HSE51: Regulation Of Health And Safety At Work

The HSE has recently published a document ('HSE51') explaining the main features of the regulatory approach taken by HSE and local authorities (LAs) to improve standards in health and safety performance.

We summarise it as follows:

In Great Britain, the primary responsibility for managing health and safety risks to workers and others lies with the business or the person that creates the risk. The HSE seeks to ensure that businesses manage these risks effectively and proportionately by intervening to influence, encourage and advise them and, where necessary, to hold to account those who fail to meet their responsibilities.

The HSE is responsible for developing health and safety strategies for specific industry sectors, taking into account factors such as the size and demographics of the industry, death, injury and ill-health rates and potential future risks, determining where to intervene and how to do so most appropriately.

HSE interventions include:

Influencing and engaging with industry stakeholders such as trade associations, professional bodies, trade unions and other organisations that represent workers; Influencing large employers by encouraging them to make continuous improvements as part of their corporate governance, or using their influence to improve standards further down the supply chain; Creating knowledge and awareness of health and safety risks and encouraging changes in behaviour by providing businesses with information via web-based tools, topic or industry-specific guidance, Approved Codes of Practice and Safety and Health Awareness Days; Promoting proportionate health and safety and discouraging unnecessarily risk-averse behaviour through...