APPOINT A COMPETENT PERSON
As an employer, you must appoint a competent person or people to help you meet your health and safety legal duties. What a competent person does: They should have the skills, knowledge and experience to be able to recognise hazards in your business and help you put sensible controls in place to protect workers and others from harm.
Who you can appoint?
You could appoint (one or a combination of):
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yourself
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one or more of your workers
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someone from outside your business
Usually, managing health and safety isn't complicated and you can do it yourself with the help of your workers. You know your workplace best and the risks associated with it.
If there's a competent person within your workforce, use them rather than a competent person from outside your business.
PREPARE A HEALTH & SAFETY POLICY
The law says that every business must have a policy for managing health and safety.
A health and safety policy sets out your general approach to health and safety. It explains how you, as an employer, will manage health and safety in your business. It should clearly say who does what, when and how.
If you have five or more employees, you must write your policy down. If you have fewer than five employees you do not have to write anything down, but it is useful to do so.
You must share the policy, and any changes to it, with your employees.
Your policy should cover three areas.
Part 1: Statement of intent
State your general policy on health and safety at work, including your commitment to managing health and safety and your aims. As the employer or most senior person in the company, you should sign it and review it regularly.
Part 2: Responsibilities for health and safety
List the names, positions and roles of the people in your business who have specific responsibility for health and safety.
Part 3: Arrangements for health and safety
Give details of the practical arrangements you have in place, showing how you will achieve your health and safety policy aims. This could include, for example, doing a risk assessment, training employees and using safety signs or equipment.
RISK ASSESSMENT
Managing risks and risk assessment at work.
As an employer, you're required by law to protect your employees, and others, from harm.
Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, the minimum you must do is:
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identify what could cause injury or illness in your business (hazards)
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decide how likely it is that someone could be harmed and how seriously (the risk)
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take action to eliminate the hazard, or if this isn't possible, control the risk.
Assessing risk is just one part of the overall process used to control risks in your workplace.
For most small, low-risk businesses the steps you need to take are straightforward and are explained below.
Steps needed to manage risk
Risk management is a step-by-step process for controlling health and safety risks caused by hazards in the workplace.
You can do it yourself or appoint a competent person to help you.
Identify hazards.
Look around your workplace and think about what may cause harm (these are called hazards). Think about:
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how people work and how plant and equipment are used
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what chemicals and substances are used
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what safe or unsafe work practices exist
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the general state of your premises
Look back at your accident and ill health records as these can help you identify less obvious hazards. Take account of non-routine operations, such as maintenance, cleaning or changes in production cycles. Think about hazards to health, such as manual handling, use of chemicals and causes of work-related stress.
For each hazard, think about how employees, contractors, visitors or members of the public might be harmed.
Vulnerable workers
Some workers have particular requirements, for example young workers, migrant workers, new or expectant mothers and people with disabilities.
Talk to workers
Involve your employees as they will usually have good ideas.
Assess the risks.
Once you have identified the hazards, decide how likely it is that someone could be harmed and how serious it could be. This is assessing the level of risk.
Decide:
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Who might be harmed and how
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What you're already doing to control the risks
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What further action you need to take to control the risks
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Who needs to carry out the action
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When the action is needed by
Control the risks.
Look at what you're already doing, and the controls you already have in place. Ask yourself:
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Can I get rid of the hazard altogether?
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If not, how can I control the risks so that harm is unlikely?
If you need further controls, consider:
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redesigning the job
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replacing the materials, machinery or process
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organising your work to reduce exposure to the materials, machinery or process
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identifying and implementing practical measures needed to work safely
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providing personal protective equipment and making sure workers wear it
Put the controls you have identified in place. You're not expected to eliminate all risks but you need to do everything 'reasonably practicable' to protect people from harm. This means balancing the level of risk against the measures needed to control the real risk in terms of money, time or trouble.
Record your findings.
If you employ 5 or more people, you must record your significant findings, including.
