COMPANY NEWS
TRAINING – COURSES AVAILABLE
We list below, as usual, the programmed courses we have on offer over the next few months. Please don’t forget though, that Wenlock Health & Safety Ltd (WHS) can also provide a multitude of other courses to suit your needs. For example:
- H&S Management
- H&S Awareness
- Safety for Site Management
- Risk Assessment
- CDM
- Manual Handling
- Asbestos Awareness
- COSHH Awareness
- Work at Height Awareness
- Abrasive Wheels
- Lone Working
- Fire Warden / Extinguisher
This is not an exhaustive list so do feel free to contact Vicki Brown at the WHS office on 01952 885885, or via email on enquiries@wenlockhs.co.uk or vicki@wenlockhs.co.uk , to discuss your particular needs
TRAINING – NEW ONLINE COURSES AVAILABLE FROM 8th APRIL!
WHS will now be providing a suite of online courses to help with quick turnaround and as a temporary solution for your staff training. We would always recommend face-to-face training to get the most out of the content for your workforce, but we can offer the following courses for £25 per course and all take only 30-40 minutes to complete online.
Accident Investigation Interactive
Asbestos Awareness Interactive
Display Screen Equipment Interactive
Environmental Awareness Interactive
Fire Safety Interactive
Home Working H&S Interactive
Legionella Awareness
Manual Handling Interactive
Office Safety Interactive
Personal Protective Equipment
Working at Height Interactive
Interactive An Introduction to LOLER
COSHH Interactive
Driver Safety Interactive
Equality and Diversity
Hand-arm Vibration (HAVS)
Ladder Safety
Working Interactive
Menopause Awareness
Permits to Work
Stress in the Workplace
You’ll be asked to create an account, which is easy to do, and you can do this as an individual or as a training manager who can then allocate courses to staff via their email address. You do need to be sat in front of the course as there are interactive modules and test questions throughout, with an exam at the end of every course, so we’d recommend a tablet or laptop/computer to complete them. Certificates can then be found in your user area ready to save and send.
From Monday, you can check out our website for the online shop at www.wenlockhealthandsafety.co.uk
TRAINING – CITB COURSES
When booking courses, all necessary criteria and restrictions will be personally communicated both directly at the time of booking and again through joining instructions ahead of all planned courses. It is vital that these are understood and relevant information clearly passed to candidates.
And do please be sure to inform us ahead of the course date of any candidate who may require assistance in any way, especially with reading or writing; we need advance notice to be able to provide this help.
Please contact Vicki at WHS on 01952 885885 or enquiries@wenlockhs.co.uk or vicki@wenlockhs.co.uk to book places. In addition to those below, please enquire about our other courses available; the full range is also detailed on our website: https://wenlockhealthandsafety.co.uk/
It must be noted that CITB attendance rules are very strict; they must be understood and are reiterated here:
- CITB specifies that candidates must be available to attend each session within the course; failure to do so may require a repeat course.
- Attendance is absolutely vital once booked; because of CITB rules, we may be forced to cancel a course on that morning if some candidates fail to take part, to the detriment of all candidates.
- Basic refreshments will be available; however, no lunch is provided and candidates are to make their own provision (bring their own or there are shops nearby and a small café on site).
Candidates must arrive by 8.15*am for registration; all courses start at 8.30am and finish at around 4.30pm.
* Please reiterate to all candidates the absolute need to make their way up to the WHS offices and log their vehicle registration numbers immediately upon arrival in the car park to avoid being charged for parking.
