Health and Safety Policy

Purpose of policy

1              W V Howe Limited takes health and safety issues seriously and is committed to protecting the health and safety of its staff and all those affected by its business activities and attending its premises.  This policy is intended to help the employer achieve this by clarifying who is responsible for its health and safety matters and what those responsibilities are.

 2              This is a statement of policy only and does not form part of your contract of employment.  This policy may be amended at any time by the employer at its absolute discretion.  The employer will review the policy regularly to ensure that it is achieving its aims effectively.

 Who is responsible for workplace health and safety?

3              Achieving a healthy and safe workplace is a collective task shared between the employer and staff.  This policy and the rules contained in it apply to all staff of the employer irrespective of seniority, tenure and working hours, including all employees, directors and officers, consultants and specific responsibilities of staff ae set out in the section headed “Responsibilities of all staff” below. 

Employer responsibilities - Summary of general responsibilities

4              The employer is responsible for:

1. Taking reasonable steps to safeguard the safety of staff, people affected by the employer’s business activities and of people visiting its premises.
2. Identifying health and safety risks and finding ways to manage or overcome them.
3. Providing a safe and healthy place of work and safe entry and exit arrangements, including during an emergency situation.
4. Providing and maintaining safe working areas, equipment and systems and, where necessary, appropriate protective clothing.
5. Providing safe arrangements for the use, handling, storage and transport of articles and substances.
6. Providing adequate information, instruction, training and supervision to enable all staff to do their work safely, to avoid hazards and to contribute positively to their own health and safety at work.  The employer will give you the opportunity to ask questions and advise who best to contact in respect of those questions, if you are unsure about how to safely carry out your work.
7. Ensuring any health and safety representatives receive adequate training to carry out their functions effectively.
8. Providing a health and safety induction and appropriate safety training to your role.
9. Providing effective communication and consultation between the employer and staff concerning health and safety matters and will consult with staff directly relating to health and safety.
10. If an epidemic or pandemic alert is issued, providing instructions, arrangements and advice to staff as to the organisation of business operations and steps to be taken to minimize the risk of infection.
11. Regularly monitoring and reviewing the management of health and safety at work, making any changes and bring those to the attention of all staff.

 5              Has overall responsibility for health and safety and has appointed John Hill as the Principal Health and Safety Officer with day to day responsibility for health and safety matters.

 6              Any concerns about health and safety matters should be notified to the Principal Health and Safety Officer

 

Responsibilities of all staff

General staff responsibilities

7              All staff must

1. Take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions.
2. Co-operate with the Principal Health and Safety Officer and the employer generally to enable compliance with health and safety duties and requirements.
3. Comply with health and safety instructions and rules, including instructions on the safe use of equipment.
4. Keep health and safety issues in the front of their minds and take personal responsibility for the health and safety implications of their own acts and omissions.
5. Keep the workplace tidy and hazard free.
6. Report all health and safety concerns to the Principal Health and Safety Officer promptly, including any potential risk, hazard or malfunction of equipment, however minor it may seem.
7. Co-operate in the employer’s investigation of any incident or accident which either has led to injury or which could have led to injury, in the employer’s opinion.

 Staff responsibilities relating to equipment

8              All staff must

1. Use the equipment as directed by any instructions by the representatives of management or contained in any written operating manual or instructions for use and any relevant training.
2. Report any fault with, damage to or concern about any equipment (including health and safety equipment) or its use to the Principal Health and Safety Officer, who is responsible for the maintenance and safety of equipment.
3. Ensure that health and safety equipment is not interfered with and
4. Not attempt to repair equipment unless suitably trained and authorized.

 Staff responsibilities relating to accidents and first aid

9              All staff must

1. Promptly report any accident at work involving personal injury, however trivial, to the Principal Health and Safety Officer so that details can be recorded in the Accident Book and co-operate with any associated investigation.
2. Familiarise themselves with the details of the first aid facilities and trained first aider which is Mandy Norman
3. If an accident occurs contact the duty first aider giving name, location and brief details of the problem.
4. The Principal Health and Safety Officer is responsible for investigating any injuries or work related disease, preparing and keeping accident records, and submitting reports under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) where required.

 Staff responsibilities relating to emergency evacuation and fire

10           All staff must:

1. Familiarise themselves with about what to do if there is a fire.
2. Ensure that they are aware of the location of fire extinguishers, fire exits and alternative ways of leaving the building in an emergency.
3. Comply with instructions from fire-wardens if there is a fire, suspected fire or fire alarm (or a practice drill for any of these scenarios).
4. Co-operate in fire drills and take them seriously (ensuring that any visitors to the building do the same), fire drills will be held at least every 12 months.
5. Ensure that fire exits or fire notices or emergency exit signs are not obstructed or hidden at any time.
6. Notify the Principal Health and Safety Officer of any circumstances (for example, impaired mobility) which might hinder or delay evacuation in a fire.  This will enable the Principal Health and Safety Officer to discuss a personal evacuation plan for you which will be shared with the fire-wardens and colleagues working near to you.

 11           On discovering a fire, all staff must:

1. Immediately trigger the nearest fire alarm and if time permits, call the Principal Health and Safety Officer and notify the location of the fire and:
2. Attempt to tackle the fire ONLY if they have been trained or otherwise feel competent to do so.  Nominated members of staff will be trained in the use of fire extinguishers.

