Health & Safety Policy

This policy is updated on at least an annual basis with more frequent amendments/additions based on legislative and process changes.

• Directors will ensure that there is an effective and efficient approach to Health and Safety throughout the organisation. Directors will make sure that all necessary resources and training are made, including suitable organisational structure in place for planning, implementing, monitoring, reviewing and evaluating Health and Safety arrangements throughout Skills Training UK.
• Directors will ensure that policies and procedures are developed to meet statutory / legal, moral and best practice obligations. They will ensure that all levels of management understand and implement Skills Training UK’s Health and Safety Policy and related policies and procedures.
• Directors will make sure that employees with dedicated responsibilities have the necessaryopportunity, authority and expertise to fulfil their duties including suitable Health and Safety and Risk Assessment training, including staff members responsible for checking Health and Safety in employer workplaces.

Managers

• Managers will ensure that there are sufficient measures in place to meet their legal obligations and the requirements of the company Health and Safety Policy. Managers will ensure that they and their staff understand their responsibilities under relevant legislation and are capable of fulfilling their duties in line with the company Health and Safety Policy.
• Managers will ensure that their teams are trained and (where applicable) supervised to meet their Health and Safety obligations. This includes ensuring all staff receive the necessary training to understand their responsibilities and ensure safety for all.
• Managers complete (where applicable) risk assessments for sites and centres in line with their responsibilities, including ongoing COVID-19 risk assessments.
• Managers will ensure that all staff maintain high housekeeping standards
• Managers will ensure that all accidents are recorded, reported and investigated

Health and Safety Staff / Working Group members

Health and Safety staff should provide information, advice and guidance to staff to meet their obligations.
They should support in the development and updating of policies, procedures, forms and resources including investigation as required.

Staff

• Staff will take responsibility for the Health and Safety of themselves, their colleagues and other visitors.
• Staff should comply with the company Health and Safety procedures and should honour their legal duties.
• Staff should not interfere with or misuse equipment provided for Health and Safety purposes.
• Staff will inform their managers of any situation that represents a risk or there is serious and immediate risk to themselves or others.
• Staff will report all accidents and incidents in line with the below processes.
• Staff will ensure that they maintain a safe working environment and minimise risk where required.

Apprenticeship specific requirements

Skills Training UK apprentices are full-time employees of their employer and, in accordance with Health and Safety Regulations 1990, responsibility for the health and safety and welfare of the apprentice lies with the employer. Skills Training UK will work in partnership with the employer to ensure apprentices are safeguarded and protected and will undertake a workplace risk assessment for all apprentices prior to commencement of apprenticeship delivery. The remainder of this policy applies equally to Trainer Assessors who deliver apprenticeship training in the workplace as to Centre Managers who manage centre-based training. Employers for whom we deliver Apprenticeship Training are required to:

• Comply with the requirements of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and all other statutory, Approved Codes of Practice and follow guidance produced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This will include
  • Provide effective competent supervision
  • Deliver an effective health and safety induction on recruitment.
  • Provide suitable and sufficient information, instruction, and training.
  • Provide adequate employers and public liability insurance cover in respect to the employer’s activities and that of the apprentice whilst at work.
  • Provide adequate employers and public liability insurance cover in respect to the employer’s activities and that of the trainee whilst at work.
  • Provide any necessary personal protective equipment/clothing and ensure its proper use, and
  • provide safe and healthy working environment, welfare facilities, equipment, safe systems of work and emergency arrangements. – Continually update its working practices considering changes to working practice (COVID19).
• Carry out risk assessments and where required record the significant findings. The employer shall bring the significant findings and control measures to the attention of the apprentice at induction on the first day. Code will also carry out a risk assessment and this is stored on our e-portfolio system OneFile and MIS system Solution 9.
• In case of an apprentice under 18 years of age, the employer shall assess any additional risks which arise out of the apprentices age and lack of experience and provide suitable controls measures (as required under the Health and Safety (Young Persons) Regulations 1997).
• In addition, for any apprentice under 18 years of age prohibit any activity which is beyond the trainee’s physical or psychological capability which cannot be controlled otherwise.
• Report any accident, work related ill health or other condition affecting the apprentice to the enforcing authority as required under the Reporting of Injuries Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 and immediately to Code.