CITB COURSE DETAILS
- CITB Asbestos Awareness
N.B. refer also to the UKATA certificated asbestos awareness course below
Duration: Half-day
Date: 3 May 2024 (Friday)
Cost: £60 + VAT per person
- CITB CDM 2015
Duration: Half-day
Date: 8 May 2024 (Wednesday)
Cost: £60 + VAT per person
- Site Management Safety Training Scheme (SMSTS)
Duration: 5 days; 1 day per week
Dates:
18, 25 April, 2, 9 &16 May 2024 (Thursdays)
6, 13, 20, 27 June & 4 July 2024 (Thursdays)
17, 24, 31 July, 7 & 14 August 2024 (Wednesdays)
Cost: £495 + VAT per person
- Site Management Safety Training Scheme (SMSTS) Refresher
Duration: 2 days
Dates:
8 & 9 April 2024 (Monday & Tuesday) fully booked but a wait list is operated
3 & 4 June 2024 (Monday & Tuesday)
19 & 20 August 2024 (Monday & Tuesday)
Cost: £285 + VAT per person
(10% discount when booking 2 or more people on all courses)
- Site Supervisors Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS)
Duration: 2 days
Dates:
20 & 21 May 2024 (Monday & Tuesday)
1 & 2 July 2024 (Monday & Tuesday)
2 & 3 September 2024 (Monday & Tuesday)
Cost: £250 + VAT per person
(10% discount when booking 2 or more people on all courses)
- Site Supervisors Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS) Refresher
Duration: 1 day
Dates:
15 April 2024 (Monday)
17 June 2024 (Monday)
12 August 2024 (Monday)
Cost: £170 + VAT
(10% discount when booking 2 or more people on all courses)
- CITB 1-Day Health & Safety Awareness
Duration: 1 day
Dates:
4 April 2024 (Thursday)
10 June 2024 (Monday)
1 August 2024 (Thursday)
Cost: £145 + VAT per person
(10% discount when booking 2 or more people on all courses)
TRAINING – OTHER COURSES
UKATA Asbestos Awareness
UKATA certificated asbestos awareness half-day course
Date: 3 May 2024 (Friday)
Cost: £60 + VAT per person
FIRST AID
1-day Emergency First-Aid at Work course dates are listed below; specific requirements and controls will be advised within the joining instructions.
Dates:
17 April (Wednesday) now fully booked but a wait list is operated
29 April 2024 (Monday) fully booked but a wait list is operated
22 May 2024 (Wednesday)
24 June 2024 (Monday)
22 July 2024 (Monday)
21 August 2024 (Wednesday)
25 September 2024 (Wednesday)
Cost: £85 + VAT per person
MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID
1-day FAA Award in First Aid for Mental Health (Level 2 RQF)
Dates: 3 July 2024 (Wednesday)
Cost: £85 + VAT per person
IOSH MANAGING SAFELY
3-day IOSH Managing Safely course
Dates: 13, 14 & 15 May 2024 (Monday – Wednesday)
Cost: £395 + VAT per person
HSE NEWS – BUILDING SAFETY ACT
Please share these bulletins with others who may find the information useful. In addition, anyone can subscribe free of charge to the Building Safety Regulator bulletins via: subscribe at this link
And refer also the later section on the Building Safety Act – Principal Designers
BUILDING SAFETY ACT – TRANSITION FOR HRBs
The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has issued a reminder about the transitional arrangements for building control approval for ‘higher-risk buildings’ (HRBs – refer to the WHS Information Sheet IS23 for the definition of what constitutes an HRB).
If the project had building control arrangements established prior to 1 October 2023 and will make substantial progress before 6 April 2024, it may qualify for transitional provisions. However, the BSR made it plain that developers and project clients must take the required steps now for their projects to benefit from these provisions. Find out more by clicking on this www.gov.uk link: Read more about the eligibility criteria
BUILDING SAFETY ACT – BUILDING CONTROL FROM 1 OCTOBER 2023
The BSR would remind clients, developers and contractors that it became law on 1 October 2023 that, for HRBs in England, ALL building control must now go through the BSR. This means that clients, developers and contractors will no longer be able to choose the building control body they want to use.
Guidance on how to apply to the BSR for building control approval (which is now very much tighter and more stringent than before) can be found on www.gov.uk link:
Read guidance on how to apply for building control approval and what is required
BUILDING SAFETY – SECOND STAIRCASES
Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has published a statement on the need to incorporate a second staircase in new multi-occupancy residential buildings with a top-occupied storey above 18 metres.
Whilst this is not law just yet, new guidelines will be published very shortly and all clients, developers and designers of high-rise buildings must consider this requirement from now on.
BUILDING SAFETY ACT – MANDATORY OCCURRENCE REPORTING
Under the new building safety laws, certain incidents or risks related to HRBs must be reported to the BSR; these are known as Mandatory Occurrence Notices and Reports (MOR). Full details of what must be reported can be found on www.gov.uk link: Read our guide on the process for reporting MORs
It must be noted whose duty it is to report and when:
1. It is the duty of principal designers and principal contractors to submit MORs during:
- Construction and design of a new HRB
- Work on an existing HRB, including work that causes it to no longer be an HRB
- Work on an existing building that will make it an HRB
2. It is the duty of the Accountable or Principal Accountable Person to submit MORs for the parts of the high-rise residential building for which they are responsible.
