HEALTH & SAFETY POLICY AND PROCEDURES Document Control Panel File Reference Number File Name Owner Approver H&S-PP-01 Health and Safety Policy and Procedures Health & Safety Officer (Darren Murrain) Director of Service Delivery/CEO History Date Author s Name Changes Approved by Name 20/10/10 CC Revised 30/10/10 HA Reviewed PS 03/11/10 Approved Board of Trustees 30/06/11 CP Reviewed - no changes 18/01/12 LE Revised GW 04/12/12 LE Revised following change of premises and fire drill GW/PS 08/01/13 Board of Trustees 10/01/14 LE Reviewed GW/PS 23/01/14 Board of Trustees 10/01/15 LE Reviewed and updated 20/01/16 LE & DM Reviewed and updated 21/03/16 Approved (PF) Board of Trustees 26/05/17 LE Reviewed and updated AJC (Trustee) 06/06/17 Next Review Date 05/2018 Printed copies of this document are not version controlled.
INDEX 1 This Policy and these Procedures arise from... 3 2 Introduction... 3 3 Health & Safety in the Workplace... 3 4 Violence at Work... 5 Page 2 of 5
1 This Policy and these Procedures arise from 1.1 The Adoption Support Agencies (England) and Adoption Agencies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2005, Regulation 12, and the National Minimum Standards for Adoption Standard 25 2 Introduction 2.1 The overall and final responsibility for Health and Safety lies with the Board of Trustees but the day to day responsibility lies with the Responsible Individual/CEO who has delegated responsibility to the Operations Manager. The London office and the Leeds office each have designated Health & Safety Officers. The London office Health & Safety Officer is Darren Murrain and the Leeds office Health & Safety Officer is Yvette Collier. 3 Health & Safety in the Workplace 3.1 Every member of staff must take responsibility for their own health and safety and familiarise themselves with information relating to the reporting of accidents, knowing what actions to take in the event of a fire (see Fire Safety Policy and Procedure, separate document) and eye testing for DSE users (discuss with Line Manager if needed). 3.2 Staff must take advantage of the agenda of Staff Meetings to discuss Health and Safety Issues that arise. 3.3 All staff must co-operate with Health and Safety, fire and other inspections and must implement their requirements immediately. 3.4 If a hazard is detected in the workplace (other than a fire) the person discovering it must warn colleagues of its existence and report it to their manager immediately. Where managers are able to take action to reduce risk they should do so and immediately inform the Health & Safety Officer. 3.5 The CEO, or in their absence a Director of Service Delivery, will take the lead role in arranging whatever immediate action is required, including the closure of the office if necessary. Page 3 of 5
3.6 Where the CEO, or in their absence a Director of Service Delivery, finds there are no resources to deal with the hazard, s/he will inform the Board of Trustees so the necessary action can be authorised by them. 3.7 In cases of fire, the building is to be evacuated according to the posted guidance (see Fire Safety Policy and Procedure, separate document). Staff will obey any instruction given by a Fire Warden. 3.8 Staff are responsible for ushering their visitors out of the building when evacuation has been declared. 3.9 Managers, together with the Health & Safety Officer, will undertake risk assessments of each area of work on an annual basis and report these to the Board of Trustees annually. 3.10 Fire alarms and fire appliances will be maintained and tested in accordance with the manufacturers' recommendations. All electrical appliances will undergo annual PAT testing. 3.11 No substance falling within the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health will be left in the offices. Cleaning agents are the responsibility of the janitors who have their own arrangements for safe storage and use. The Health & Safety Officer will review the need for storage under COSHH on an annual basis. 3.12 Health and Safety Posters are displayed. Staff must not obscure these. The Health & Safety inspectors will check that posters are fully visible. 3.13 Line managers will ensure that induction training for new staff/volunteers includes Health and Safety matters. Where staff are required to operate machinery, the Health & Safety Officer will ensure that they have been trained by someone competent in the use of that machinery. 3.14 Staff who suffer an accident or injury at work or suffer from work-related ill-health must ensure that the details are recorded in the accident book provided. For further guidance see the Employee Handbook. 3.15 The Health & Safety Officer will review the content of the accident book monthly and ensure that appropriate action has been taken to prevent or reduce the risk of repetition of the accident, incident or potentially dangerous occurrence. 3.16 The Health & Safety Officer will take responsibility for reporting accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences to the appropriate enforcing authority within the required timescale. Page 4 of 5
4 Violence at Work 4.1 Risk assessments of potentially hazardous contacts will be identified to the Health & Safety Officer prior to engaging with them. 4.2 Strategies to address any assessed risk will be planned and adhered to, including, but not exclusively: addressing issues of lone working by establishing a contact line manager system working in pairs ensuring clients are seen in counselling rooms during office hours and after office hours only if another member of staff is in the same building 4.3 Staff/volunteers undertaking home visits during office hours are instructed to leave details of their location and expected times of the visit with a colleague. If, at the end of the visit, the member of staff/volunteer is not returning to the office they should phone to say they have ended the visit. 4.4 Any assault or threatening situations, including verbal threats, to a member of staff, must be reported immediately to the Health & Safety Officer. 4.5 Reports of an incident should be confirmed in writing as soon as possible after its occurrence. 4.6 Where a member of staff is discovered to have been assaulted, the primary concern is to protect that person and to ensure that they receive medical advice and care. The 999 services are to be alerted immediately. 4.7 Staff will not engage in forms of restraint which are inappropriate to the ethos of PAC-UK, nor will staff use forms of restraint for which they have not been formally trained. 4.8 The Health & Safety Officer will ensure that staff are debriefed following any threatening or violent occurrence and that they continue to receive support for a reasonable duration after the event. 4.9 The Health & Safety Officer/CEO will keep under review any reports of threatening or violent occurrences and report them as soon as practical to the Board of Trustees. Page 5 of 5