The following is a non-exhaustive list of further considerations in the workplace environment.

Appropriate tasks/workplace environment: All operations will be reviewed, and jobs and tasks designed in such a way as to minimise the likelihood of work-related problems. Environment Adequate arrangements should be made to provide the correct levels of temperature, lighting, ventilation, noise and hygiene facilities for health and safety. Should this not be possible, then personal protective equipment including hand gels will be provided to protect the individual concerned. It is the duty of all those in charge of work to create and then maintain safe working practices. Where specific safety issues apply, these must be developed into formal written safe systems of work. Staff are required to formulate local safety rules, which consider the hazards of the activities at the location where they work.

Safe systems at work: People slipping, tripping, falling, bumping into objects, or having something fall on them cause the most serious accidents. Contaminates on the floor such as water, wastepaper or trailing cables are the main cause of people falling. People running or hurrying, especially up or down stairs, are the main cause of slips and trips. Special care should be taken during inclement weather when water can be carried into the building on shoes or other footwear making walking conditions hazardous.

Use of Display Screen Equipment: Skills Training UK aims to reduce risks of using display screen equipment and so provides workstation assessments, training, and eyesight tests. Everyone who works with display screen equipment (DSE) should be issued with a copy of the booklet ‘Health and Safety Guidelines for DSE Users’, which contains information about ergonomics/environment, posture, eye tests and work patterns. If you work on DSE and have not received a personal copy of the booklet, ask your manager to obtain one for you. You must follow the guidance in the booklet. If you experience any symptoms relating to keyboard work, report it to your Line Manager immediately. An incident report form should be completed and distributed appropriately. If you operate display screen equipment you are entitled to request an eyesight test from a qualified optometrist.

Overview of Information, Instruction and Training
Training and ongoing advice and instruction are delivered through staff and customer induction programmes and refresher training, with other short courses where required.

Operations Managers, Apprenticeship Delivery Managers and Centre Managers will be responsible for more centre specific Health and Safety training. Managers will ensure that all new or relocated staff members are shown the locations of first-aid boxes, accident books, fire exits, and firefighting equipment. The evacuation and alarm procedures will also be explained. They will also ensure that all staff members in their centre/department are aware of the company’s Health and Safety Policy.

Where elements of risk are involved in a task each Managers will be responsible for training and then supervising new staff members until they are satisfied that the staff member can perform the task safely.
Health and Safety information will also be communicated to staff and all other individuals visiting STUK centres using relevant related posters (for example, manual handling posters) and displaying them prominently on the Health and Safety notice boards.

• Managers and Leaders will be trained and held responsible for ensuring that the employees, under their supervision, follow this policy, use safe working practices and receive training to protect their Health and Safety while in the working environment. This includes (though not limited to):
  • Fire Arrangements
  • Hazardous Substances
  • Safe use of Equipment
  • Employee responsibilities
  • Use of any Personal Protective Equipment
  • Health & Safety Arrangements
  • Risk Assessments and control measures
  • Accident & First Aid Arrangements
  • Electrical Safety
  • Manual Handling