BUILDING SAFETY ACT &THE HIGH-RISE REGISTER
A new portal has been created to enable anyone to see whether a high-rise building has been registered with www.gov.uk or not. The portal contains all salient details of each high-rise building including year of construction, height, number of storeys and residential units, and (most importantly!) full details of the Accountable or Principal Accountable Person as now legally required under the Building Safety Act.
The portal can be accessed via www.gov.uk link: Access the HRB register portal
And, if you think that any building should be registered but you can’t find it on the portal, report this to the BSR via their link: contact us
BUILDING SAFETY ACT – RESIDENTS’ RIGHTS
In line with one of the main principles of the Building Safety Act 2022 (safety from concept to eventual demolition, but to actively include occupancy), the BSR has launched a new campaign to inform residents of high-rise buildings (all of which are classified as HRBs) of their rights.
Details of the ‘Your Home, Your Safety’ campaign page can be found on www.gov.uk link:
‘Your Home, Your Safety’ campaign page
HSE NEWS – OTHER ISSUES
ASBESTOS MANAGEMENT
Refer also to the prosecution detailed at the end of this newsletter
We have discussed the issue of asbestos and asbestos management year in, year out, but it’s worth mentioning yet again because:
(a) WHS STILL encounters contractors who either take risks or blatantly ignore the law with ACMs (asbestos-containing materials)
(b) The HSE has launched a fresh campaign to both highlight legal duties and to heavily enforce the law
There is a huge amount of information available from the HSE (www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos ) which clearly explains the responsibilities placed on all duty holders, from premises managers or owners to contractors; also within the WHS health & safety pack you receive annually. So there’s absolutely NO EXCUSE for ignorance or wilful non-compliance of the law which has, after all, been around since the beginning of the 21st century!
You can follow these useful links to some of the HSE information:
- steps to the duty to manage asbestos in buildings (a short video)
- prepare for a duty to manage asbestos inspection and what to expect from an HSE visit (a short video)
- asbestos management plan template (WHS can provide a full asbestos system to include a template)
- asbestos register template
(WHS can provide a full asbestos system to include these and other useful templates, and full guidance) - examples of how asbestos risks can be managed
- where asbestos can hide
- Industrial ‘where asbestos hides’ A3 poster (a useful poster for additional information and display)
Penalties are harsh because the risks are great (see the prosecution at the end of this newsletter). So, if you are in any doubt at all about any aspect of asbestos-related duties, contact WHS immediately on 01952-885885.
Important footnote:
If you have or suspect that you may have an asbestos-related disease, there’s valuable help available through the National Asbestos Helpline, www.nationalasbestos.co.uk.
The helpline can help with diagnosis, advice and support, provide lawyers and solicitors towards getting the compensation and benefits you may be entitled to, and much more.
They are there for you; call them free of charge on 0800 116 4332 or email info@nationalasbestos.co.uk
NOISE MANAGEMENT
HSE research has found that around 20% of all workers in the UK are at risk of developing noise-induced deafness, tinnitus or other conditions due to exposure to noise levels of more than 85 dBA, the legal limit for addressing the issue. And, of course, the estimated figure will be so much higher in the construction industry.
Whilst it can be difficult to monitor noise levels at work, particularly in construction, the HSE is urging employers to at least adopt the ‘shout test’ which, although primitive, can be far easier to implement and understand than other methods. Take a look at the HSE’s article about this basic test on its website link: noise at work article
In addition, valuable information on how to manage the issue of noise in construction can be found on the HSE website link: construction specific guidance
And, of course, all such issues are covered in full in the health & safety packs issued annually to WHS subscribers.
HEALTH SURVEILLANCE
The HSE is reminding employers that health surveillance for all workers at risk of exposure to dusts, mists or fluids is legally required, even if control measures have been implemented unless those controls reduce the risks to zero or what the HSE would consider negligible. Information about what’s required and how to establish a sound health surveillance system can be found on the HSE’s website:
- occupational health and health surveillance schemes
- HSE G402 (occupational asthma)
- HSE G403 (occupational dermatitis)
Of course, exposure to dusts, mists and fluids aren’t the only issues that warrant (by law) health surveillance – other harm issues such as manual handling, noise and vibration are also subject to mandatory health surveillance unless the risks can be eliminated or reduced to a negligible level.
