Leading Health and Safety at Work

1. Leading Health and Safety at Work Health and Safety Management Responsibilities of Principal Investigators and Managers

2. Why Health and Safety Is Important • Reputation • University of Nottingham aims for excellence in teaching and research • Quality in teaching and research is achieved through quality in all aspects of operations. • Bad publicity from unsafe, unhealthy or environmentally damaging events undermines this. • Moral imperative • To provide a safe and healthy working environment • Clear conscience

3. Why Health and Safety Is Important • Legal requirements • Law specifies standards • Penalties if not followed • Financial Reasons • Staff absences • Lost output/data • Damaged equipment • Compensation pay-outs and insurance premiums • Uninsured costs >>> Insured costs

4. Legal Environment • Statutory Law • Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 • Duties towards employees, students and visitors • Ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, health, safety and welfare at work • Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 • Duties on manager to ensure the above • Risk assessment!!! • Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 • Death resulting from systemic failures to manage health and safety • Implies senior management failures in risk management • See Podcast for further information

5. Penalties • Prosecution – fines and imprisonment. • Prohibition Notice – stop work now • Improvement notices – put certain measure in place within a specified time • Corporate Manslaughter Penalties • Unlimited fine • Publicity order

6. Civil Liability Common Law Duty of Care owed to employees, students & visitors. Failure can result in personal injury claims for negligence.

7. Organisation – lines of responsibility

8. Safety Responsibilities Risk assessment Training Competency Supervision Monitoring Detailed information can be found in the University’s Safety Management Standard:‘Effective Safety Management’: http://nottingham.ac.uk/safety/safety-management/esm/effective-safety.aspx

9. Risk Assessment For all hazardous activities/procedures New procedures New & existing equipment Written SOPs [standard operating procedures] Signed off by PI/Snr academic/manager

10. Risk Assessment continued • Procedural • Substances [ e.g.chemicals, biological material] • Equipment • Manual handling • Cylinders • Cryogenics • DSE • Lone working

11. Training & Competence Identify training needs – initial & ongoing Ensure training delivered by competent person Assess competency Record training and attainment of competency (specific record form, PSRF or e lab book)

12. Training Delivery • University & External courses • Local induction • Job/task specific training (techniques & equipment) • Refresher training • When procedure/equipment changes • High risk operations • Infrequent operations • Following accident/incident • Where competency is in question

13. Competency Assessment • Assess practical skills & knowledge • Assessment by competent person • Methods of assessment • Written test [ e.g. induction questionnaire • Verbal discussion/questioning • Observation [ for practical tasks] • Self assessment [ where appropriate] • Continual assessment – ensure standards maintained

14. Supervision Source HSE – HSG 65 Levels of supervision are determined by: • the severity of the hazard and • the complexity of the control measures required to reduce risk • the competence of the person

15. Monitoring • Active monitoring • Local housekeeping checks – recorded. • Regular meetings [ present findings of above] • Regular entry into the lab by PI – to check • School safety inspections & audits • Accident/incident/near misses • Reported • Investigated

16. Remember You can delegate safety management duties You cannot delegate legal responsibility You remain accountable in law for the safety of students/staff that you manage/supervise