A 6-week lookahead schedule is a rolling construction plan that shows upcoming activities, their dependencies and the labour, materials, information and access needed to deliver them. It connects the master programme with weekly work commitments. Update it each week, carry unfinished work forward and assign an owner to every unresolved constraint.
What is a 6-week construction lookahead schedule?
A lookahead breaks forthcoming work into activities that a site team can prepare and coordinate. For each activity, record where the work happens, who owns it, when it is planned and what could prevent it from starting. A date alone does not establish that the work is ready.
The Lean Construction Institute’s definition of a lookahead plan describes a short-interval plan refreshed weekly, with new activities entering the planning window. Six weeks is one useful horizon; choose a period that fits your project’s coordination needs.
How the three planning levels fit together
Planning document | Main purpose | Typical detail |
|---|---|---|
Master programme | Manage the overall sequence and milestones | Project activities, logic links and completion dates |
6-week lookahead | Prepare forthcoming work and remove constraints | Trade, location, dates, readiness and actions |
Weekly work plan | Agree specific commitments with the teams doing the work | Defined tasks, responsible teams and promised completions |
This distinction matters: the lookahead identifies work to make ready; the weekly plan records agreed commitments. The Last Planner System’s make-ready and weekly planning stages explain that relationship. A spreadsheet can support it, but the planning conversations still need to happen.
How to create a 6-week lookahead schedule
1. Set the window and select every overlapping activity
Choose the first Monday of your reporting period. Six calendar weeks run from that date through the following 41 days. Extract activities from your current programme using this overlap rule:
Planned start is on or before the window end, AND planned finish is on or after the window start.
This includes an activity that starts before the window and finishes after it. Also retain overdue, unfinished work with an earlier planned finish. Flag it for review instead of letting it disappear when the dates roll forward.
2. Break work into clear locations and trade handovers
“First fix” is too broad if it covers several floors and trades. Use descriptions such as “First fix electrical — Block A, floor 1”. Retain the master programme activity ID. If you split an activity, give each child task a unique reference and keep its parent ID traceable.
Record the predecessor and the release condition. For example, drylining close-up may depend on completion and inspection of concealed first-fix services. Confirm the sequence for the specific work package and location. A predecessor ID in Excel is a reference; it does not automatically validate or reschedule the dependency.
3. Check six areas of readiness
Labour
Confirm crew availability, competence and numbers with the subcontractor. Check that the same team has not been allocated to overlapping work elsewhere.
Materials
Confirm quantities and delivery dates against the required start. Check storage, unloading and lifting arrangements. Track long-lead orders before they enter the six-week window.
Drawings and information
Check the information is approved for its intended use under your project’s procedures. Resolve relevant RFIs and confirm that the team has the current revision.
Access and permits
Confirm workface access, trade separation and any required permits or handovers. Include agreed access times for occupied buildings and shared areas.
Predecessor work
Verify preceding activities and required inspections are complete before releasing dependent work. Future handovers remain constraints until confirmed.
Other project checks
Review plant, temporary works, inspections, working-hour restrictions and weather-sensitive operations. Identify the requirements that apply to each task.
For UK projects, use your actual site calendar and relevant bank holidays when agreeing dates. Weather exposure, local delivery restrictions and subcontractor availability need project-specific allowances. The template displays calendar-week overlap; it does not calculate working days or holiday allowances.
4. Give every constraint an owner and a deadline
Record the blocker, required action, responsible person and resolution date. Set that date early enough to protect the activity’s start, including any time needed for checking or delivery. Keep blocked work visible in the lookahead and link multiple blockers through the activity ID in the constraints log.
Use “Ready” only after the relevant checks are confirmed and recorded blockers are closed. Work planned for later weeks may still be at risk because a predecessor or delivery is pending. That is a prompt to prepare the work, not proof that it will finish late.
Worked example: a six-week residential construction schedule
Riverside Court is an illustrative 24-unit residential development in Manchester. The window runs from Monday 14 September to Sunday 25 October 2026. These example activities also appear in the downloadable workbook; dates and teams are not live project data.
“Plan” shows a scheduled week. It does not mean the activity is ready to start. On a phone, scroll the table horizontally.