 12           On hearing a fire alarm all staff must:

1. Remain calm and immediately evacuate the building, walking quickly without running, following any instructions of any fire-wardens
2. Leave without stopping to collect personal belongings
3. Stay out of any lifts and:
4. Remain out of the building until notified by a fire-warden that it is safe to re-enter

The Principal Health and Safety Officer is responsible for ensuring fire risk assessments take place and changes made where required and making sure that there are regular checks of fire extinguishers, fire alarms, escape routes, signage and emergency lighting.

 Risk assessments, display screen equipment and manual handling

13           Risk assessments are simply a careful examination of what in the workplace could cause harm to people.  The employer will assess any risks and consider measures to minimise any risk.  The employer will carry out general workplace risk assessments when required or as reasonably requested by staff.  Managers must ensure that any necessary risk assessments take place and the resulting recommendations are implemented.  The Principal Health and Safety Officer is responsible for workplace risk assessments and any measures to control risks.

 14           People who use a computer for long periods of time should try, where possible to organise short breaks every few hours away from the computer screen, but may request a works station assessment and/or an eye test by an optician by contacting the Principal Health and Safety Officer.  Principal Health and Safety Officer will then provide you with more details and make arrangements if you would like to proceed.

 15           Guidance on manual handling (for example lifting or carrying heavy objects) can be obtained from the Principal Health and Safety Officer and where necessary training will be provided by the employer but the employer will try to minimise  or avoid the need for manual handling where there is a risk of injury.

 Pandemics and infectious diseases

16           Following the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) it is important that the company is prepared in the event of any future pandemic.  We have to assume that in the event of a future pandemic, the government will issue guidance and impose rules and therefore these will be communicated to all staff members with instructions to follow them to ensure maximum safety and minimise the risk of infection to themselves and others.

 17           We expect employees who contract an infectious disease or are exposed to infected family members or other persons to stay home and seek medical attention if needed. we also expect these employees to notify their line manager or the Principal Health and Safety Officer as soon as possible of their exposure or illness.

 18           The Principal Health and Safety Officer will take a number of steps to minimise, to the extent practicable, exposure to infectious diseases at the workplace. As appropriate, he will  recommend measures that employees can take to protect themselves both inside and outside the workplace.

 19           The employer will approve the installation or use, wherever possible, of improved equipment or cleaning methods to guard against the spread of infection at the workplace.

 20           The employer will provided training to address issues such as the availability of vaccines; symptoms, treatment, and appropriate medical care; steps to take if exposure is suspected; proper use of employer provided personal protection equipment; and proper hygiene in the workplace and at home.

 Mental health whilst working during a pandemic

21           We take the health of our staff seriously, including their mental wellbeing.  Whether working remotely or returning to the workplace, we strongly encourage you to speak to your line manager, a colleague or a member of the HR team regarding any concerns or issues you may have.

 22           If you are working from home or returning to the workplace, we encourage staff to:

• Connect with their fellow colleagues for informal chats or video calls.
• Get regular exercise and sunlight outdoors.
• Take regular breaks away from their workstation.
• Ensure they are drinking sufficient water and eating properly. Driving at Work

 Employer responsibilities

23           Driving is an integral part of the job for many employees and the risks should be obvious to all.  The employer will do its part to ensure the safety of all its drivers by ensuring that vehicles are fit for purpose and properly maintained at regular intervals.

 Employee responsibilities when driving at work.

24           As a vehicle is allocated to an individual employee, the major responsibility for ensuring that the vehicle is kept in good order rests with the driver.  All company vehicle drivers must therefore ensure that their vehicle remains in a legal and roadworthy condition.  This requires that they should:

1. Carry out regular checks on safety features e.g  lights, tyres, windscreen condition, wipers and washers.
2. Report any problems that they cannot rectify themselves e.g. brakes and steering.  In the first instance they should report the problem to their line manager for a decision on what to do to rectify the problem/s.  Under no circumstances should an employee knowingly drive a vehicle that is not in a roadworthy condition.

 25           Employee drivers when on company business should:

1. Comply with road traffic laws.
2. Under no circumstances use a hand-held mobile phone (to text or call) while in control of a moving vehicle either on the public roads or customer premises.
3. Use hands free telephone only in exceptional circumstances and provided that it is safe and legal to do so.
4. Not routinely hold lengthy conversations on the phone while driving.
5. Drive with due care and attention at all times.

 26           The employer will take disciplinary action against any employee where there is evidence that he/she has disregarded these policies, especially where it is shown that other road users have been placed at risk.

 

 Hazardous substances

 Employer responsibilities

27           In order to comply with the requirements of the Control Of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH), before any hazardous substances are used during a work process, the employer will request a safety data sheet (MSDS) from the supplier and will make an appropriate assessment of the risks from that substance.  This risk assessment will be undertaken by the Principal Health and Safety Officer in conjunction with the Safety Officer responsible for that work area. Alternative, less hazardous substances will be used wherever possible.

 28           Assessments will consider storage, handling, aspects of use, exposure, PPE requirements, workers health, and emergency actions.  Line managers will brief employees on any hazard or substance precautions with written information records and instructions on the use of the substance. 

 29           An inventory of all substances and materials hazardous to health will be maintained.

 Employee responsibilities relating to hazardous substances.

 48           Employees should familiarise themselves with the instructions for the safe use of any substances that are identified as being hazardous to health before using them.

 49           Employees whose work involves the transport of hazardous substances should ensure that they are securely stored in an upright position during transit.

 50           Employees should ensure that they use any PPE that is considered necessary for the safe use of any substances that are identified as being hazardous to health.

 Non-compliance with health and safety rules

 51           Any breach of health and safety rules or failure to comply with this policy will be taken very seriously and is likely to result in disciplinary action against the offender, in accordance with the employer’s disciplinary policy up to and including immediate dismissal.