• Managers and Team Leaders also have a general responsibility for ensuring the safety of equipment and the facility for all users be they staff or learners
• The employees of Skills Training UK will be required to support this organisation’s Health and Safety and to co-operate with the Health & Safety Officer for Skills Training UK. Management commits to working in consultation and co-operation with the employees in achieving the company’s Health and Safety initiatives.
• The Health and Safety Officer will be qualified to manage safety and will hold as a minimum IOSH Managing Safely qualification. The Health and Safety Officer at present is the Director of Research Innovation and Development.
• In addition to the Health and Safety Officer, there are supplementary Health and Safety Support Officer who will be Operational staff tasked with day to day responsibility for providing all stakeholders with guidance, support and training.
• The Quality team are responsible for compiling evidence relating to Health and Safety reports and ensuring that sufficient training has taken place
• It is the responsibility of all personnel employed by Skills Training UK to report to their Manager or Team Leader as soon as possible, any hazardous conditions, injury, accident, or illness related to the workplace. Also, employees will protect their Health and Safety by complying with the 1974 Health & Safety Acts and Regulations and to follow policies, procedures, rules and instructions as prescribed by Skills Training UK.

Responsibility for Health and Safety

Overall responsibility for Health & Safety in Skills Training UK will be the Board of Directors, who will also be responsible for setting out the policy, and ensuring it is reviewed on at least an annual basis. Martin Dunford as Chief Executive has overall responsibility to ensure the Health & Safety Policy is implemented across Skills Training UK.

• Responsibility for maintenance and updating the policy is the responsibility of the Head of Quality and will be agreed with the Health & Safety Officer for Skills Training UK who is Steven Mitchell (Director of Research Innovation and Development).
• The day-to-day responsibility for ensuring Health and Safety Policy in each centre is the responsibility of each Centre Manager in each location who will, through consultation with the Health & Safety Officer, ensure the safety and well-being of all staff therein. It is however an expectation that all Skills Training UK staff will adhere to own personal duty of care and are responsible for this while at Skills Training UK, Partner, Sub-contractor, or external visits.

Expectations for all Skills Training UK staff

• Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, it is the duty of every member of staff (including contractors, and Supply Chain Partner sub-contracted staff) whilst at work to:
• Take reasonable care for the Health and Safety of themselves and any other people who might be affected by their acts or omissions.
• Co-operate with their employers and others on Health and Safety matters, to enable them to comply with statutory duties and requirements
• Not intentionally or recklessly misuse or interfere with anything provided in the interests of health, safety or welfare.

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (As amended) further require staff members to:

• Use any equipment, etc. provided in the interests of safety PPE
• Follow Health and Safety instructions
• Report anything, they consider to be a serious hazard or risk
• Report any shortcomings in the protection arrangements for Health and Safety within each Skills Training UK site

STUK expects all its staff members to keep their work areas clean, tidy and maintain a safe work environment at all times. All staff and customers should be aware that clutter, drawers left open, trailing wires, uneven floors, spillage, improperly stacked boxes and blocked or narrowed fire exits can pose very serious safety hazards. It should be recognised by all staff members that failure to abide by Health and Safety requirements can result in serious injury to themselves or others on the premises and could be regarded as a disciplinary offence. In particular, interference with or the misuse of equipment supplied by STUK in the interests of Health and Safety or welfare may be treated as an instance of misconduct, which could lead to dismissal.

It is the responsibility of every member of staff, customer or visitor to any STUK premises, not to use any equipment or machinery that he or she may consider to be unsafe or defective or has been indicated as such. No disciplinary action will be taken against any member of staff who refuses to use such equipment. The discovery of any defective or unsafe equipment or potential hazard will be reported to the relevant Manager or Team Leader immediately or as soon as possible. The potential hazards should also be brought to the attention of all staff and customers, and the equipment isolated from use until any defects have been rectified and made safe. Once any defects have been rectified or the piece of equipment is determined as being safe by a responsible and qualified person, staff and customers are expected to use the equipment.

Monitoring of Health & Safety

Skills Training UK recognise the importance of regular and effective monitoring of Health & Safety and have put in place a framework to ensure that all staff can feel confident of their working environment, and that encourages safe learning among our customers and Sub-contractor base.

