Summary
The directors employ health and safety systems to ensure the safety of their people and minimise the risk of fines and imprisonment.
The problem
In 15 years of trading, the Company had never had a problem with health and safety. However, with the increasingly litigious UK society, the Directors wanted to review the current practices and the Company’s position before a problem arose.
The client
The client is an office supplies company operating out of two sites, one in South London and the other in Manchester. The Company employ about 85 staff in a variety of roles, for instance, sales, administration, warehousing and service engineers.
The approach and the solution
The benchmarks used for the initial review were the OHSAS 18001 and the BS 8800 standards.
The result of the review was that a number of recommendations were highlighted as minor and major issues. The minor issues were simple things like ensuring the correct posters and signage were in place. The major issues included issues like:
• The provision of training for the senior directors on health and safety, current legislation and its impacts on the business and their freedom!
• The appointment of a health and safety committee and the development of an ongoing training programme
• The documentation of all processes and the development of written risk assessments
• The decision to subcontract the delivery of larger items to a company with the relevant specialist lifting and stair climbing equipment
The outcome
The Statius approach, and the company’s enthusiastic response, has resulted in a system that:
• Looks like the business and is easy to follow
• Is simple and understood
• Has eliminated duplication
• Is completely electronic
In addition to which, as one director commented …”if this keeps our people safe and minimises the risk of fines and imprisonment…it’s money well spent”