Every business is responsible for safeguarding the health and safety of anyone affected by its activities. But of course, the risks to health and safety can differ widely between sectors and individual businesses.
Whatever the nature of your business, it is essential to put procedures in place to avoid health and safety breaches. In the most serious cases, health and safety failures can lead to serious injury or even death, as well as to potential fines and imprisonment – including liability for corporate manslaughter in some instances.
Overview of your health and safety responsibilities
- The cornerstone of your health and safety obligations is the requirement to carry out a health and safety risk assessment, including a fire-risk assessment, which involves identifying potential risks in your business and taking steps to remove or minimise them.
- Whoever is responsible for health and safety needs to be competent and fully trained.
- Employees should be trained to cope with accidents and you should provide adequate and appropriate personal protective equipment as well as first-aid kits.
- Maintain an accident book and a reporting system for serious injuries, diseases and incidents.
- You are required by law to have employers’ liability insurance. You should also check whether you need public liability or any other insurances.
Environmental considerations are also a growing concern for many businesses, both in terms of legal requirements and the importance of businesses’ green credentials to growing numbers of customers. Many businesses find that steps taken to respond to these environmental demands have the beneficial side-effect of focusing attention on resource efficiency in the business, which can help to cut costs.
For more information please contact one of our team.