Summary of responsibilities

• Centre Managers and Trainer Assessors (when working from employer environments) will monitor Health and Safety proactively, doing spot check visits, investigating any accidents or ill health
• Centre Managers and Trainer Assessors will ensure that our safe working practices are being followed, we will do spot checks and monitor and review procedures.
• Operations Managers will be responsible for Health and Safety for the contracts they managed and will be trained in Health and Safety to at least IOSH Working Safely standard.
• Accidents in the workplace will be investigated by the Health and Safety Officer through the nominated Health and Safety representative for each site
• Any work-related sickness and absences caused by the workplace will be investigated fully by both the Health and Safety Officer and Human Resources (HR) Team

Risk Assessments for Delivery Sites

Risk Assessments will be carried out for all new delivery sites. For the avoidance of doubt, this includes any premises where education and training takes place which includes apprenticeship delivery and where work placements are undertaken (for example in Traineeship delivery). Each delivery site is expected to have a periodic (minimum annual) Health and Safety check to ensure that the site conforms to the Health & Safety policy as detailed above and below.

• An initial risk assessment will be carried out by the nominated Health and Safety representative, using a standard template which identifies areas of potential risk. For employer premises this will be the Account Manager.
• If the assessment is deemed satisfactory, the report will be stored at Head Office, and a copy provided for the centre.
• Any remedial action recommended in the report will be completed and satisfactorily re-evaluated by the Health and Safety representative before submissions or referrals can take place to the centre, and existing business within the centre will need to be carefully monitored to ensure that any potential risk to either customers or colleagues is isolated or minimised.
• Risk Assessments will continue to be undertaken by the relevant Health and Safety representative as a minimum on a biannual basis for all Skills Training UK and Sub-contractor delivery sites to ensure regulatory compliance for both customer and frontline staff. A Risk Assessment may be brought forward or a new risk assessment may take place outside of the timelines due to changes in one of the following:
  • An accident at the centre that is required to be reported to RIDDOR; this will necessitate a Risk Assessment to avoid a repeat of such an occurrence
  • Change in legislation requiring re-assessment of the centre or additional training of frontline staff
  • Changes in location/environment or activity which may create an additional risk to customers and/or frontline staff
  • The person who is responsible for ensuring the action required is implemented will be the Manager or Team Leader.
  • The Manager or Team Leader is also responsible for ensuring that any recommended actions that arise from the Risk Assessment are carried out to a satisfactory level, through consultation with the relevant Health and Safety representative. In this respect, it will be the Health and Safety representative’s responsibility to check that the implemented actionshave been removed/reduced/ controlled.
  • If a risk is identified that has not been controlled, removed, or reduced within the given time-scale, referrals can be reduced or even stopped to the delivery site until the appropriate action is taken to mitigate the risk. If such a situation arises, referrals will only commence again with the written permission of the Skills Training Directorate, and once evaluated by the Health and Safety Officer for the organisation.

Basic Health & Safety Checking

The Basic Health and Safety Checking form is to be used by the Team Leader or Centre Manager every three months for Health & Safety inspections to check that standards are being implemented and management controls are in place.

This will bring to the awareness any safety products dates, or when maintenance of items that will need to be renewed. The Monitoring Form provides the opportunity to check how the Health & Safety System is doing and to identify and resolve any problems before they escalate.

If there is a concern that cannot be rectified, please contact Health and Safety Officer.
Team Leader will complete this form every month for their centre, answering all questions regarding the building, staff, and general safety of the environment. The Monitoring form once complete should be filed in the centre, with a copy sent to Head Office for storing by the Health and Safety Officer. The Health and Safety Officer will periodically check that the Monitoring form is being submitted by all centres, and will ask the Quality team to periodically check to ensure that the monitoring form reflects the current conditions within each centre.

Competency and Training

All employees will be given Health and Safety induction training when they start their employment with STUK. This covers the basic instructions of:

• Basic Health and Safety in the Workplace (this is aligned to IOSH Working Safely certificate)
• Basic First Aid
• Fire safety
• Manual Handling
• Control of Substances Hazardous to Health

Annual refresher training will be made available for legislative changes, updates to the Health & Safety policy, or in the event of a specific occurrence that requires training to staff. Job specific training will be provided by Centre Manager; though suitable elements of training may be outsourced as appropriate to external provision.

