Do you want to find out more about who enforces health and safety in construction? We look at what hazards cause a risk to the public and who is responsible.
What Hazards cause a risk to the public?
There are so many hazards on construction sites that workers, main contractors and public visitors could encounter that could cause serious injury if there isn't proper prevention.
You need to consider if these issues exist on your site or project; if so, you need to contact professionals to help with enforcing authority on-site with sufficient risk assessments and management regulations. Whether in an established company or self-employed, employers must research plenty of trustworthy websites to discover companies that provide these vital services for their construction projects.
Falling objects are a considerable hazard both inside and outside the site boundary. Those working on scaffold situations must utilise netting, brick guards, or toe-boards to prevent tools and debris from falling onto other workers or bypassers. Another way to avoid falling objects is through covered walkways or fans.
It is essential that when vehicles are entering and leaving your site to make deliveries, vehicles must not strike pedestrians and small children. One of their most significant responsibilities is to ensure no cars or vans obstruct the pedestrians or pavement.
Another hazard is scaffoldings. It is their responsibility to prevent people outside your construction site boundary from walking around or near the scaffold structure, primarily when it is being erected, used or dismantled. Anyone who doesn't possess the qualifications or training to handle heavy-duty equipment shouldn't have access to it by law.
You can help reduce plenty of risks that come with a lack of efficient material storage by striving to store your materials inside the site perimeter. It would be best if you aimed to do so in compounds that are secure and away from the fencing of your site.
Openings and excavations, such as open floor edges, stairwells or manholes, can cause incredible injuries and deaths. Many sites require covers or barriers to prevent construction workers or bypassers from falling and to reduce work-related deaths as much as possible.
Who is responsible for the enforcement of health and safety legislation?
Health and Safety Executives (HSE) and local environmental health officers enforce all the necessary health and safety legislation in companies and workplaces across the UK.
When it comes to Higher-risk workplaces, such as agriculture, construction sites, hospitals and many more, the HSE is responsible for health and safety legislation in these fields. However, local authority officers enforce the legislation here in lower-risk workplaces like wholesale distribution, offices, retail, etc.
The Health and Safety Executive
The Health and Safety Executive is utilised as a regulatory body that assists and observes the construction industry with its advisory committee that helps take complete care of the sector's issues concerning health and safety.
The Construction Industry Advisory Committee (CONIAC) frequently holds public meetings that discuss topics, for example, construction site strategy, safe construction planning, and construction design and management regulations.
However, the health and safety executives' services are not limited to specific roles or regulatory functions.
They have a wide range of other duties and law-abiding measures, including offering advisory service, carrying out and funding critical research, arranging training courses, and disseminating statistics and further information.
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health
The Occupational Safety and Health Institution was set up to raise awareness of workplace health and safety on a national and international scale.
It is a service with some of its most significant functions, including informative campaigns, lobbying political bodies, funding organisations and individuals, putting together various public educational resources.
They also helped exchange information between workers and members and arranged training courses based on the relevant professional development rules.
Safety Groups UK
Founded in 1947, Safety Groups UK (The National Health and Safety Groups Council) is an organisation that coordinates with numerous other organisations and working groups within the UK.
They are incredibly dedicated to bringing together groups and raising awareness of health and safety across industries throughout the country.
They work hard to organise yearly seminars that encourage construction enterprises and buildings businesses of any size to promote safe practices to employees in the workplace environment.
Occupational Health and Safety Advisory Services
For over 20 years, the Occupational Health and Safety Advisory Services provided plenty of health and safety advice and support for numerous public and private organisations in the UK.
The institution offers trustworthy, professional advice to individuals and businesses on various topics, including occupational health, construction health, asbestos management, risk assessments, occupational hygiene and overall health surveillance.
Its main activity or primary focus is to assist public bodies and companies in creating a safer and healthier working environment. They offer a whole host of tailored advice to suit all sectors of construction, educating them on critical subjects such as risk assessments, vibration measurement, dealing with policy implementation, noise assessment and procedures involving independent health and safety auditing.
Knowing about each aspect will allow companies on construction sites to provide and ensure optimum care and high quality of equipment to avoid severe accidents on the job.
HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS THAT APPLY TO CONSTRUCTION
UK websites state approximately 25 essential legislation acts and regulations in Great Britain related to health and safety laws, suitable for those working on construction sites.
It's vital to ensure you are aware of these regulations and how to uphold them in the workplace for optimum health and safety.
The Construction Regulations (Design & Management), The Health & Safety (First Aid) Regulations, The Personal Protective Equipment Regulations, The Manual Handling Operations Regulations, The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR), The Electricity at Work Regulations, The Gas Safety Regulations, The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations, The Hazardous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations, The Working at Height Regulations.
The Control of Noise at Work Regulations, The Health & Safety Signs and Signals Regulations, The Confined Spaces Regulations, The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations, The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations , The Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations, The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order, The Control of Asbestos Regulations, The Control of Lead at Work Regulations, The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations.
The Hazardous Waste Regulations, The Supply of Machinery Safety Regulations, Ionising Radiations Regulations, The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act
If you are working on a construction project in Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Kent or London, you will be considring the safety requirements of your workers. Follow the links below for construction site safety nets, crash bags hire and edge protection hire.
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