Ensure the health and safety file is available for inspection after the project is completed.
CDM co-ordinator (only required where the project is notifiable) - A CDM Co-ordinator is the client’s adviser in matters relating to construction health and safety. The role involves advising and assisting the client in undertaking the measures needed to comply with CDM 2007, including, in particular, the client’s duties both at the start of the construction phase and during it.
The CDM co-ordinator should also:
Notify details of the project to Health and Safety Executive and ensure that the health and safety file is delivered to the client at the end of the project.
Co-ordinate health and safety aspects of design work and co-operate with others involved with the project, they should ensure as much as possible that designers comply with their duties in particular; the avoidance and reduction of risks involved the construction project.
Liaise with the principal contractor regarding on going design work;
Identify, collect and pass on pre-construction information; and prepare/update the health and safety file.
A designer is defined in the CDM Regulations as any person (including a client or contractor) who prepares drawings, specifications and bills this can be inadvertent as Contractors sometimes make ‘site’ decisions without realising the ‘design’ consequences also Quantity surveyors may specify materials or components, which have safety implications.
The designers main duties are to consider during the development of designs the hazards and risks which may arise to those constructing and maintaining the building and so far as reasonably practical eliminate risks to health and safety and if this is not possible then to reduce risks at source and ensure the design includes adequate information about remaining risks which they should pass on to the CDM co-ordinater in order that it can be included in the health and safety plan.
Designers must also check that the client is aware of their duties.
The Principle Contractor also has responsibilities under the CDM regulations their key duties are to prepare, develop and implement a written health and safety plan with site rules, they should ensure that only competent and adequately resourced contractors carry out any sub-contracted work. They must ensure all findings of other sub-contractors risk assessments are passed on to the CDM co-ordinator for inclusion in the health and safety plan.
They must make sure suitable welfare facilities are provided from the start and maintained throughout the construction phase this should include toilets, washing facilities with hot and cold running water, soap, canteens, adequate facilities for first aid treatment and sufficient persons trained in first aid available during all working hours.
Other duties include:
Check competence of all appointees.
Ensure all workers have site inductions and any further information and training needed for the work.
Liaise with CDM co-ordinator regarding on going design
Secure the site and make sure only authorised people are allowed to enter.
Contractors- must plan, manage and monitor their own work and that of their workers they should check the competence of all their appointees and workers and ensure that there are adequate welfare facilities for their workers.
Where projects are under the Regulations, contractors must also:
Check that the client is aware of their duties, check that a CDM co-ordinator has been appointed and ensure that HSE has been notified before the work start. They must provide any information needed for the health and safety file and inform the principal contractor of reportable accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences.
Workers/Everyone- Should check their own competence and report any obvious risk. They must use correct PPE and tools and keep them in good condition and ensure to follow all site health and safety rules and procedures.
TASK 2
Analyse existing Health and Safety Policy documents and make adjustments where necessary.
Workplace health and safety policies are required under the health and safety at work act 1974 which states that:
‘Except in such cases as may be prescribed, it shall be the duty of every employer to prepare and as often as may be appropriate revise a written statement of his general policy with respect to the health and safety at work of his employees … and to bring the statement and any revision of it to the notice of all his employees’
www.Healthandsafety.co.uk
A health and safety policy is divided into three main sections;
A general statement- which should be signed by the head of the organisation and dated this is an important statement giving a key outline as to how the employer will observe their duties under the act.
Explain who has specific responsibilities- CDM coordinator, employee’s duties and who the health and safety representative is.
Explain the health and safety administration- accident reporting procedures, risk assessments systems and permit to work systems.
Topliss S, Hurst M, Skarratt G,. (2007 p .28)
After careful analysis of a number of health and safety polices I have adjusted this policy which I believe now gives the most suitable and comprehensive cover for this company.
COMPANY POLICY
FOR
HEALTH, SAFETY
AND WELFARE AT WORK
TASK 3
Describe how Approved Codes of Practice (ACoPs) are used to ensure compliance with health and safety legislation.