Training records for all Health & Safety related training will be kept under the training section on our Breathe HR system and this is monitored by the Human Resources Department. It is expected that all members of staff will have completed as a minimum training in the below subject areas. Additional training and any refresher training requirements will be identified and arranged by Centre Manager/Team Leaders through the Quality team. Training advice and instruction are delivered through staff and customer induction programmes and presentation talks

Personal Protective Equipment

The nature of STUK’s operations does not generally require the use of personal protective clothing or equipment. However, in some tasks such as cleaning and tidying of the centre, where chemicals may be used, STUK will endeavour to provide the necessary personal protective items. Steps are taken to ensure that contractors supplying manual services to the company comply fully with Health and Safety requirements, including the use of protective clothing and equipment. The responsibility for this and for ensuring that contractors meet Health and Safety regulations rests with the Manager or Director who agreed the contract. The Health and Safety Officer will also be available to offer further advice where required.

COSHH – Control of Substances Hazardous to Health

There are a small number of potentially hazardous substances with which STUK Staff and customers are likely to come into contact. It is important that all STUK staff members and customers are aware of these substances, and of the risks involved if they are misused. Issues relating to COSHH will be brought to the attention of all new staff by Centre Managers and Team Leaders in each centre.

All cleaning chemicals in Centre to be recorded in the COSHH File.

The cleaning company to carry through risk assessment of all cleaning chemicals in Centre. This will ordinarily already be provided in most serviced offices though a copy should be available in the centre
Review cleaning agents and COSHH Risk Assessment file every two months.

COSHH is not limited to cleaning products and includes any substance with the potential to cause harm. For instance, printer toner and dusts could be health hazards and therefore all staff should be made aware of the safe usage of these products before handling.

Manual Handling

STUK members of staff will be trained in performing manual handling operations safely and will be supervised until their manager is satisfied that they can perform such tasks independently. STUK recognises that some members of staff will have to perform occasional manual handling tasks as part of everyday office activity. All staff will therefore be given basic manual handling training as a part of their induction programme.

Instruction Information and Supervision

The following information should be made available to all customers and staff within the centre; this also includes premises checks for apprenticeships and work experience activity. This will ordinarily be provided by a poster or information booklet as appropriate, and it is the Health and Safety representative (for the centres) responsibility to include this in their risk assessment.

• The Health and Safety law poster will be displayed in a prominent location in all centres. This will clearly identify the Health and Safety nominee for the centre, which will ordinarily be the Team Leader. Please note that the Health and Safety nominee cannot be the Health and Safety Officer as the person will be an individual who is on site on a daily basis:
• A poster on Manual Handling should be prominent in the centre
• A Fire Safety poster will be placed in a prominent location where all Customers are aware of the location and can reference as required. The fire poster will indicate
• The designated person as Fire Warden
• Meeting point/location for all customers in the event of a fire evacuation or drill
• First Aid posters should also be present at every centre, and will be displayed in a prominent location in all centres. This will clearly identify
• The designated First Aid representative for the centre which will ordinarily be the Team Leader. Please note that the First Aider should not be the CI Officer for the centre as the person will be an individual who is on site on a daily basis.
• Copies of relevant and current insurances must also be prominently displayed; these include:
  • Employer Liability Insurance
  • Public Liability Insurance
  • Professional Indemnity Insurance

Accident Book

An Accident Book is a log of all accidents and injuries sustained by customers while at the centre or participating on any provision offered by either Skills Training UK or Provider.

