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Health and Safety at Work

Management Responsibilities

As an employer or self-employed person you have certain responsibilities under Health and Safety At Work etc. Act 1974 

Did you know ?
  • Employers with 5 or more employees need a written health and safety policy?
  • All employers and self-employed people have to assess the risks from their work activities?
  • Employers with 5 or more employees have to record the significant findings of their risk assessment?
  • Employers have to provide health and safety training for employees?

But what does this actually mean in practice?

Health & Safety Policies

The proper and effective management of health and safety in your business can really reduce the risk of accidents to, and occupational ill health of, your employees and the associated costs that go with them.

Good health and safety management at work will involve the following:

Planning - setting out a programme to tackle the identified hazards
Organising - who will deal with each identified area and in what timescale
Controlling - deciding what control measures would be appropriate and suitable
Monitoring - checking that those controls are operating effectively
Reviewing - setting a date for future reviews of your control measures and systems

By incorporating the above into a written 'Health & Safety Policy' you can comply with the prime duty contained in the 1974 Act.

The document should also contain:

  • a general statement of health and safety policy;
  • a definition of the business organisation and the responsibilities of particular individuals;
  • details of the arrangements for securing a safe and healthy workplace and activities.

Each business operator should appoint a 'competent person' to assist in complying with health and safety legal requirements. They should have sufficient training, expertise and knowledge to carry out their functions and may be appointed from within the business itself.

Risk Assessment

This process is legally required for all your work activities and operations and involves:

Identifying any hazards within the business
Deciding who might be harmed by them
Evaluating those risks, the existing control measures and if any changes need to be made
Recording your findings (for 5 or more employees only)
Reviewing and revising the assessment as changes in the business occur

Training

Good training of your staff in the safe ways of performing their jobs is essential. There will always be informal 'on-the-job' training, but some key areas needs to be done in a more structured way, for example:

  • company safety set up/reporting procedures
  • fire and evacuation procedures
  • first aid provision and location
  • specific safety procedures for equipment/machinery
  • special processes and activities
  • any hazardous locations or operations
  • general safety rules, housekeeping procedures, etc
  • accident/ill health/defect reporting procedures
  • use of any personal protective or safety equipment 
Health and Safety Law Poster

Employers have a legal duty to display the Health and Safety Law Poster in a prominent position in each workplace. In the new poster, references to obsolete legal requirements are removed and the revised text focuses on the modern framework of general duties, supplemented by the basics of health and safety management, and risk assessment. It now includes two additional boxes: one for details of trade union or other safety reps and one for competent persons appointed to assist with health and safety and their responsibilities.

Copies of the poster are available from:
HSE Books
PO Box 1999
Sudbury
Suffolk
CO10 6FS
Telephone: 01787 881165. 
Fax: 01787 313995 

For further information on any of the topics above, please click on the titles of each section to be directed to relevant page on the Health and Safety Executives website.

The Environmental Health & Licensing Team can offer information and advice, in addition, a stock of FREE, frequently requested health and safety leaflets are held at the offices.  The Health and Safety Executive website (under External Link) also contains a lot of information, free leaflets, and links to other websites.

If you would like an Environmental Health Officer to contact you to arrange an appointment, to discuss an enquiry or to report a complaint regarding Health and Safety , please complete the online enquiry form.