This includes employees, other people working in or visiting your premises (for example, customers, suppliers or delivery drivers), people affected outside your premises (for example, by emissions) and anyone affected by products or services which you design, produce or supply.
General requirements include:
Having a health and safety policy.
Carrying out a risk assessment, and taking action to control any risks.
Making suitable arrangements for employee welfare.
Taking out employers' liability insurance (unless all your employees are your close relatives).
Specific regulations cover areas such as providing health and safety information to employees, fire precautions, managing dangerous equipment and hazardous substances, providing a suitable working environment, and dealing with accidents and emergencies.
2. Do I need a health and safety policy and what should it cover?
Yes. If you have five or more employees, the policy must be in writing, and you must bring it to the attention of your employees. Even if you have fewer employees, it is good practice to have a written policy.
Your policy should at least contain your general approach to health and safety - ensuring the safety of equipment, creating a healthy working environment, establishing appropriate procedures, providing appropriate training and so on. The policy should include how you organize your health and safety and which individuals are responsible. It should also include or refer to your specific procedures for dealing with hazards and risks - for example, who can use particular items of machinery and what training they will receive, as well as the evacuation procedure in case of fire.
You must also make a commitment to review the policy periodically and revise it as necessary.
3. What is a risk assessment and how do I carry it out?
A risk assessment is the process of identifying potential health and safety risks and hazards and how serious they are. You need to consider anything which might harm or injure: for example, where people might trip, fall, or collide; electrical installations and machinery; hazardous substances; or other particular hazards of your business. You must also take into account potential longer term risks to employees health: for example, causes of physical or mental stress; poorly designed workstations; and manual handling of objects.
You are legally required to carry out a risk assessment and take steps to control any risks you identify. You should review the assessment periodically (eg annually) or whenever circumstances change (eg if you introduce new equipment) or if you have reason to believe the assessment is no longer valid.
First, identify the hazards. Inspect your premises and the tasks carried out there, ask employees (and safety representatives), check suppliers' instructions and information and review accident and illness records.
Decide who could be affected - bearing in mind particular risks to visitors, contractors and new employees who may not be aware of your safety procedures, and anyone who might be particularly vulnerable (eg the disabled, young people and new or expectant mothers).
Evaluate the level of risk - how likely it is to cause problems, how many people it could affect, and how badly. Consider whether you are complying with any specific legal requirements affecting your business and meeting industry standards. Then decide what you can do to eliminate or minimize the risk.
Finally, record the outcome of your assessment and any corrective action you have taken as a result. (If you employ five or more people, you are legally required to keep a written record of the assessment.)
4. What are my responsibilities for employee welfare?
You have a general duty to make suitable arrangements for employee welfare - ensuring that you provide the facilities (for example, toilets and drinking water) which are necessary for employees' well-being. This includes considering potential longer term health risks to your employees as part of your risk assessment.
5. Will having a policy, carrying out risk assessments and so on be enough to protect me from prosecution and civil claims?
Not necessarily - it is the effective implementation of the policy that counts. You must do more than just pay lip service to health and safety.
For example, if you see an employee failing to comply with safety requirements, the employee should be reprimanded and warned that repeated failure will lead to disciplinary action.
Provided you implement the policy effectively and ensure that health and safety is central to the culture of your business you will have a much greater degree of protection from prosecution and claims than otherwise, as well as fewer accidents and incidents in the workplace.