The construction industry is a minefield of health and safety legislation and red tape which can make overseeing the safety of workers and members of the public particularly challenging. Even with your accreditation in place and your policy seemingly up to HSE standards, there are many health and safety issues that you are likely to face and won’t always have the answers to, or the time to manage alone.
It’s a legal requirement for every workplace in the UK to have a competent person in place to help manage matters of health and safety from risk assessments to onsite audits.
This competent person doesn’t have to be a trained employee, or even require a recruitment process; one of the most cost-effective and efficient options is to outsource a Health and Safety Consultant.
What is a Health and Safety Consultant?
A Health and Safety Consultant is a qualified and experienced health and safety expert that is able to provide advice and support on all matters of health and safety.
Their job is to assist organisations in reducing health and safety risks in the workplace, as well as providing best practice consultancy to manage the process internally more efficiently.
What Should A Health and Safety Consultant Do?
When outsourcing the support of a health and safety consultant, they should be equipped to manage all of the following for you:
Audit of your health and safety systems
Conduct an extensive audit which may include site visits to ensure that health and safety management systems are in place and performing effectively.
Assess hazards and risk assessment
Conduct a full general risk assessment and identify all hazards and suggest/help implement methods of reducing these risks to create a safer work environment.
Review health and safety policy
Create a bespoke health and safety policy, or review the policy already in place, to ensure that all basic documentation is in accurate and in place to satisfy the HSE.
Provide unlimited, expert advice
No matter the issue, question or concern, your health and safety consultant will provide professional advice in line with legislation and current laws.
Why You Should Consider Outsourcing Health and Safety?
With the support of a health and safety consultant, you will have already met one of the most important requirements set by HSE; having a competent person in place to manage health and safety.
This will prove that you take health and safety seriously and will help get onto tender lists and face potential clients, many of which won’t even consider working with a contractor or company that does not have access to a qualified health and safety consultant.
Outsourcing this service also works out to be more cost-effective than hiring a full-time employee, and less time-consuming than training a current employee.
It also doesn’t put a strain on resources and it removes all pressure from your shoulders (and paperwork from your desk) so that you can focus on the day to day management of your business and ensuring that your team are productive.
If external health and safety support is not something you have considered before, then it’s worth getting an idea of costs and how it could add value to your business. Speak to an expert from our sister company here, and find out how they can help you with their Safety Advisory Service.