Safety

Businesses can more easily be brought to justice when people die as a result of their actions. Under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act, which came into force on the 6th April 2008, it is now easier to bring a company to justice following fatalities resulting from their undertakings. When a company is prosecuted…

Health and Safety is a very important part of any organisation – but how people view it depends on the culture within the organisation. Different organisations, indeed different sites within the same organisation, will have a different culture and outlook on Health and Safety. Cultures are driven by Directors and Managers.  Take for example a…

Every year, there are over 5000 accidents involving transport in the workplace. About 50 of these result in people being killed, according to HSE statistics. The main causes of injury are people falling off vehicles, or being struck or crushed by them. Workplace transport is any activity involving vehicles used in a workplace. Vehicles driven…

Throughout Britain, there are unqualified people undertaking Fire Risk Assessments – and many of them are not insurance and not accredited. There are incidents where Fire Authorities consider the assessments to be insufficient and refuse to accept them. They may also take action if they think your fire safety measures aren’t adequate. In some circumstances,…

Do your employees complain about uncomfortable chairs? If so, your office seating could be a major Health & Safety risk. Staff members often identify chairs as the main cause of their back aches. Studies have found that in the life cycle of an office chair in a typical year that the average chair spends around 2000…

In the summer, it seems wrong think about servicing your heating systems. However, inspection and servicing of Gas Appliances and other types of heating now can prevent issues in the winter. Summer and autumn are the ideal time to have your heating systems checked in particular checks for Carbon Monoxide. Often employers wait until the…

Do your employees need to Work at Height? If you don’t put measures in place to plan, manage and monitor the project properly or you could face a huge fine. Recently, a man from Birmingham was fined £3000 and ordered to pay £1255.30 in costs at Sandwell Magistrates Court for failing to properly plan or…

Does your business work with asbestos? If so, your employees may be required to be under surveillance by a doctor. A new law, which came into force in April 2015, states that any employee or self-employed contractor undertaking “Notifiable Non-Licensed Asbestos Work” must be subject to Health Surveillance by a doctor. However, this level of surveillance does…

Summer is almost upon us and we can all enjoy hot sunny weather… but beware it has its dangers. During a prolonged heat wave there are health risks. The very young, the elderly and the seriously ill are groups who become particularly at risk with health related problems (sun stroke, dehydration). “In the 2003 heat…

Could your workers’ attitudes towards Health & Safety be causing accidents in your business? A large number of accidents in the workplace are caused by employees behaving in careless or unusual ways. Since the 1974 Act, businesses generally focused on managing safety in practical terms – i.e. guards in place, edge protection checklist etc. However,…

All the King’s Horses and all the King’s Men… shouldn’t ever need to be called upon because you and your employees are fully versed in how to Work at Height…aren’t you? One of the biggest causes of workplace fatalities and major injuries is falling from height. Working at height can be defined as ‘work in…