If any accident occurs while a Customer is on the programme, it is the responsibility of the Team Leader/ Manager to complete the Accident Book, outlining the nature of the accident, the time/date of when the accident occurred, and any additional pertinent information. If the accident required First Aid, it is the responsibility of the designated First Aid Representative to record in the Accident book all accident information and cases of work-related ill health. The accident book will be kept in a place where it is easily accessible to all employees at all reasonable times.

Data protection law requires that personal information will be kept confidential and secure. The Manager/Team Leader to be responsible for the safekeeping of completed accident records.
All employees who have an accident at work that results in personal injury or ill health will make an entry in the accident book or have someone else make the entry on their behalf.
An entry in the accident book will not be seen by anyone apart from those people who need to see it to investigate the accident and take the appropriate action. Completed accident records will be detached from the book and passed to the Manager, Team Leader and First Aider and stored securely in a lockable filing cabinet.

If first aid treatment is given by an authorised first aider it will be recorded in the Accident Book.

If unsure about any Health and Safety matter, please contact the Health and Safety Officer
A record of the incident will also be passed to the Quality representative responsible for collating Health and Safety data

First Aid Provision

First aid provision is available in all STUK Centres, and each centre is expected to have as a minimum, one individual who is qualified to administer basic first aid provision. A designated area will be assigned where First Aid provision will be made available and can be administered.

If an accident occurs which requires First Aid treatment, it is the responsibility of the First Aid representative to assess the suitability for First Aid provision, and to treat the individual within the limitations of their training. It is important that any treatment should be indicated in the accident book as indicated above.

Emergency Procedures and Fire evacuation

The Centre Manager or Employer (for apprentices and work experience) is responsible for ensuring the fire risk assessment is undertaken and implemented. Each Centre will have a designated Fire Warden, who will ordinarily be either the Centre Administrator or Centre Manager. The key role of the Fire Warden will be to:

• Check escape routes and fire exits on a weekly basis, reporting to Team Leader if there are any issues with accessibility or condition
• Check all Fire extinguishers on a weekly basis
• Emergency evacuation will be recorded by Fire Wardens.
• A weekly fire alarm test in each STUK Centre will be recorded by Fire Wardens.

Fire Safety Log Book

Fire Wardens are tasked with the weekly upkeep of the Fire Safety Log Book, which is used for recording all details of fire safety including fire alarm testing, evacuation, any false alarms, and periodic checking of equipment. Most Fire & Safety Log Books are self-explanatory with advice and instruction given. The Fire Warden will ensure that the fire book is kept up to date and monitored at all times and this will be checked by the Health and Safety representative on a biannual basis, with more regular checks being carried out by the Centre Manager or Employer.

While a number of Skills Training UK offices are serviced and therefore will already have a Fire Warden for the building, there will still be a designated Fire Warden for Skills Training UK offices. In the event of a fire or fire drill, it is the responsibility of the Fire Warden to:

• Direct all customers, staff and visitors to the safest stair way or exit door leading to the designated Assembly Point of the building.
• Check building (if safe to do so) to ensure empty, ensure the doors are closed where practicable
• Once the Fire Warden has left the building, it is their responsibility to take a full register/ head count outside building of all staff, customers, and visitors relevant to their office.
• Be the point of information and contact to the Fire Safety Inspector, Fire Warden, and Fire Brigade as appropriate to the situation
• Be aware of employees who may need special assistance for emergency building evacuation (mobility, vision, hearing impaired)

In addition, the Fire Warden will:

• Be familiar with all escape routes and exits including disabled refuges.
• Record in fire book and report any damage to fire safety equipment e.g. extinguishers, alarms, smoke detectors, fire doors, to Team Leader, Centre Manager.
•  Ensure that the Fire Safety Book is kept up to date and monitored weekly.
• If unsure on any Health and Safety matter, please contact the Health and Safety Officer for Skills Training UK
• Ensure that all visitors to the premises are aware of the actions to take in the event of an emergency.