You only have to look at the prosecutions highlighted in our newsletters over recent years to see that the HSE will certainly enforce the law with regard to both risk reduction and health surveillance. And beware too that all these issues, if monitoring and risk reduction cannot be proven, run the very real risk of claims from employees and these can prove to be extremely costly.
Again, all such issues are covered in full in the health & safety packs issued annually to to WHS subscribers.
INDUSTRY NEWS
MANUAL HANDLING IN SCAFFOLDING
Very few of the scaffolding companies WHS supports have ever taken part in a WHS manual handling course, which is disappointing when manual handling is a fundamental part of all scaffolding operations and, therefore, leaves them wide open to HSE enforcement. Manual handling must be properly risk assessed and appropriate training given to all operatives; it’s what the law requires for all types of work so scaffolding is no exception!
To help with this fundamental issue, the NASC (National Access & Scaffolding Confederation) has detailed in-depth guidance available on its website free of charge; SG6:22 ‘Management of Manual Handling in the Scaffolding Industry’ is available to download from: https://rb.gy/dcmpy9
In addition, there is an excellent NASC video available on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ed5HXBZuZHY
ALL scaffolders must use the industry-recognised guidance, SG6:22, to establish a sound manual handling regime. And they would be advised to establish and document their own internal manual handling training regime, to be carried out at a regular frequency, using the NASC video. Insurance companies as well as the HSE would expect nothing less.
CONCRETE – A WARNING
WHS would remind contractors of the hazards of using concrete and the legal requirement to use non-chromium cement where there is any risk of skin contact. This is because the chromium present in OPC can chemically react with the skin and result in potentially serious concrete burns. In fact, the 2004 amendment to the COSHH Regulations (yes, this has been law since 2004!) making this stipulation occurred because of dreadful case in which a worker had his leg amputated because of serious wet cement skin burns.
The COSHH Regulations (as amended 2004) state the following:
- Prohibition of the supply and use of cement and cement preparations containing more than 0.0002% of soluble chromium (VI).
- The requirement that packages of cement and cement preparations be marked with information on packing date, storage period, and recommended storage conditions, when a reducing agent has been used.
To summarise, where there is a risk of skin contact, non-chromium cement must be used. The cement must be labelled as non-chromium cement with storage instructions and an expiry date (because the added chromium reducing agent has a finite lifespan).
Pre-mix concrete is not exempt from this law. However, over the years, very little seems to have been done to establish, as standard, the use of non-chromium cement in pre-mix – presumably because this adds cost to the product. There has been little enforcement over the years – and now, after so long, the issue seems to have been side-lined. However, there have been quite a few prosecutions as a result of concrete burns so how do contractors cope with the conflicting issues here?
Firstly, when purchasing bags of cement, always make sure that (a) they are labelled as non-chromium cement and (b) you purchase and use within the lifespan stated on the bag. Mixing cement by hand poses a far greater risk of skin contact, even with PPE, so the contractor would be left wide open to prosecution should the use of standard OPC result in skin burns.
Secondly, we can assume at this point that all pre-mix supplied is not non-chromium so that places the onus for worker protection with the contractor. It is therefore absolutely essential that full risk assessment is carried out ahead of all use and appropriate methods adopted to:
(a) reduce the need to manually handle the concrete (and potentially contaminated equipment)
(b) prevent skin contact with the provision of full appropriate waterproof PPE
Again, any failure to properly risk assess and control these risks could result in enforcement or prosecution.
BUILDING SAFETY ACT – PRINCIPAL DESIGNERS
Very shortly, the Association for Project Safety (APS) will be launching a Principal Designer Building Regulations (PDBR) Register to enable clients and developers to easily choose a Principal Designer who has adequately demonstrated their competence for the role under the new building safety legislation. One less thing for clients and developers to have to worry about!
AND FINALLY
Work at height
Firstly, we are sad to report to death on 27 March 2024 of 40-year-old Gogglebox personality, George Gilbert, as a result of a fall from height. George was on a warehouse roof when he fell 80 feet, apparently through a skylight, to the concrete floor below. A man has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter; no further details are available while the police carry on with their investigations:
https://www.thesun.co.uk/tv/26994024/george-gilbey-colleague-arrest-death-warehouse/
Falls from height can happen to anyone unless the proper, and legally required, controls are established. It’s so sad to see that so many people still take risks with their own lives and the lives of others. Health & safety laws are there for very good reasons – and, unless they are followed, falls from height can happen to anyone.
