Haven Health and Safety
Services
Haven Health and Safety
What can I expect?
In my experience I have found that often starting the process can be daunting for people!
It is one of my absolute priorities that that isn’t the case. I am not here to ‘pick fault’ or any inadequacy – I am here to help. Help you to be not only legally compliant – but our priority should be as my tagline says ‘creating a place of safety’ – and that should mean that everyone goes home healthy, and safe at the end of their day with all their bits and bobs intact.
I am not about making things complicated – quoting ‘Regulation ABC’ blah blah – but about demystifying the requirements and making them make sense to you.
Health and Safety Audits
Audit/Site Inspection
First and foremost, I want to get to know you and your business. What do you do and use, what stage you are at, what do you already have in place?
For me, this is best done over a brew, across a desk if you have one, the kitchen table or wherever you have available.
We then take a look around your premises, looking in the cupboards, at your machinery, perhaps observing your people and their behaviours.
This isn’t about picking fault with you or your business! It’s about an honest assessment so we can identify where the holes might be – so there are no nasty surprises in the future.
There are no wrong answers, or stupid questions in Health and Safety – believe me after twenty years of having these conversations there is little that can be said that I haven’t heard before!
Documentation
A Prioritised Health and Safety Action Plan/Report
Does exactly what it says on the tin! This gives us the opportunity to formalise the good bits and the bits we need to do better. You can use this however you see fit – make notes on it, sign it off, make a spreadsheet – however you work best.
It operates as a checklist, and a record of your improvement/progression. We prioritise the recommendations so that you know where the higher risks are/bigger improvements can be made.
If you choose to undertake Annual Reviews with me, we can use this as a basis year on year to chart your improvement. Believe me – small improvements are more effective than no improvement!
If you choose to take on one of the advanced packages...
I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that you have legal responsibilities under Health and Safety law – however you do need to know that if you employ more than five people then details need to be documented.
That being said, employing less than five people doesn’t preclude you from ‘assessing risk’ or having plans in place for Health and Safety. How better to demonstrate that you have done this, or a basis to let you communicate measures to your employees? Well, it’s to have proportionate, (suitable and sufficient as we say in Health and Safety) and workable documentation in place!
Health and Safety Policy
A policy lays out the way in which a business manages its Health and Safety. Who is responsible for what? How do we manage this? Etc
It should be clear to anyone reading that document ‘how things are done around here’.
The level of detail will be proportionate to the size or complexity of your business.
Risk Assessments
Or how I prefer to word it your Assessment of Risk – I feel this sounds more like a moving process than a piece of paper – which it absolutely is.
It’s about identifying what are we doing in our business? What has the potential to cause harm, how, to who, and the severity of that harm. Then most importantly the control measures – or how can we prevent this from happening?
COSHH Assessments
In simple terms this is an Assessment of Risk – this time from Hazardous Substances employees may come across as part of their work.
These can be what we are using, a byproduct of what we are using, or maybe even a naturally occurring ‘substance’.
Again, we are looking to put measures in place to prevent these causing ill health.
Most importantly with any of these documents is that they are workable. Anyone involved with your business should be able to understand the content of any document applicable to them and understand how they need to do their bit.
All documentation will be provided electronically unless this has been discussed otherwise. This will allow you to make your own updates as improvements are made, or if there are any changes to the business. They are yours to own.
Health and Safety Consultants, or Advisors are not magicians! Unfortunately, we don’t carry a magic wand, and we are not here to ‘do’ Health and Safety. Firstly, Health and Safety is never ‘done’! But also, YOU are the expert within your business, you need to engage with the process and lead by example! For example, we can implement a system of employees wearing hi viz vests in the yard, to make them more visible to moving vehicles. BUT if you don’t wear your hi viz vest, or don’t enforce employees wearing them anything when you are out and about – then it is nonsense! I cannot be there every working day to enforce your controls!
Training
Haven Training - per day, or half day
Health and safety legislation tells us that everyone needs to be ‘competent’ to do their job. That can be owners, managers, people supervising people, or employees.
Part of all around competence is training. I am a big believer in giving people the ‘tools’ (or knowledge) to do what you are asking them to do – but most importantly to understand WHY they are being asked to do it!
Training can be undertaken nearly anywhere! There is no need for the expense of hiring fancy premises. As long as attendees can be suitably seated and there is a source of electricity, I can bring the facilities to you.