Welfare Facilities

In line with the requirements of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, Skills Training UK is committed to providing a safe place of work, with appropriate welfare facilities. This includes:

• The provision of a good working environment, with all appropriate Health and Safety facilities
• Safe access to and egress from the office environment
• General welfare facilities including; hot beverages, cold water supply, toilet facilities

All employees have the responsibility to seek to ensure that such facilities are not abused or misused.

New Equipment

Skills Training UK requires the suppliers of new equipment such as printers, fax machines, photocopiers, etc. to ensure that they are safely installed and clear operating instructions given to staff. It is the responsibility of the Centre Manager to ensure that adequate equipment is installed and is being safely used at that location. The installation of equipment should not be carried out by unqualified members of staff, and therefore should be coordinated with the relevant parties to avoid staff having to assemble or set up equipment where at all avoidable. For apprentices where equipment is provided by Skills Training UK it is the responsibility of the Trainer Assessor to ensure that the equipment is safe to use.

Electrical systems and equipment

Skills Training UK comply with Electricity at Work Regulations. We reduce the potential of an electrical hazard by:

• Using competent or qualified persons for any repair maintenance tasks
• Using competent or qualified persons to complete regular inspecting and testing
• Ensuring safe systems of work for all work carried out on an electrical device or systems
• Ensuring only safe, suitable and approved materials and equipment are used

Regular testing and inspections are carried out on electrical installations at least every five years. Portable appliance testing will take place at a frequency determined by the risks associated with their
use. All colleagues are informed that no personal equipment is permitted onsite unless presented for inspection, tested authorised.

Stress and Wellbeing

Skills Training UK is responsible for ensuring, so far as is possible and practicable, the health, safety and welfare of staff and apprentices through the implementation of a stress management system. All staff and apprentices should be made aware of Skills Training UK’s approach to stress management. All managers are responsible for monitoring workloads of their team members. We will address areas of concerns through the following approaches:

• Prevent stress by managing and controlling pressures which staff are exposed to
• Managers should address identified stress through the support of the systems and personnel available (e.g. HR staff)
• Work with staff to develop strategies to support with their stress levels
• Provide staff with training and resources to do their jobs
• Monitoring for excessive working hours
• Providing access to the Employee Assistance Programme

This will be monitored by leaders, managers and HR staff.

Incident / Accident Investigation

The main reason for investigating an incident/accident is to identify the causes of the accident so that action can be taken to prevent a recurrence. Accident investigations should be carried out as soon as possible after the event, with the results of the investigation recorded in the Health & Safety folder. The report will give a full description of the accident and its causes.

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR), place a legal duty on Skills Training UK to report any incidence where any of the following has occurred. Definitions for each of these is included on the Health & Safety Executive website, and the Health and Safety Officer will decide whether an accident or incident it RIDDOR reportable.

• Work related death
• Major injuries while at work
  Injuries causing the individual to be away from work for over 3 days
• Work related diseases
• Dangerous occurrences

Definitions available at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/guidance.htm

Reporting accidents and ill health at work is a legal requirement. The information enables the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and local authorities, to identify where and how risks arise, and to investigate serious accidents.

In addition to reporting accidents, it is also a requirement for Skills Training UK to report incidences where an accident did not occur, but potentially could have had serious consequences. This is usually termed a ‘near-miss’ and will also be reported to the Health and Safety Executive.

Accident Investigation Process

The process of Accident Investigation can be broken down into 5 steps which should be followed in all instances where an accident or ‘near-miss’ has occurred.

Step 1 – The Immediate Response: Make sure that treatment of any injured persons and processes have been made. Make safe or isolate any electronic device, machinery or process and where required contact the Emergency Services . Report all accidents to the Health and Safety Officer immediately, even if the incident did not result in an accident

Step 2 – Assemble the Facts: Gather evidence as soon as possible after the accident/incident. Any damaged work equipment should be labelled and kept in a safe place away from customers and staff. Witness statements should only be taken in the case of serious injury; this will be ascertained by the Health and Safety Officer who will advise how best to continue the investigation.

