Many companies do not have the in-house expertise to identify, prioritise and address all of the requirements associated with health, safety and environmental legislation. Others have in-house expertise, but recognise the value of an opinion from a fresh pair of eyes. A site review provides an opportunity to perform a spot check on a company's H&S progress. It will usually involve:

• Identification of relevant legislation and best practice

• Evaluation of the degree to which the site meets these standards

• Discussions regarding improvements

• Provision of a review report which summarises the requirements, current practices and suggestions for improvement as well as detailing an action plan

Manual handling is a topic of concern for most businesses. It is often not possible to eliminate all handling, so training is used to reduce the risks as far as possible. However, the provision of external training to a whole company can be expensive and will need to be repeated when new staff join. Therefore, the train the trainer programme is a popular way of bringing the training skills in-house. Courses can be delivered at your site or your staff can attend open courses

The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 require that if daily personal noise exposure is likely to be 80dB(A) or above, a noise assessment must be conducted by a competent person. 80 dB(A) very roughly equates to the noise level where conversation is possible with a person 2 meters away, but noise is intrusive.

Noise surveys typically involve taking a range of instant readings around the workplace to create a noise map. Personal dose-metering may also be undertaken to provide personal exposure levels over the working day to compare with the legal limits. The results of the survey will be summarised in a report which includes recommendations and an action plan. The latter will often involve the designation of hearing protection zones in areas where thresholds are likely to be exceeded.

It should be noted that the noise thresholds in the UK were significantly tightened in February 2006, when the second action level (at which hearing protection becomes compulsory) was reduced by 5 dB(A) which is a 60% reduction. Therefore, areas which did not previously need to be designated as hearing protection zones may need to be controlled in this manner.

Risk assessments are designed to make the workplace safer through:

• Identification of hazards

• Evaluation of the associated controls and level of risk

• Documenting the main findings

• Formulation and implementation of an action plan to make improvements

It is nearly always advisable to conduct subject specific risk assessments, rather than generic assessments which cover all hazards at once. For example, when evaluating manual handling hazards, it is necessary to consult the relevant Approved Code of Practice published by the Health and Safety Executive. This publication runs to 55 pages and there are similar ACOPs on a wide range of issues. Therefore, it makes sense to consider one topic and its associated guidance in a risk assessment, rather than trying (and failing) to apply several thousand pages of guidance at once in a generic assessment.

Risk assessments can be undertaken in a variety of ways. Alistair Bromhead can conduct the assessments and generate the required reports and action plans. Alternatively, he can provide assistance to a member of staff to help them undertake the assessments. This assistance may take the form of training, providing sample assessment forms, sample reports and working through assessments in the workplace.

Risk assessments are often required for manual handling, machinery, hazardous substances, e.g. solvents and wood dust and fire precautions

Alistair can offer a range of courses certified by City and Guilds (C&G) or the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH):

• C&G - Manual handling train the trainer (2 day)

• C&G - Certificate in Health and Safety (2 day)

• C&G - Certificate in Environmental Management (3 day)

• C&G - The management of hazardous substances in woodworking (1 day)

• C&G - Resource efficiency in the woodworking industry (2 day)

• CIEH Foundation Certificate in H&S in the workplace (1 day)

• CIEH Principles of manual handling Certificate (1/2 day)

• Overview of H&S for directors

• Tool-box talks on specific issues

Companies signing up to an annual retainer will also receive free advice by phone, fax and e-mail. 

Site visit to:

• Identify relevant legislation and best practice

• Evaluate the degree to which the site meets these standards

• Make suggestions for improvement in the form of an action plan

Training can be provided on a variety of topics, in a range of depths:

• City & Guilds Certificate in Environmental Management (3 days)

• Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Certificate in Environmental Awareness (1 day)

• Detailed training for those with environmental responsibility

• General training for the workforce

• Subject specific sessions, e.g.: resource efficiency, solvent reduction and the packaging regulations

Alistair is running a Resource Efficiency Club with Envirowise funding and can provide help to other companies through training, consultancy, site audits and telephone advice