Scope statements may take many forms depending on the type of project being implemented and the nature of the organization. The scope statement details the project deliverables and describes the major objectives. The objectives should include measurable success criteria for the project.

A scope statement should be written before the statement of work

Statement of work

A statement of work is a formal document that captures and defines the work activities, deliverables and timeline a vendor will execute against in performance of specified work for a client...

 and it should capture, in very broad terms, the product of the project, for example, "developing a software based system to capture and track orders for software." A scope statement should also include the list of users using the product, as well as the features in the resulting product.

As a baseline scope statements should contain:

• The project name
• The project charter
  Project charter
  In project management, a project charter or project definition is a statement of the scope, objectives and participants in a project. It provides a preliminary delineation of roles and responsibilities, outlines the project objectives, identifies the main stakeholders, and defines the authority of...
  
  
• The project owner, sponsors, and stakeholders
• The problem statement
  Problem statement
  A problem statement is a concise description of the issues that need to be addressed by a problem solving team and should be presented to them before they try to solve the problem. When bringing together a team to achieve a particular purpose provide them with a problem statement...
  
  
• The project goals and objectives
• The project requirements
• The project deliverable
  Deliverable
  Deliverable is a term used in project management to describe a tangible or intangible object produced as a result of the project that is intended to be delivered to a customer . A deliverable could be a report, a document, a server upgrade or any other building block of an overall project.A...
  
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• The project non-goals (what is out of scope)
• Milestone
  Milestone (Project management)
  Within the framework of project management, a milestone is the end of a stage that marks the completion of a work package or phase, typically marked by a high level event such as completion, endorsement or signing of a deliverable, document or a high level review meeting.In addition to signaling...
  
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• Cost estimates

In more project oriented organizations the scope statement may also contain these and other sections:

• Project scope management plan
• Approved change request
  Change request
  A change request is a document containing a call for an adjustment of a system; it is of great importance in the change management process. A change request is not raised for a wording change in a letter....
  
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• Project assumptions and risks
• Project acceptance criteria