Step 3 – Determine the Causes: An unsafe act or condition may be the cause of the injury but will not necessarily be the root cause of the accident. The majority of accidents have causes relating back to the management of the activity. When searching for the causes of accidents it is useful to consider the following areas:

• Appropriate equipment or PPE not made available or used
•  Competence – Lack of training, inadequate supervision, lack of sufficient information or no knowledge of work procedures to do the job safely
• System of Work – Poor work methods, jobs not properly planned or not performed in the approved manner

Step 4 – Post Accident Risk Assessments: The results of the investigation will show whether existing control measures are adequate or what remedial action is needed. Risk assessments should be reviewed and updated whenever the accident investigation indicates that the earlier assessment is no longer valid.

The Health and Safety will be responsible for reporting the incident/accident to RIDDOR as appropriate and will organise for a full risk assessment of the centre, with particular attention given to the location of the accident.

Step 5 -The Recommendations: A full report will be provided by the Health and Safety Officer covering what actions are necessary to eliminate the hazards or control the risks that the hazards pose

Storing of Health & Safety Information

The Centre Manager (or Trainer Assessor in the workplace they are delivering training) is responsible for management control of the paperwork and storage. Each STUK Centre will have a comprehensive log of all Health and Safety related activity which is available to the Health and Safety Officer, HSE, Jobcentre Plus, or appropriate funding body. The simplest way of ensuring all Health and Safety information is kept in one location is to have a Health & Safety file in each centre. As a minimum, the Health and Safety file should contain:

• All Health and Safety documentation pertaining to the centre
• All Basic Health and Safety Assessments carried out by the team Leader/Centre manager
• All Monitoring Visits by the CI Officer / Health and Safety Officer
• Any reports from Health and Safety Officer following a RIDDOR reportable event (See above)
• Any follow up reports from HSE (Your Health and Safety Officer will provide copies of these)
• Accident Book
• Fire Safety Log Book

COVID-19

In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, Skills Training UK implemented a number of measures that will continue as standard practice even after the rules and regulations relating to centres are or have been removed.

• All centres completed a Corona (COVID-19) risk assessment prior to reopening their doors and admitting learners back into centres. The ‘COVID-19: Operational Risk Assessment for Skills Training UK Centre Reopening; document was completed by every centre and monitored by senior management and Health and Safety representatives.
• This risk assessment took into consideration the existing legislation, such as HASAW 1974, as well as our Safeguarding Policy, RIDDOR and Health Protection regulations. It was also informed by Covid-10 Education and Skills Service Strategy, HSEs Working safely during the coronavirus outbreak guidance and the Education and Skills Service Recovery Planning support for schools report from May 2020.

Due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic, measures are still in place to minimise risk to learners and staff. This includes:

• Contingency measures to maintain sufficient staffing levels to provide a safe environment for learners
• Clear processes for staff and learners who test positive for COVID-19 to maintain the safety of everyone who attends a centre. The same protection measures are in place for colleagues who attend learner / employer workplaces
• Dedicated plans in place for all vulnerable learners and staff
• Training for staff on all measures required to minimise risk to health for all
• The physical environment that training is delivered in
• Centre cleaning protocols
• Ensuring sufficient measures are in place to reduce risks (space / social distancing measures – even after the legal requirements were / are lifted in full, shared spaces protocols)
• Equipment, PPE and materials to prevent and reduce risks – These practices will be maintained for the foreseeable future to continue to reduce risks where possible
• Protocols for testing and entering centres – This includes the retention of temperature checks in all centres to reduce the risk for the foreseeable future
• Temporary adaptations to standard fire procedures to ensure safety for all
• Visitor and contractor risk reduction – As with staff and learners, temperature checks will be retained for the foreseeable future
• Additional support arrangements in place to support learners and staff with any mental health concerns. Skills Training UK have invested significantly in staff training, diagnostic systems and employee support arrangements for staff.