers recommend much the same list.^[3][1]

• Who wrote it, the date and the shift, so it's clear whose account it is.
• The weather in the morning and the afternoon, including the temperature and the wind. Most importantly, write down what the weather stopped. For example: “Wind too strong for the crane from 13:30, no lifts for the rest of the shift.”
• The workers on site, by company and trade, with numbers and hours.
• The work done compared with the plan. For each task, say whether it started, carried on or finished, and what happened. If anything changed from the plan, say what changed and why.
• The machines on site, and whether each one was working or standing idle.
• Deliveries, including any that were late, short or sent away.
• Visitors and inspections, with times. These might be from the client, building control, the designers or a supplier.
• Instructions you were given, especially ones given by word of mouth. Write down who gave them, what they said and when. An instruction that only exists in someone's memory is very hard to get paid for.
• Delays, disruption and incidents (see how to record a delay), and anything else out of the ordinary, including health and safety issues.
• Photos, each with a caption saying what it shows and where it was taken. A photo with no caption proves very little a year later.

How to write an entry

Stick to facts and leave out opinions. Times, amounts and names can all be checked. “Scaffold not ready, gang stood from 08:00 to 10:30, then moved to AD04” will hold up. “Scaffolders useless again” won't, and it can be used against you later. The industry guide says records should “set out facts only and offer no opinions”. ^[3]

Never rub anything out. If an entry is wrong, put a single line through it so it can still be read, then add a dated note with the correction. A diary that has been tidied up afterwards is worth far less than one that shows its corrections.

Make it match the hours

The diary and the labour allocation sheet both describe the same day, and the commercial team will read them side by side. Suppose six people are booked to a task that the diary says didn't happen. One of the two records must be wrong, and that is exactly the kind of thing that gets costs refused. If the plan changes during the shift, update both records, and if they still don't agree, write down why.^[3] If you also fill in daywork sheets, they need to agree with the diary too.

Sign it off and send it

At the end of the shift, someone senior enough to stand behind the diary should check it and sign it. Then send it to everyone who relies on it: managers, supervisors, engineers, planners and the commercial team. If the contract says the client has to sign the diary too, get their signature while the day is still fresh in everyone's mind.