Six-week lookahead: week-commencing dates
ID / activity | Location | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 | W5 | W6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
214 · First fix electrical | Block A, floor 1 | Plan | — | — | — | — | — |
220 · Roof tiling | Block B | — | Plan | — | — | — | — |
230 · Drylining close-up | Block A, floor 1 | — | Plan | — | — | — | — |
240 · External brickwork | Block B | — | — | Plan | Plan | — | — |
250 · Internal decoration | Block A, floor 1 | — | — | — | Plan | — | — |
260 · Kitchen installation | Block A, floor 1 | — | — | — | — | Plan | — |
270 · Snagging | Block A, floor 1 | — | — | — | — | — | Plan |
Turn the coloured bars into actions
Illustrative actions supporting the programme
Activity | Constraint | Owner | Target resolution |
|---|---|---|---|
220 · Roof tiling | Confirm tile delivery before the roofing team starts | Buyer | 18 Sep 2026 |
230 · Drylining close-up | Complete first-fix inspection and release the workface | Site manager | Before close-up starts on 21 Sep |
240 · External brickwork | Issue the coordinated detail | Design manager | 25 Sep 2026 |
260 · Kitchen installation | Confirm fitting crew and decoration handover | Package manager | 9 Oct 2026 |
If the tiles cannot arrive in time, first establish the revised delivery date and its impact. Discuss feasible alternative work with the roofing team, check access and dependencies, and agree any revised sequence with the planner. Record the decision and assess the effect on the master programme; moving a bar alone does not resolve the delay.
How to run the weekly lookahead review
Update actual progress before the meeting. Confirm completions and identify work that did not start or finish as agreed.
Review constraints with the responsible trades. Chase overdue actions, verify evidence and agree new actions with named owners.
Confirm the next week’s commitments. Match available workfaces, labour and plant to activities that can be delivered.
Roll the window forward by seven days. Add the new sixth week, retain unfinished work and recheck future readiness.
Issue a dated version. Share it with the people responsible for delivery and pass material programme changes back to the planner.
Common mistakes to avoid
Dropping blocked work: retain its reference and constraints so the team can see what needs intervention.
Checking only start dates: include ongoing activities and overdue unfinished work.
Treating delivery estimates as confirmations: record who confirmed the date and when.
Changing dates without discussing dependencies: assess effects on following trades and milestones.
Waiting six weeks before procurement: manage longer lead times in the wider procurement programme.
How to use the free lookahead schedule template
Open the Lookahead tab. Enter the project and preparer, then replace the example Monday in cell G3. The six weekly headers update automatically.
Add activities in rows 10–39. Enter unique IDs, descriptions, locations, owners, predecessor references and planned start and finish dates.
Complete the readiness checks. Select Yes or No. Yes means confirmed, or reviewed as not applicable. Explain important assumptions in the notes.
Use the Constraints tab. Enter each blocker with the matching activity ID, action, owner and due date. Described blockers not marked Closed count as open in the Lookahead tab.
Review calculated results. “PLAN” marks date overlap; “CARRY” flags overdue unfinished work in Week 1. Missing readiness checks show “Check inputs”, and missing or reversed dates show “Check dates”.
Keep the Worked example tab for reference. Its notes illustrate constraints independently of your live constraints log. Start your project on the blank Lookahead tab.
“Complete?” is a manual input: select Yes only when the activity is complete. The readiness result and date checks are separate, so review both. This workbook does not calculate the critical path or automatically move dependent activities. For more than 30 activities or 60 constraints, extend the formulas, validation and linked ranges before use.
Download the free 6-week construction lookahead Excel template and adapt the fields to your project.
How SiteNext supports construction lookahead planning
A weekly review needs reliable updates from site. SiteNext’s construction site management platform lists Gantt schedules and task dependencies, site diaries, document and photo management, and task-linked discussions among its features.
These are relevant to the process above: schedule information provides context for upcoming work, diary entries record progress and delays, and task discussions keep follow-up actions connected to the work. SiteNext also describes mobile progress updates and reporting, which can help teams gather information for the next planning meeting.
Use the free spreadsheet to establish your lookahead routine, then assess whether shared task and site records would help your team maintain it. Explore SiteNext’s features and early-access options. Its website currently describes private beta and early access; confirm availability and the workflow you need with the team.
6-week lookahead schedule FAQs
Is the Excel lookahead template free?
Yes. You can download the workbook from this page without providing an email address. It includes the editable blank schedule, constraints log and worked example.
What is the difference between a 3-week and a 6-week lookahead?
The planning window is shorter in a three-week lookahead. Six weeks gives more visibility of upcoming coordination needs; a shorter view concentrates attention on nearer-term work. Choose the horizon around the project, and manage longer procurement lead times separately.
Who should update the lookahead schedule?
Assign one person to maintain the current version, commonly the site manager, construction manager or planner. Trade supervisors and subcontractors should confirm their progress, resources and constraints before commitments are agreed.
Can I use the template with Asta Powerproject, Microsoft Project or Primavera P6?
You can enter or paste selected activity information into the input columns and retain programme IDs for traceability. The workbook has no direct integration or automatic synchronisation with those applications.
Does a lookahead replace the master programme?
No. It supports short-term preparation and coordination. Review milestone, logic and completion-date effects in the master programme and follow the project’s procedures for agreeing changes.
Does the template calculate bank holidays or the critical path?
No. Its weekly highlighting uses calendar-date overlap. Check working calendars, bank holidays, durations and critical-path effects in your scheduling process.