Welcome to our first Newsletter of 2024!
We are committed to continuously improving our services and ensuring that we meet the evolving needs of our clients. To that end, we will be sending out a monthly Newsletter to keep you updated with any changes to legislation, what’s in the news H&S wise and practical advice and guidance to avoid falling foul of any breaches!
2024 also saw the launch of our new training platform accessed through our website Health & Safety . These courses will provide learning and certification on a vast number of subjects including Risk Assessment, Manual Handling, Fire Awareness, and Asbestos Awareness to name but a few. Stay tuned for more information and monthly updates on new courses being made available!
In addition to our training courses, we will also be enhancing our Health and Safety Management System and creating a company-specific H&S training matrix, to ensure that we are providing the highest level of protection for our clients. This will allow us to review all training requirements for your company, employees and new starters/contractors.
Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support. We value your feedback and are always looking for ways to improve our services. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions or concerns.
Cold Weather Safety
You may have seen the weather warnings again over the last couple of days and it appears parts of the UK are going to be hit with more severe weather conditions.
As the UK temperatures plummet, Great Britain’s safety watchdog has refreshed its guidance to make it easier to find and understand advice on how to protect workers in low temperatures.
The regulator says low temperatures and less daylight mean winter can make surfaces ‘perilous’ and significantly increase the risk of slip, trip and fall accidents.
The Health and Safety Executive said the weather can have a ‘serious impact’ on workers’ health if the risks have not been properly managed. The weather can also affect a worker’s ability to keep safe, for example when handling machinery, it said “Employers should ensure the personal protective equipment (PPE) issued is ‘appropriate’, provide suitable facilities for warming up food or hot drinks, and introduce more frequent rest breaks”
Employers should also consider delaying work – where possible – until warmer times of the year without compromising on safety, and make sure workers can recognise the early symptoms of cold stress, such as a cough or body aches, according to the HSE.
Impact to your business from Slips, Trips and Falls
According to the Health & Safety Executive, slips and falls in the workplace cost employers over £500m per year! Employers have a duty to provide a safe place of work, and this includes avoiding slips and falls which occur more frequently in winter due to wet floors, snow and ice.
With around 3000 people admitted to hospital from winter slips and falls (Hospital Statistics England), and the significant business costs, the simple investment in winter preparation would help to avoid serious injuries.
The risks are not just applicable to construction projects but also to office buildings where car parks, pedestrian walkways, ramps, and steps are found in exterior areas.
Temperatures within indoor workplaces are covered by the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, which place a legal obligation on employers to provide a “reasonable” temperature in the workplace.
By maintaining a reasonable temperature within all workplaces, employers are likely to maintain the morale and productivity of their staff as well as improve health and safety.
Read the full guidance here regarding Temperature within the Workplace:
https://www.hse.gov.uk/temperature/employer/index.htm
The Health and Safety Executive published statistics in regard to non-fatal injuries at work in Great Britain.
Slips, Trips and Falls had the highest number of non-fatal injuries reported under The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) in 2022/2023.
What’s been in the News…. Roof Collapse - Fatality
In mid-December in Leytonstone, East London a roofing contractor was involved in the collapse of a roof. Unfortunately, one man – yet to be named – was pronounced dead on the 12th of December whilst other colleagues were also injured.
Kevin Parslow, the secretary of Waltham Forest Trades Council has called for the Government to fund the HSE in the delivery of ‘Preventative, proactive actions’ to assist with leading to end all fatalities caused by workplace incidents.
The statistics released earlier this year show that 45 construction workers suffered fatalities on the job in 2022/2023 which is up 29 from 2021/2022 and up 39 from 2020/2021.
Remember to ensure all pre-checks are complete and operatives are aware of the work needing to be carried out.
We need to do better.
We need to do our bit to ensure everyone goes home safely.
If you want more information or need to discuss anything in this Newsletter then please don’t hesitate to reach out to your H&S Advisor or our office. Hit the button below.