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the hazards (things that may cause harm)
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who might be harmed and how
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what you are doing to control the risks
Review the controls.
You must review the controls you have put in place to make sure they are working. You should also review them if:
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they may no longer be effective
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there are changes in the workplace that could lead to new risks such as changes to:
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staff
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a process
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the substances or equipment used
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Also consider a review if your workers have spotted any problems or there have been any accidents or near misses.
PROVIDE INFORMATION & TRAINING
Everyone who works for you needs to know how to work safely and without risk to their health. This includes contractors and self-employed people.
You must give your workers clear instructions and information, as well as adequate training. Make sure you include employees with particular training needs, for example new recruits, people changing jobs or taking on extra responsibilities, young employees and health and safety representatives.
Decide what training and information you need
Think about how much training you need. If you're a low-risk business, providing simple information or instructions is likely to be enough - for example if you're based in an office.
Make sure everyone has the right level of information on:
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hazards (things that could cause them harm)
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risks (the chances of that harm occurring)
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measures in place to deal with those hazards and risks
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how to follow any emergency procedures
Ask your workers if the training is relevant and effective. Keeping training records will help you decide if refresher training is needed.
The information and training should be easy to understand. Everyone working for you should know what they are expected to do. Health and safety training should take place during working hours and must be free for employees. There are external trainers who could help, but you can often do effective training in-house. Staff will need extra training if you get new equipment or your working practices change.
Include workers with particular training needs
Include workers with particular training needs
Some of your staff may have particular training needs, for example:
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new recruits
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people changing jobs or taking on extra responsibilities
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young employees, who are particularly vulnerable to accidents
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health and safety representatives
There are particular laws relating to the protection of young people at work and the functions and training of health and safety representatives.
CONSULT YOUR WORKERS
You must consult all your employees on health and safety. You can do this by listening and talking to them about:
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health and safety and the work they do
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how risks are controlled
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the best ways of providing information and training
Everyone who works for you needs to know how to work safely and without risk to their health. This includes contractors and self-employed people.
You must give your workers clear instructions and information, as well as adequate training. Make sure you include employees with particular training needs, for example new recruits, people changing jobs or taking on extra responsibilities, young employees and health and safety representatives.
Consultation is a two-way process, allowing employees to raise concerns and influence decisions on managing health and safety. Your employees are often the best people to understand risks in the workplace. Involving them in making decisions shows that you take their health and safety seriously. In a small business, you might choose to consult your workers directly. Larger businesses may consult through a health and safety representative, chosen by your employees or selected by a trade union. As an employer, you cannot decide who the representative will be.
HAVE THE RIGHT WORKPLACE FACILITIES
Employers must provide welfare facilities and a working environment that's healthy and safe for everyone in the workplace, including those with disabilities.
You must have:
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welfare facilities – the right number of toilets and washbasins, drinking water and having somewhere to rest and eat meals
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a healthy working environment – a clean workplace with a reasonable working temperature, good ventilation, suitable lighting and the right amount of space and seating
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a safe workplace – well-maintained equipment, with no obstructions in floors and traffic routes, and windows that can be easily opened and cleaned
What you must provide for a safe and healthy workplace.
Welfare facilities
Workers must have access to:
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toilets and hand basins, with soap and towels or a hand-dryer
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drinking water
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a place to store clothing (and somewhere to change if special clothing is worn for work)
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somewhere to rest and eat meals
A healthy working environment
To have a healthy working environment, make sure there is:
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good ventilation – a supply of fresh, clean air drawn from outside or a ventilation system
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a reasonable working temperature so it's comfortable to work (usually at least 16°C, or 13°C for strenuous work, unless other laws require lower temperatures)
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lighting suitable for the work being carried out
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enough room space and suitable workstations and seating
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a clean workplace with appropriate waste containers
A safe workplace
To keep your workplace safe, you must:
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maintain your premises and work equipment
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keep floors and traffic routes free of obstructions
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have windows that can be opened and cleaned safely
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make sure that any transparent (eg glass) doors or walls are protected or made of safety material
Toilets and washing facilities
Employers have to provide:
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enough toilets and washbasins for those expected to use them – find out how many
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where possible, separate facilities for men and women – failing that, rooms with lockable doors
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clean facilities – preferably with walls and floors tiled (or covered in suitable waterproof material) to make them easier to clean
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a supply of toilet paper and, for female employees, somewhere to dispose of sanitary dressings
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facilities that are well lit and ventilated
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hot and cold running water
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enough soap or other washing agents
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a basin large enough to wash hands and forearms if necessary
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a way of drying hands, such as paper towels or a hot-air dryer
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showers where necessary, for particularly dirty work
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You must always consider the needs of those with disabilities.
