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Conducting a workplace health and safety audit is an essential part of HSE regulations in the UK to ensure the continued wellbeing of employees. Compliance with this key piece of Health and Safety Executive legislation is crucial to provide a safe working environment and avoid incurring penalties for breaking the law.
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Companies must carry out a systematic evaluation of their health and safety policies, practices and procedures to assess whether their safety management system is effective. The aim is to maintain a healthy work environment for employees, clients, contractors and any other people on the premises, including visitors.
As your organisation prepares for an audit, bear in mind that all workplace procedures must withstand the auditor’s scrutiny, so fully understanding the regulatory requirements applicable to your sector is the first step.
The main regulations include the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 and fire safety standards.
An employer’s duty of care towards employees, ensuring their health, safety and welfare, is governed by the Health and Safety at Work Act, ensuring a safe place to work and compliant equipment and facilities. The Act requires companies to carry out risk assessments, remedy any perceived hazards and take reasonable care to minimise future risks.
The COSHH Regulations require employers to assess the risks arising from workplace use of hazardous substances, including employee exposure to harmful dust and fumes, putting measures in place to keep the air quality pure and making arrangements to deal with any accidents or emergencies. Companies must also provide staff with information and training about the risks and give them the appropriate PPE for their job.
The type and severity of workplace hazards varies depending on the industry and job role, but they often include physical risks such as working with heavy machinery, and falls from height. Other hazards can include exposure to chemicals and dangerous substances, environmental factors such as poor air quality, and ergonomic issues like repetitive strain injury, caused by doing the same task again and again.
According to the HSE, some 1.7 million UK workers have reported a work related illness or industrial disease caused by exposure to dangerous substances. Some are life-changing and can continue even after exposure stops. Figures such as these emphasise the importance of putting safety measures in place to minimise the risks.
Businesses can assess the conditions of their workplace through environmental safety audits that focus on factors such as air quality, lighting, temperature and noise levels.
The frequency of UK workplace safety audits depends on the industry and the size of the business. Although there’s no one definitive answer, the absolute minimum by law is one audit a year, although for high-risk workplaces like construction sites, this may be necessary on a more frequent basis.
Various different types of inspections of the workplace can take place and managers should agree the best methods for your particular premises. There are options for general inspections in the form of safety tours; sampling of specific hazardous processes, activities or areas; or incident inspections carried out following an accident that has caused a fatality, injury or a near miss which has been reported to the HSE.
As well as assessing the general workplace environment, HSE auditors will assess a business’s ability to respond quickly to an emergency situation such as a chemical spill, fire or medical emergency. If your organisation is being assessed in this way, make sure your plans are up to date, such as evacuation procedures and communication protocol.
Importantly, ensure all staff are told about the emergency procedure and know exactly what to do should the situation arise. The key components of an effective workplace emergency plan should include fire evacuation routes, first aid stations, emergency contacts, and regular drills.
As a manager, it can be helpful to draw up a checklist for health and safety audit requirements and communicate the information to colleagues to keep everyone up to speed with the procedures.
Compliance with workplace health and safety legislation means making sure every procedure in your premises meets the legal requirements.
If your company is in a sector where employees are exposed to processes that cause hazardous dust or fumes, installing AirBench’s filtration systems can contribute to workplace safety. Benefits of an AirBench dust extraction system or fume extraction system include ensuring your workplace meets the appropriate mandatory standards and HSE guidelines relating to filtration technology and air quality.
We produce the UK’s leading range of downdraught benches designed to capture fumes and dust, containing them with internal filters and returning clean air to the room. Assembled to order in our factory, we work towards short lead times and quick delivery.
If you require further information on our range of AirBench products, please contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss your requirements.
AirBench Ltd are the UK’s leading manufacturer of downdraught benches and cross draught extraction systems. We have more than 10,000 extraction systems in service in the UK and overseas. Along with our range of coolant mist filters and air cleaning systems, we are actively helping businesses across many industries solve their workplace dust and fume issues.
If you'd like to try an AirBench product for FREE simply book a demo and we'll bring one to you.
If you’d like to try an AirBench product for FREE simply book a demo and we’ll bring one to you.