9 September New RIDDOR to come into effect at the beginning of October The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013 are due to come into effect at the beginning of next month, but what changes have been made and how will these changes affect you. Why the call for change? The HSE (Health and Safety Executive) has often been criticised for having overly complicated … Read More
6 September False claims over health and safety An article about Health and Safety published in the Guardian on 05 September 2013 makes very interesting reading. The article centres on the dim view taken by the authors over the government making “False Claims over Health and Safety”. The article also points out that “The government will best protect people in workplaces by effective … Read More
2 September A Brief History of Health and Safety This article was written by an Administrator working within the business and is their account of the development of UK health and safety legislation. Working within the consultancy over the past few months I have gained an insight into the world of Health and Safety as it is today, and with this knowledge, I have … Read More
28 August You need to ensure that workers are aware of procedures Having written procedures is not enough. The employer must ensure that workers are aware of these procedures and that they are following them. A well-known tyre manufacturer has been fined £20,000 (with costs of £4,330) after an employee sustained major injuries to his arm when it became trapped in a tyre-testing machine. The worker broke … Read More
23 July What is passive fire protection? Passive Fire Protection (often referred to as PFP) is an important part of the fire safety strategy of any building. If it is installed correctly, it plays an important role in protecting people and property. Passive Fire Protection works by: Creating a barrier and, hence, a compartment within a building Limiting the spread of fire, … Read More
28 June Section 37 – Health and Safety Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work Act – Potential for Prosecution of Company Directors Section 37 creates a secondary liability where the primary liability is that of another person. Prosecutions can be made if the following has occurred: • An offence has been committed under any of the relevant statutory provisions by … Read More
15 May HSE Enforcement Visits I have received several calls over the last few weeks from companies that have had enforcement visits from the HSE. Some of these companies have been a little disgruntled that the HSE have raised the subject of Cost Recovery (see posts on Fee for Intervention). Like it or not, Fee for Intervention is here to … Read More
10 March Asbestos – ignorance continues to be a problem Last year, a contractor was found guilty of potentially exposing workers and shoppers to asbestos on a busy high-street construction site because he flouted the rules on working with this hazardous material. The contractor was fined for several breaches of asbestos and construction design legislation on the Bromley High Street site. In this particular case the … Read More
5 March My Monday in London – Fire Risk Assessment No names – no pack drill. I had a very busy day in London yesterday (Monday). My whole day centred around Fire Risk Assessment for a range of premises: common areas of residential premises, a new small laundry and a retail outlet. The retail outlet had the added complication of having had an Enforcement Notice … Read More
28 February HSE – Fee for Intervention (FFI) update The Head of Field Operations for the HSE (Mr David Ashton) addressed the IOSH Conference in February 2013 and presented an update on Fee for Intervention (or FFI). It seems that somewhere between a quarter and a third of inspections carried out by the HSE since the cost recovery scheme came into force on 01 … Read More