Workplaces, which can cover factories, shops and offices but also schools, hospitals, hotels and places of entertainment, are subject to wide-ranging government regulations to maintain adequate health, safety and welfare standards. A health and safety consultant can assess how your workplace measures up against the regulations.
There is more to meeting the regulations than you might think at first. Health, for example, covers such aspects of working conditions as ventilation, temperature, working in hot or cold environments, lighting, cleanliness, room dimensions and workstations.
Safety looks at all potential workplace hazards, including the proper maintenance of the place of work and all equipment used within it, the state of the floors and routes for pedestrian traffic, doors and windows, and any dangerous substances or machinery that your workers might come into contact with.
Welfare addresses such issues as the standard of sanitation and washing areas, provision of drinking water, accommodation for clothing and facilities for changing, and places to rest and eat meals at work.
It’s important to realise too that the government regulations aim to ensure that workplaces meet the health, safety and welfare requirements of the entire workforce, including any disabled people.
Once appointed, a health and safety consultant will commence with a full health and safety audit of your workplace. This audit will assess how well you comply with the relevant health and safety regulations, reviewing your health and safety policies, arrangements and management system, and looking at a wide range of safety issues.
The next step is likely to be a health and safety inspection. Here, the health and safety consultant will inspect your whole premises extensively, provide an overview of your health and safety status, and offer advice on how to comply with the regulations if this is falling short in any area. You should also expect your consultant to provide a full written report of findings and recommendations.
You could of course handle all these functions internally. But this would mean taking up some or all of the time of one or more employees, ensuring that these people person was properly trained, and devoting management time to this issue.
The alternative is to outsource your health and safety management to a reputable firm. This would avoid your organisation having to maintain a full-time internal health and safety resource. You would also have the peace of mind that comes from knowing that your company’s health and safety is not compromised due to lack of expertise.
Again, health and safety consultants from a high quality firm will be fully trained, highly qualified and certified to national safety standards. They will stay abreast of all legislative changes and amendments, ensuring that your workplace always complies with the latest regulations. The result: your staff can focus on their main job functions, while your health and safety management is in excellent hands.
