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Issue 1 Autumn 2009

Hopefully, you will already be familiar with our Occupational Safety website which contains essential safety guidance and forms, but we felt a more direct and up to date approach on safety related matters might also be useful to you. The newsletter touches on current and forthcoming issues that may well affect you. We deliberately haven’t gone for lengthy articles but we do tell you where to go for additional information if needed. We aim to produce 3 newsletters a year and we welcome any feedback or suggestions on how we can improve them. Happy reading!

Occupational Safety Team

Who we are and what we do

Based in City Exchange and part of Human Resources, we are a seven strong

team of professionally qualified Safety Advisers.

Our main role is to provide safety advice to the Council and to promote a high standard of safety culture. We gather information on accidents and report to HSE when required as well as drafting and producing procedures and guidance on a range of occupational safety matters.

We have a safety audit programme in place. This year we have audited Adult Services and Street Scene and now carrying out audits in Culture, Tourism and Sport and Children and Young Peoples Services. The audits are designed to support managers and to ensure the Council's compliance with health and safety legislation.

You can contact us on (01274) 431007 for advice on occupational safety issues.

New Health and Safety Law Posters

In April 2009, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) introduced a new version of its health and safety poster and leaflet which is designed to be more readable and engaging. It sets out in simple terms what employers and workers must do.

We have received reports of misleading promotions wrongly claiming that the old poster must be replaced immediately and use of aggressive selling techniques urging managers to purchase copies of the new Law Posters which they can conveniently supply – often at a premium price! Actually the HSE has set a five year transition period for the changeover and employers can continue to use their existing versions of the poster until 5 April 2014 as long as they are readable and the information on them is up-to date.

If you do wish to purchase a new poster they can be easily obtained from reputable retailers. New pocket cards outlining the same information are also available.

Did you know? In 2008 the HSE carried out 1026 prosecutions in England. Of those, they secured 837 convictions with total fines in excess of £10.7m.

Safety Matters

See our full range of procedures, guidance and templates on BradNet (or for Schools www.bradford.gov.uk/scsafety)

Contact us at Occupational Safety, City Exchange, 61 Hall Ings, Bradford, BD1 5SG Telephone 01274 431007 Fax 01274 722495

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Shattered Lives Campaign

The HSE continues its campaign to prevent the many serious injuries that result from slips, trips and falls in the workplace. They have produced an e-learning tool called STEP which can help you to look at sensible and proportionate management of the risk. STEP can be accessed at http://www.hse.gov.uk/slips/step/index.htm

Contact with the HSE

If you are contacted by a member of the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) who wishes to arrange a visit or who requests documentation from you then please contact a member of the Occupational Safety Team. The caller may be from the local HSE office in Leeds but they may also be from the HSE's Incident Contact Centre in Caerphilly.

We will be able to assist or support you in dealing with requests from HSE. We have a legal obligation to co-operate with them but the Council has always adopted a willing and open stance in assisting them with their enquiries.

Top 10 Management Excuses

(that failed dismally to impress the HSE!)

1. I didn’t know I had to do that 2. We’ve been doing it that way for twenty years 3. It was only a small fracture 4. He’s a trouble causer that one 5. No-one got hurt 6. He said it was his own fault 7. He knew for ages that the handle was loose. 8. It was just an accident 9. What’s a risk assessment? 10. It’ll be right

Solicitors Letters

Where you use the Council's insurance services and you receive a solicitor’s letter regarding an accident, you should send the documentation directly to the Insurance Section at Britannia House. Do not acknowledge or reply to the claimant's solicitor. There is a strict legal timescale for replying to solicitors' letters which is 21 days from the date of the letter so do not delay in sending the documents to Insurance Section.

Sound Advice……?

A new guidance document for Control of Noise at Work is now on the Occupational Safety website. If

you are a manager in a noisy environment or manage activities which produce a lot of noise you should read the Managers Guidance to see if you have to take any further action to protect staff from excessive noise at their place of work.

Changes to First Aid Training

The HSE has introduced changes to the first aid training regime in order to enable employers to provide a proportionate response to first aid needs

From 1 October 2009, employers can send prospective first aiders on either a full THREE day course in first aid at work (FAW), or a ONE day course in emergency first aid at work (EFAW). Successful completion of either course will allow the employee to act as a first aider.

Selection of the appropriate course will depend upon the circumstances of the workplace and will be informed by the first aid needs assessment undertaken by managers/building custodians.