The Approved Codes of Practice (ACoPs) has special legal status; they give practical advice for all those involved in construction work and contain examples of good practice.
They advise on how to comply with the law by, providing a guide to what is ‘reasonably practicable’ and can illustrate what is required in particular circumstances.
If an employer is prosecuted for a breach of health and safety law, and it is proved that he has not followed the relevant provisions of the Approved Code of Practice, a court can find him at fault unless he can show that he has complied with the law in some other way, such as following guidance notes which are not compulsory but when it can be proved they were followed its normally enough to comply with law. Health and safety inspectors seek to
Secure compliance with the law and may refer to this guidance as illustrating good practice.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/cdm/acop
Task 4
Analyse the information contained in the RIDDOR report and determine any training needs that may be required?
Legislation such as The Health and Safety at Work Order 1978 and the Management of Health Safety and Welfare Regulations 1999 place obligations on employers to train their employees in terms of health and safety at work. In particular to:
- Ensure that all employees and other members of staff are competent to do what is required of them and strive to provide suitable instruction, training and supervision as is necessary.
- Provide and ensure that all plant and equipment owned, used or hired by the company is safe to use and properly maintained, inspected and tested
- Consult on health and safety matters, with all employees and ensure that effective two-way dialogue is maintained and concerns are acted upon as necessary. Robinson(2012)
It can be seen from examination of the RIDDOR report that a number of factors contributed to the accident that happened on the 26/01/2010 at Coleraine Building Supplies such as;
The time of the year, the weather conditions and natural daylight were poor when the accident occurred at 16.45.
The fact that Mr Keating (the injured party) was a new employee and was not wearing any form of personal protective equipment.
Plant was not operating properly, the reverse warning sound and light was not working properly on the fork lift truck. As this fault had been reported to management six days before the accident took place it is imperative that it be found why action was not taken.
Questions to be asked –
Have Plant operating personal been trained properly?
Was the employee properly inducted?
What procedures are in place to deal with employees concerns over health and safety?
Who should deal with employees concerns?
Is there adequate lighting around the yard properly installed and controlled by photo cells or sangano timeclocks (year round clocks) or is it left up to an employee to turn on lights.
As a major accident has occurred an inspector from the HSENI may wish to investigate and will be able to offer help and advice about what training may be required such as;
Managers;
Health and Safety should start with senior management so that people being trained recognise that training is important. Mangers should have a good understanding of health and safety legislation, risk management systems and the will to motivate staff towards safe working. There are courses run by CITB, IOSH and NEBOSH such as the four day managing safety certificate or the national certificate in construction safety and health, these courses can enable managers or owners to understand who has responsibility for the different aspects of their health and safety policy and that the policy must be monitored, checked and reviewed regularly.
Management must ensure all employees are given adequate health and safety training, are informed about any risks and are made aware of what they should and shouldn’t do. It is also important that new, inexperienced or young employees are supervised correctly as they can be particularly vulnerable to accidents. Courses such as CSR or CSCS can enable employees to be more aware of their own safety and health when at work.
Robinson (2012)
Plant operators;
Drivers should be trained, competent and authorised to operate the specific plant used and be aware of hazards and precautions. Training certificates from recognised schemes help demonstrate competence and certificates should be checked for validity, A programme of daily visual checks, regular inspections and servicing schedules should be established in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and the risks associated with each vehicle.
Drivers should be encouraged to report defects or problems. Reported problems should be put right quickly and the excavator taken out of service if the item is safety critical.
Most fatal and serious injuries involving forklifts occur when the vehicle is:
Moving – and strikes a pedestrian, particularly while reversing;
Lifting – and overturns trapping the operator or person nearby.
Both of these hazards should be identified within a risk assessment and suitable control measures put in place.
Employees
All employees should be given a site induction which should explain to the inductees the requirement to observe site specific elements appropriate to
their own work activities and site hazards. These may include but not be limited to the following;
Site Rules, Welfare Facilities, Working at Height, Overhead Power Lines, Vehicle Movements, Traffic Management Systems, First Aid, Fire Risks and Emergency Procedures.
