PHSC Health and Safety News

Issue: September 2010

New and changing legislation

Review of safety regulation

As promised during his election campaign, Prime Minister David Cameron has confirmed the appointment of the Rt Hon Lord Young of Graffham as his adviser on health and safety law and practice.

Mr Cameron stated that he saw “the rise of the compensation culture over the last ten years” as a major issue, and was critical of the way that some health and safety laws are applied. Lord Young’s brief is to work with Government departments to look at all the legislation and ensure that businesses are not overburdened with red tape. In accepting his appointment, Lord Young commented that he was looking for a common-sense approach to regulation, targeted to where the risk lay and without excessive bureaucracy. As well as the impact on companies, he will address the impact on the public sector and community organisations.

Trades Union Congress general secretary Brendan Barber is on record as saying that far from scrutinising the legislation, time would be “better spent investigating a work culture that injures a quarter of a million people each year and makes another half a million employees ill”.

Possible new focus on musculoskeletal risks

Following a European Union initiative, consideration is being given to consolidating the duty to control risks of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) under a single set of regulations. Presently the prevention of these conditions is the main focus of both the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 and the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment)Regulations 1992.

If MSD-related requirements were taken out of current laws and combined in a new Statutory Instrument, the eyesight testing obligations for display screen equipment users could become a health surveillance requirement under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. Thus three pieces of legislation would be reduced to two. Deregulators could claim a success, but in practice employers would continue to have broadly the same obligations.

New and changing publications

HSE Books catalogue

A new catalogue has been published, with details of all the new titles and the complete list of current publications. It explains how to place an order, gives all the subscription information, contact details, and links to HSE’s other services. The catalogue also has a full index intended to make things easy to find.

For a copy of this free catalogue contact HSE Books on 01787 881165 or on http://books.hse.gov.uk/hse/public/home.jsf

Industry news

Annual accident statistics released

Figures for the number of workers who were fatally injured in various sectors have been released by HSE. They show that between April 2009 and March 2010 there were 41 construction workers killed compared to an average of 66 workers in each of the previous five years. There was a 20% fall on 2008/09 when 52 workers died. The services sector fared slightly worse with 42 workers killed at work, though this compares well with the 72 in the previous five years, and is a reduction of nearly a third on 2008/09 when 62 workers died. Improvements were also recorded in the manufacturing sector where 24 workers were killed compared to an average of 38 in the past five years. This is a reduction of 27% on 2008/09 when 33 workers died. 

Safety standards questioned after Cotswold death

Cotswold District Council and the police are investigating after a 15-year-old London girl died after being pulled unconscious from the water by a member of the public at a bathing lake at Cotswold Water Park.

Witnesses said there were insufficient staff available but Watermark, who look after the facility, said that four lifeguards were on site. They also pointed out that there are signs advising families to supervise their own children.

After the incident it came to light that the local parish council had previously raised concerns and written to the district council on what they saw as insufficient first aid cover and too few lifeguards. The parish council requested an investigation to allay concerns about public safety, but Cotswold District Council passed the letter to the HSE. This prompted councillor Esmond Jenkins to say “There’s a question mark now as to whether Cotswold District Council realised they had been responsible for the place or are indeed responsible for the place in health and safety terms”.

HSE’s annual report

The Health and Safety Executive have published their Annual Report and Accounts for 2009/10. This can be accessed at www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/reports/0910. Running to over 100 pages, the document gives information including a commentary on health and safety performance.

Fall from stairs leads to fatality

A retired draughtsman was killed after he fell from the stairs of a coach as it drew up outside his holiday hotel in Devon. Paramedics took James Hartill, aged 79, to Torbay Hospital in Torquay after the incident but he died of his injuries. Reports suggest that the man was standing on the rear stairs and lost his balance, striking his head on the stairwell, when the coach reversed into the car park of the Water’s Edge Hotel.

Bus driver attacked with laser pen

Two teenagers are thought to have been responsible for an incident in Percy Main, Tyne & Wear, in which a bus driver had a green laser shone into his eyes. The driver of the 19 Veolia Transport passenger service sustained blurred vision and discomfort and had to seek hospital treatment.

Campaign on substance use in the motor trade

As part of a European-wide campaign called “Risk Assessment in the Use of Hazardous Substances”, enforcement agencies in the UK are to focus on motor vehicle repair. The campaign has been instigated by the Senior Labour Inspectors Committee, who aim to promote consistency in approach.