First Aid guidance on the Occupational Safety website is being revised to take account of the above changes and will be available shortly.

See our full range of procedures, guidance and templates on BradNet (or for Schools www.bradford.gov.uk/scsafety)

Contact us at Occupational Safety, City Exchange, 61 Hall Ings, Bradford, BD1 5SG Telephone 01274 431007 Fax 01274 722495

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How Accidents Happen

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that

Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it but Nobody did it.

Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it but Nobody realised that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done!

Types of Accidents to CBMDC Employees 2008 – The Top 3!

1. Handling, Lifting, Carrying 2. Slips/Trips 3. Fall from Heights

Refers to accidents reported to the HSE under RIDDOR. Guidance on reducing these types of accidents is available on the Occupational Safety website.

***Important changes to the Accident Reporting Procedure***

A revised version of the Reportable Injury Form (RIF1) is now available on the Occupational Safety website. Please discontinue using any of the previous versions.

A copy of the RIF1 must be given to the injured person (employees only) as soon as possible after completion. This allows for transparency of reporting.

Driving Safely?

The following Fleet Management documents are now hosted on the Occupational Safety website and are grouped under the Driving Framework Policy.

• Drivers Handbook

• Driving Procedures and Guidance (LGV)

• Driving & Assessment Procedures for Minibuses

What else is new/revised on the Occupational Safety website?

Manual Handling - Handling, lifting and carrying activities are the top cause of accidents to staff. Managers, do you need to do more to prevent manual handling accidents in your area? See the changes that have been made to Council policy, guidance and checklists.

Slips and Trips - Slips and trips are the second most common type of accident in the Council. They happen more frequently in winter due to the wet and icy weather (inside and out!) Check now to see if you need to do more to prevent staff, clients and visitors injuring themselves.

COSHH – The risk assessment guidance, form and hazard checklist has been updated. Do your COSHH assessments need updating too? Remember they should be reviewed annually and a safety/hazard data sheet from your supplier is not by itself a COSHH assessment.

Display Screen Equipment – The guidance for managers has been updated. Do your staff revisit their workstation assessment annually or after relocating?

Sharps/Needlestick Injuries - Guidance for Managers has been updated.

Remember – you can access the Occupational Safety website via BradNet.

Need a New Ladder?

Do the ladders in your premises comply with the Council’s Guidance on Safe Use of Ladders and Stepladders? (See the Occupational Safety website for further guidance.)

If not then see the HSE’s latest Ladder Exchange with regard to swapping your current ladders at a reduced cost for ones that do comply. http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/ladderexchange.htm

See our full range of procedures, guidance and templates on BradNet (or for Schools www.bradford.gov.uk/scsafety)

Contact us at Occupational Safety, City Exchange, 61 Hall Ings, Bradford, BD1 5SG Telephone 01274 431007 Fax 01274 722495

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Myth: People don’t have to take responsibility for their own health and safety

Reality: Employers have a duty to protect workers and the public from dangers caused by their work – and the HSE is committed to making sure they do that. But Health and Safety isn’t entirely someone else’s responsibility. We all have a duty to keep ourselves safe, by co-operating with safety measures and not putting ourselves or others in danger. This is just common sense – something we all use every day. It’s important that we aren’t put at risk by other people’s actions but if we ignore our own responsibilities, real risks can get missed. Playing the blame game doesn’t keep people safe – better to rely on common sense and co-operation

HSE Myth of the month

And particularly for schools……………

Whatever you are hatching in school science……

Are you thinking of Incubating Eggs (Guide L71), Keeping Animals in School (Guide L56), or do you need guidance on Designing and Planning a Laboratory (Guide G14), if so then CLEAPSS provide competent guidance to Bradford schools on these kinds of topics. They cover all aspects of practical science and technology in the curriculum, and include risk assessment, product and service suppliers, useful tips, advice on practicals and they also offer training. You should already receive a termly publication in school, and also have access to the CLEAPSS website (www.cleapss.org.uk) and their free helpline with advice from subject specialists.

As a member Authority, advice, guidance and publications are FREE to Bradford schools.

REMINDER The PUPIL accident summary sheets for academic year 08-09 are due for return to Occupational Safety by the end of October. You can download this form from the Occupational Safety website for Schools.

IMPORTANT NOTE - Email addresses

If you change your school contact email address we would appreciate you letting us know as soon as possible. We frequently receive 'undeliverable' mail messages when we send out safety information to schools, as a consequence you could be missing out on important safety information.