Asbestos
- Stephen Davies, director of Cavendish Winchester Ltd, has been jailed for 8 months for failing to protect workers from exposure to asbestos (AIB) during the refurbishment of student accommodation. The company had illegally removed an estimated 10 tonnes of AIB, much of which was discarded outside the building as this photo shows.
Davies’ co-director, Neil Bolton, was given a 4-month suspended sentence and ordered to undertake 250 hours of unpaid work and pay £5,123 costs; Cavendish Winchester Ltd was fined £30,000.
This was an unbelievably dreadful case of callous and wilful negligence, hence the prison sentence handed to Davies. The company was apparently fully aware of the need to engage licensed contractors for the work and had, indeed, sought quotes; however, it chose to save money and illegally remove the AIB itself. This, no doubt, not only exposed its own workers to the immediate risk of severe exposure to asbestos fibres, but those fibres may well affect users of that building in the future.
Management & planning
- Stonehurst Estates Ltd was fined £450,000 plus costs of £167,601, and its director, Simon Briggs, given a 23 weeks’ suspended prison sentence, after a worker was crushed to death by a collapsing structure. The victim had been removing metal support bars with an angle grinder without any awareness of their vital function, leading directly to the collapse. The site foreman, Vasyl Bychkov, was also prosecuted; he was ordered to carry out 130 hours of unpaid work. The HSE investigation found there had been no planning or sequencing in place, and none of the employees on site at the time, including the site foreman, had any demolition experience.
- Alba Construction (Midlands) Ltd was fined £40,000 plus £1858 costs, and its director, Bujar Cekrezi, personally fined £2,000 plus costs also of £1858, after a worker suffered injuries from a fall through an open stairwell onto a concrete floor.
Although the prosecutions were made under the Work at Height Regulations, this case also proves the importance of project planning in advance to ensure that the right equipment and risk management processes are ready before work begins.
- Wastecare Ltd was fined £120,000 plus costs of £4,937 after an employee was severely injured by batteries, each weighing 300+kg, fell on him. Three workers were in the process of restacking the batteries (which had been previously stored in flexible intermediate bulk containers, FIBCs, in an unsafe manner), when they toppled. The use of FIBCs must be risk assessed and controls implemented in line with industry guidance, none of which had happened, with unnecessary and serious consequences.
Guidance on the storage of FIBCs can be found on the National Bulk Bag website: https://rb.gy/ec6m5b
Road works
- Shropshire Council has said that it hopes the heavy fine issued to Severn Trent Water will serve as a warning to others about taking the management of roadworks seriously. The utility giant was ordered to pay £43,512 including costs after 6 sets of roadworks in Shropshire were found to be very poorly managed, in one case without any traffic control at all! Refer to: https://rb.gy/l7sgg5
A pertinent reminder then that ALL road and pavements works are subject to multiple stipulations including Chapter 8 traffic management controls and NRSW Act supervision and operative competence.
Equipment safety
- FJ Church & Sons Ltd was fined £200,000 plus £5,125 costs after an employee’s arm was severed in a sampling machine. The victim had passed her hand through an unguarded rotary valve to remove a blockage; the valve closed, trapping and severing the arm. The Company had failed to prevent access to the dangerous parts of the machine by fixed guarding or interlocking guards.
- Edwards Engineering (Perth) Ltd was fined £10,000 after an employee lost two fingers in a rotary fan on a grain dryer; the victim had inadvertently placed his hand into the blades of the machine. No guarding or risk assessment had been in place.
- Sartex Quilts & Textiles Ltd was fined £251,250 plus costs of £6,862 after two employees were seriously injured, both resulting in amputations, in two separate incidents.
The first incident involved an employee instructed to clean the measuring wheel on a cutting machine. He had climbed onto the conveyor belt which had not been properly isolated; the machine’s clamp came down, trapping his left hand and causing the circular saw to move and cut off three of his fingers before a fellow employee pressed the emergency stop button.
The second incident involved an employee attempting to place a casing onto the back of a quilting machine whilst it was still operating; his gloves became entangled, dragging his hand in, causing crush and laceration injuries which resulted in the tips of two fingers being amputated.
Yet again, the Company had failed to guard dangerous parts of machinery or provide adequate isolation and locking-off procedures. How many times do we hear of this type of needless incident happening, when will employers learn?
WHS is working for you; help us to help you.
Our aim is to keep people safe and to keep your company working.
To contact WHS, ring: 01952-885885