FOCUS HEALTH & SAFETY
HIGH PRINCIPLES
A proactive culture around safety basics will stop preventable working at
height deaths, says Ken Diable, Managing Director of Heightsafe
Scan the Health and Safety
Executive’s (HSE) list of
recent prosecutions and the risks
associated with working at height
will soon become clear. Despite
working at height being well
publicised as a high-risk activity,
some employers are still not
following safety basics, with the
resulting injury and associated
misery a ecting construction and
maintenance professionals across
the UK.
To put this in context, between 2013
and 2018 falls from height accounted
for the majority of fatal injuries to
workers (1) – an average of 37 deaths
every year. In construction, 47 per cent
of deaths and 33 per cent of injuries
were as a result of a fall from height (2).
The Work at Height Regulations
were introduced in 2005 to prevent
death and injury caused by falls
from height. Employers, facilities
managers, building owners and even
the self-employed became liable
to prosecution in the wake of an
accident.
For FM professionals, working at
height can be a weekly (if not daily)
occurrence, given the wide variety of
works in their remit. When looking
at incidents where such work goes
wrong, it may be easy to apportion
blame to individual FM managers for a
lack of safety planning, but this would
be unfair. While individuals play a
key role in mitigating risks, there are
also cultural and regulatory issues
that feed into the continued incidents
associated with working at height.
46 MAY 2019
An organisation’s safety culture
has a massive impact on the way
employees behave when they work
at height. While health and safety
culture itself is not enforceable, it can
be assessed as part of an incident
investigation to address outcomes
resulting from a poor culture. Many
organisations are driven almost
entirely by compliance, with culture
as a secondary consideration. This
means provision of PPE and basic
training are key, among other
measures (see box).
In February, the All-Party
Parliamentary Group on working at
height released its report, ‘Staying
alive: preventing serious injury and
fatalities while working at height’ (3),
discussing how organisations can
be supported in proactively creating
safety-first cultures and safety
planning. However, the HSE’s 2019-20
business plan (4) published in April,
makes no mention of plans to tackle
Britain’s biggest workplace killer.
BACK TO BASICS
Unfortunately, in our experience
it o en takes a near-miss for
organisations to invest in work at
height equipment. That is why we
propose making work at height
equipment (5) a legal requirement on
all new buildings and redevelopment
projects – with a minimum standard
set in building regulations. To
mitigate costs, tax relief similar to the
Land Remediation Relief could be
considered.
Another possibility could be to make
RIDDOR statistics easily accessible
online for businesses in high-risk
industries such as construction,
alongside a certification scheme,
providing proof of an organisation’s
accident statistics. This would provide
organisations with an easy way to
benchmark themselves against
competitors, and provide incentives
to improve.
Whether or not we see stricter
legislation around working at height,
getting the basics right is vital – and
it is arguable that culture is just as
important. Creating, implementing
and maintaining a positive health and
safety culture is about maintaining
focus on mitigating risks, but also
about encouraging a positive
mentality among personnel in the
workplace – focusing less on blame
and more on proactivity.
The responsibility for creating a
positive health and safety culture can
sit within various roles, dependent on
the size of the organisation. Whether a
large or small business, it is important
to set guidelines for the safest
possible work environment, to ensure
personnel go home safely at the end
of each working day. Starting with
the basics, building a culture around
getting these right can make a real
impact, save lives, prevent injuries –
and ensure your organisation is not
the next case on the HSE’s growing list
of working at height prosecutions.
REFERENCE NOTES
(1) www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/
causinj/kinds-of-accident.pdf
(2) www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/
industry/construction.pdf
(3) https://workingatheight.info/
wp-content/uploads/2019/02/
Staying-Alive-APPG-REPORT.pdf
(4) www.hse.gov.uk/
aboutus/strategiesandplans/
businessplans/plan1920.pdf
(5) www.heightsafesystems.com/
products
More advice on safe working
at height is available at www.
heightsafesystems.com/blogs
TOP TIPS FOR
WORKING AT
HEIGHT
Training: The Work at Height
Regulations 2005 state that as
an employer or duty holder, you
are required to ensure that all
employees have access to work
at height equipment that reflects
the requirements and regulations,
including training in the use of
equipment.
Fall protection systems:
Current health and safety
legislation dictates that fall
protection systems should be
in place when employees or
contractors work at height (two
metres or higher).
Safe equipment. Personal
protective equipment (PPE) is a
vital part of protecting against
the risks posed while working at
height. This includes items such
as safety harnesses, lanyards
and karabiners – legally required
when using some personal fall
protection systems such as safety
lines. As an employer it is your
duty to ensure that employees
are fully trained when it comes
to selecting the correct PPE for
the job.
Inspection: Testing and
compliance. The PUWER
Regulations 1998 state that
regular maintenance and testing of
work at height equipment and PPE
is required to remain compliant.
If your systems are not visibly
tagged and in compliance, it may
not only invalidate your insurance,
but could also lead to prosecution
should an employee, contractor or
even trespasser suffer injuries.
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