Making Your Health and Safety Plan

How to Develop Health and Safety in Your Business

1. Appoint a competent person to be responsible for health and safety.
2. Prepare a general Health and Safety Policy Statement and details of the company's organisational structure.
3. Through discussion with appropriate staff determine hazards which exist within your premises/from your work activities.
4. Assess the risk associated with the hazards found and establish the controls in place or required.
5. Document details of significant hazards and the controls in place or required for these.
6. Develop a Health and Safety Plan to allow implementation of required controls and business improvements.

Appoint a Competent Person

Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations it is necessary to appoint a competent person who is responsible for health and safety in your workplace.

Depending on the size of the business this may be:

• the employer themselves
• a person employed specifically for ensuring health and safety in the workplace
• an employee allocated with the responsibility

In any event it is necessary for the person in question to have the knowledge or receive suitable training in health and safety to undertake these duties.

Time requires to be allocated for ensuring the maintenance of health, safety and welfare in the workplace.