The law
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
(risk assessment)
The Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996
The Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977
What is risk assessment?
It is an examination of what, in your work, could cause harm, so you can judge if you have enough precautions in place or if you need to do more to prevent harm.
Hazard means anything that can cause harm (eg chemicals, electricity, working from ladders, etc)
Risk is the chance, high or low, that somebody will be harmed by the hazard.
Suitable and sufficient - not perfect!
Risk assessments must be suitable and sufficient. You need to be able to show that:
- A proper check was made
- You asked who might be affected
- You dealt with all the obvious significant hazards, taking into account the number of people who could be involved
- The precautions are reasonable, and the remaining risk is low.
Five easy steps
STEP 1
Look for the hazards
Walk around your workplace and look afresh at what could reasonably be expected to cause harm. Ignore the trivial and concentrate on significant hazards that could result in serious harm or affect several people.
Consult your employees or their representatives. They may have noticed things that are not immediately obvious. Manufacturers’ instructions or data sheets can also help you spot hazards and put risks in their true perspective. So can accident and ill-health records.
STEP 2
Decide who might be harmed, and how
Don’t forget:
Young workers, trainees, new and expectant mothers, etc who may be at particular risk
Cleaners, visitors, contractors, maintenance workers, etc who may not be in the workplace all the time
Members of the public, or people you share your workplace with, if there is a chance they could be hurt by your activities.
STEP 3
Evaluate the risks and decide whether existing precautions are adequate or more should be done
Consider how likely it is that each hazard could cause harm. This will determine whether or not you need to do more to reduce the risk. Even after all precautions have been taken, some risk usually remains. What you have to decide for each significant hazard is whether this remaining risk is high, medium or low.
First, ask yourself whether you have done all the things that the law says you have got to do. For example, there are legal requirements on prevention of access to dangerous parts of machinery. Then ask yourself whether generally accepted industry standards are in place. But don’t stop there - think for yourself, because the law also says that you must do what is reasonably practicable to keep your workplace safe. Your real aim is to make all risks small by adding to your precautions as necessary.
If you find that something needs to be done, draw up an ‘action list’ and give priority to any remaining risks which are high and/or those which could affect most people. In taking action ask yourself:
a) Can I get rid of the hazard altogether?
b) If not, how can I control the risks so that harm is unlikely?
In controlling risks apply the principles below, if possible in the following order:
Try a less risky option
Prevent access to the hazard (eg by guarding)
Organise work to reduce exposure to the hazard
Issue personal protective equipment
Provide welfare facilities (eg washing facilities for removal of contamination and first aid)
Improving health and safety need not cost a lot. For instance, placing a mirror on a dangerous blind corner to help prevent vehicle accidents, or putting some non-slip material on slippery steps, are inexpensive precautions considering the risks. Failure to take simple precautions can cost you a lot more if an accident does happen.
STEP 4
Record your findings
If you employ five or more people you must record the significant findings of your assessment. This means writing down the significant hazards and conclusions.
Examples might be ‘Electrical installations: insulation and earthing checked and found sound’ or ‘Fume from welding: local exhaust ventilation provided and regularly checked’.
You must also tell your employees about your findings.
STEP 5
Review your assessment and revise it if necessary
If there is any significant change, add to the assessment to take account of the new hazard. Don’t amend your assessment for every trivial change, but if a new job introduces significant new hazards of its own, you will want to consider them in their own right. In any case, it is good practice to review assessments from time to time to make sure that the precautions are still working effectively.
|