How many toilets and washbasins?
Temporary worksites
You must provide flushing toilets and running water, for example with a portable toilet. If this is not possible, use alternatives such as chemical toilets and water containers.
Using public toilets and washing facilities should be a last resort and not because they are a cheaper option. This would not be acceptable if it is possible to provide facilities on-site.
FIRST AID
Employers must make sure employees get immediate help if taken ill or injured at work.
The law applies to every workplace and to the self-employed.
You must have:
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a suitably stocked first aid kit
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an appointed person or people to take charge of first aid arrangements
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information for all employees telling them about first aid arrangements
Assess your first aid needs:
What 'adequate and appropriate' first aid arrangements are depends on the work you do and where you do it. You're best placed to understand the nature of your work, so you should assess what your first aid needs are.
You must consider:
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the type of the work you do
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hazards and the likely risk of them causing harm
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the size of your workforce
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work patterns of your staff
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holiday and other absences of those who will be first aiders and appointed persons
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the history of accidents in your business
You might also consider:
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the needs of travelling, remote and lone workers
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how close your sites are to emergency medical services
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whether your employees work on shared or multi-occupancy sites
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first aid for non-employees including members of the public
You don't have to write down your findings, but if you do, it will allow you to record how you've decided on your first aid arrangements.
Appoint someone to take charge of first aid
An appointed person is someone who is in charge of your first aid arrangements. This includes looking after the equipment, facilities and calling the emergency services.
You can have more than one appointed person and they don't need to have any formal training. An appointed person must always be available whenever people are at work.
What to put in a first aid kit
The contents of your first aid kit should be based on your first aid needs assessment. As a guide, where work activities are low-risk (for example, desk-based work) a minimum first aid kit might contain:
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a leaflet with general guidance on first aid (for example, HSE's leaflet Basic advice on first aid at work)
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individually wrapped sterile plasters of assorted sizes
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sterile eye pads
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individually wrapped triangular bandages, preferably sterile
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safety pins
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large and medium-sized sterile, individually wrapped, unmedicated wound dressings
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disposable gloves
This is a suggested contents list.
If you are buying a kit look for British Standard (BS) 8599. By law, your kit doesn't have to meet this standard but you should check it contains what you've identified in your needs assessment.
Maintaining or replacing contents of a first aid kit
Check your kit regularly. Many items, particularly sterile ones, are marked with expiry dates. Replace expired items, disposing of them safely. If a sterile item doesn't have an expiry date, check with the manufacturer to find out how long it can be kept. For non-sterile items without dates, you should check that they are still fit for purpose.
First aid for homeworkers and co-working spaces
If your work is low-risk, such as desk-based work and you work in your own home, you don't need any first aid equipment beyond normal domestic needs.
If your work involves lots of driving, you may want to keep a first aid kit in your vehicle.
If you're self-employed and based in a co-working space (shared workspace with other self-employed or employed workers) you're legally responsible for your own first aid provision. However, you can make joint arrangements with the other occupiers. Usually, in a written agreement, one employer takes responsibility for first aid for all workers on the premises.