In the courts

Retailer woes afterfire safety lapses

Retailer New Look failed in efforts to overturn a fine of £400,000 for breaches of fire safety legislation in its Oxford Street, store. The Court of Appeal said that the fine was proportionate to the risk. The offences were the failure to carry out adequate fire safety training of staff, and failure to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risk of fire. Both were contraventions of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

In a separate case under the same legislation, Tesco was fined £95,000 for offences including failure to review a fire risk assessment. This followed a small fire in the kitchen at the Colney Hatch supermarket. The fire had already been dealt with before the fire brigade attended, but the room was left full of smoke. London Fire Brigade arrived and found the premises to be locked, with people inside filling shelves after closing time. Upon gaining entry, fire officers had to ask several times for people to evacuate. When making a follow-up visit the next day, fire doors were wedged open and some exits blocked.

Fined for failure to assess asbestos risks

Darchem Engineering Limited appeared before Teesside Magistrates’ Court to answer charges under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006. Their guilty plea led to fines of £3,000 for failing to protect their employees. The offence was spotted by a contractor who had been trained in asbestos awareness, and noticed  two maintenance workers drilling into asbestos insulation board to relocate a junction box without taking appropriate precautions. The workers were potentially exposed to asbestos fibres, and HSE Inspector Andrew Mulligan said: “A suitable and sufficient assessment should have been carried out and the company should have made sure that their employees had adequate information, instruction and training.”

Missing thermostat lands nursing home in hot water

The owners of West House Nursing Home at Westcliffon- Sea were prosecuted in Southend Magistrates’ Court for a breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. Rootcroft Limited had to pay a fine and costs of £11,000 along with £500 compensation to an elderly resident.

Michael Ginn was lowered into a bath by two care assistants using a hoist. The water was estimated to be at 72°C, well above the safe limit of 44°C. Mr Ginn sustained serious burns. There was no thermostatic valve to control water temperature. Staff had been told to use a thermometer but no-one checked that they did. In addition, inspectors found that hot and cold water was stored at temperatures which would allow legionella bacteria to grow. The home had also ignored guidance on hot water safety given by the Care Quality Commission and Essex County Council.

Essex car wash fined over ECLI breaches

Southend Magistrates fined Essex car-wash operator Prowash Systems £6,750 in July after the company was unable to produce evidence of having any employers’ liability insurance.

A Health and Safety Executive officer had called unannounced in November 2009 as part of a check to establish that local businesses were properly insured, and gave the firm a month to come up with a certificate when none could be found. There was no response to the deadline and management failed to attend an HSE-arranged interview to explain themselves. The case was heard in the absence of the company who were found guilty of a number of breaches of the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969.

PHSC Group news

“Life changing event” DVD now on sale

The Royal Life Saving Society UK, in association with PHSC plc company Quality Leisure Management (QLM), have released a DVD entitled “Life changing event”. The film is based on a drowning and is aimed at training lifeguards and their managers but there are many parallels that apply to any organisation. The key message is that everyone meant well and nobody wanted the incident to happen, but complacency cost a life and changed everyone’s life, not just the bereaved family.

The DVD shows how a typical courtroom scene in a criminal prosecution under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 would be conducted. The aim is not to be totally precise on courtroom protocols but to show the impact on everyone involved. Please contact QLM on (tel) 01451 861084 if you’d like to discuss how it might be used in your own training programme.

Raunds staff run for charity

Carol Hudson and Kae Bailes of RSA Environmental Health joined Claire Tunnicliffe and Rebecca Knapp from Adamson’s Laboratory Services in the 5km Race for Life Run at Milton Keynes in aid of Cancer Research. Between them, the four Raunds-based office staff raised a total of around £460 for the charity.

NEBOSH dates

Places are still available for PHSC’s next NEBOSH National General Certificate course to be held at Aylesford between 18-22 October and 1-5 November with examinations on 9 and 10 November.

The course fee of £1,495 plus VAT is fully inclusive of tuition, examination charges,lunches and refreshments.

And finally

This risk assessment seems more than a bit picky…

News comes to us that Macdonald Portal Golf and Spa Hotel in Cheshire has an interesting perspective on risk assessment.

John Freeman had finished dining there with his wife, when he asked the waiter to please get him a toothpick. However, the waiter immediately refused the request on the grounds of health and safety – toothpicks were sharp! Undaunted, and with the bit between his teeth (well, something was in between them…) Mr Freeman demanded to see the manager. Although she said that it may appear somewhat odd, she had to comply with an instruction from head office not to provide toothpicks because they are potentially dangerous and “there’s a law against it.”Mr Freemen happened to mention the numerous metal forks and knives on the table that had been unsupervised all the time, but to no avail.

A local dentist thought that perhaps the ban was to stop diners flicking out a crown and injuring themselves or others and trying to blame the hotel. He went on to say “perhaps the restaurants should keep a roll of dental floss available – I don’t think you can injure yourself with floss.”

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