Increasingly employees are required to prove they are competent and one way this can be shown is a card from a recognised registration scheme.
Pedestrians:
Check that steps have been taken to prevent access by unauthorised persons to the site or they should be instructed in safe pedestrian routes on site and the procedure for making drivers aware of their presence.
Safety inspections should be carried out to monitor that training has worked and these inspections can show if further information or training is needed
One effective method companies can use to cut done on the chance of accidents is to keep records of serious accidents, incidents, emergencies and near misses this enables companies to identify where and how risks arise, Organisations can then address the risks and take steps to reduce them.
TASK 5
Briefly describe the court structure in Northern Ireland and evaluate the possible penalties/cost for breaches of construction Health and Safety Legislation with reference to the RIDDOR report.
The courts of Northern Ireland responsible for the administration of in are the and they are constituted and governed by . Civil law is used to compensate a complainant in monetary value when they prove to the court that on the balance of probability the defendant is at fault this can be seen with a personal injury due to an accident at work. Criminal law is used to punish the defendant when the HSENI, a local authority or the police proves to a court that an offence has occurred or a law has been broken. Criminal law comes from several sources such as the Health and Safety at Work Act and can be enforced without an accident taking place. Robinson (2012)
http://education.courtsni.gov.uk
Had an Health and Safety Officer visited the premises before the accident there may have been an improvement notice issued giving details of any contravention of the law and the action which should be taken to correct these, it would also specify a time period for this to be completed. The maximum penalties for failing to comply with an Improvement notice, or a court remedy order issued under the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 in the Lower court system is a fine of up to £20,000 and/or 6 months imprisonment, in the Higher court system the maximum penalty is an Unlimited fine and/or 2 years imprisonment. Of course accidents caused by work activities cost time and money in many other ways. If a serious accident occurs in the workplace the cost to a company can be considerable. There are different types of costs involved with accidents in the work place, direct cost and indirect costs. Direct costs are those costs specifically associated with the accident such as; cost of damage to work equipment, the clean up operation, sick pay for injured worker, legal expenses, compensation, fines and court costs resulting from legal prosecution. Indirect costs are those costs that do not specifically relate to the accident but are the consequence of the accident such as; loss of production/productivity, overtime to cover loss of production/productivity, wages for replacement worker while injured party is off on sick leave, increase in insurance premiums and the loss off work time for senior managers involved in the investigation of the accident.
There are also Human Consequences when accidents in the work place occur and these can have a varying effect on the workforce. Accidents in the work place can cause direct injury to employees or the public. Also accidents can have other consequences on people involved in accidents and those that may have witnessed the accident. These consequences can affect people mentally and psychologically such as emotional distress.
One effective method companies can use to cut done on the chance of accidents is to keep records of serious accidents, incidents, emergencies and near misses this enables companies to identify where and how risks arise, Organisations can then address the risks and take steps to reduce them.
Topliss S, Hurst M, Skarratt G,. (2007 p .37)
References
Robinson, J., 2012., The Construction (design and management regulations 2007 . (Classnotes) NRC.
accessed 20/03/2012
Topless, S., Hurst, M., & Skarratt, G., 2007. Construction Building Services Engineering & Civil Engineering. Harcourt Education Ltd. England.
Robinson, J., 2012., Construction health and safety law. (Classnotes) NRC.
Robinson, J., 2012., Training. (Classnotes) NRC.
accessed on 06/03/2012
accessed on 13/03/2012
accessed on 28/02/2012
Bibliography
Adams, A. and Gardiner, A., 1995. Construction and the Built Environment. Longman Group Ltd. England.
Topless, S., Hurst, M., & Skarratt, G., 2007. Construction Building Services Engineering & Civil Engineering. Harcourt Education Ltd. England.
accessed
Joe Mitchell
Student Number: MIT11067796
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jooe90 (student)