DISPLAY THE HEALTH & SAFETY LAW POSTER
If you employ anyone, you must either:
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display the health and safety law poster where your workers can easily read it
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provide each worker with the equivalent health and safety law leaflet
The poster explains British health and safety laws and lists what workers and their employers should do. You can add details of any employee safety representatives or health and safety contacts.
GET INSURANCE FOR YOUR BUSINESS
If your business has employees, you will probably need employers' liability insurance.
If an employee is injured or becomes ill as a result of the work they do for you, they can claim compensation from you. Employers' liability insurance will help you to pay any compensation.
Find out more about employers' liability insurance on the GOV.UK website.
How do you get employers' liability insurance?
You can buy employers' liability insurance through insurers or intermediaries like brokers or trade associations. You may find that it often comes as part of an insurance package designed to cover a range of business needs.
Your policy must be with an authorised insurer and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has a list of these. You can check their register on the FCA website.
HEALTH & SAFETY AT WORK
criminal and civil law.
Both criminal and civil law apply to workplace health and safety. They're not the same.
As an employer, you must protect your workers and others from getting hurt or ill through work.
If you don't:
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a regulator such as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) or local authority may take action against you under criminal law
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the person affected may make a claim for compensation against you under civil law
Neither HSE nor local authorities have responsibility for applying civil law or setting the rules for the conduct of civil cases.
Health and safety law (criminal law)
Under health and safety law, as an employer, you have a responsibility to protect workers and others from risk to their health and safety. Health and safety law is mostly enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) or the local authority.
Responsibility for enforcement depends on the type of workplace.
Legislation
Health and safety law for Great Britain is made up of:
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Acts of Parliament
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statutory instruments (regulations)
The main piece of legislation is the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA).
Certain work activities have specific regulations, such as those for construction work or working with asbestos.
Complying with the law
No one has to have been harmed for an offence to be committed under HSWA – there only has to be a risk of harm.
The most important thing is what you actually do to manage and control risk in the workplace. Paperwork alone does not prove that you're complying with the law.
If you do not comply with the If you do not comply with a regulation relevant to your work, you'll normally be committing a criminal offence and could:
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get verbal or written advice
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get an improvement or prohibition notice (PDF)
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be prosecuted
If HSE have to help you put things right, you'll need to pay for their time. This is called a 'fee for intervention' (FFI).
REPORT ACCIDENTS & ILLNESSES
In law, you must report certain workplace injuries, near-misses and cases of work-related disease to HSE. This duty is under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations, known as RIDDOR.
Keep records:
If you have more than 10 employees, you must keep an accident book under social security law.
Keeping records of incidents helps you to identify patterns of accidents and injuries, so you can better assess and manage risk in your workplace.
Records can also be helpful when you are dealing with your insurance company.
Make sure you protect people's personal details by storing records confidentially in a secure place.
How to make a RIDDOR report
Who should report?
Only 'responsible persons' including employers, the self-employed and people in control of work premises should submit reports under RIDDOR. If you are an employee (or representative) or a member of the public wishing to report an incident about which you have concerns, please refer to the HSE's advice.
Reporting online directly to the Health & Safety Executive.
Responsible persons should complete the appropriate online report form listed below. The form will then be submitted directly to the RIDDOR database. You will then have the option to download a copy for your records.
Offshore reporting
To report on an offshore related issue please utilise the Report of an Oil and Gas Incident (ROGI) form. The form enables the reporting under all the relevant legislation and requirements including RIDDOR.
If you have problems accessing a form, this may be due to the (Internet) security settings on the PC that you are using.
Telephone
All incidents can be reported online but a telephone service is also provided for reporting fatal/specified incidents only - call the Incident Contact Centre on 0345 300 9923 (opening hours Monday to Friday 8.30 am to 5 pm).
RIDDOR and the General Data Protection Regulations 2018
As a notifier you are acting as the responsible person under RIDDOR legislation and you are under a legal obligation to make the notification and have a lawful basis for processing the personal data of the injured person (data subject).
The HSE processes this data as part of their public task. This is their legal justification for processing the data.