WILTSHIRE POLICE FORCE PROCEDURE Accident Management Procedure Effective from: 05.03.15 Page 1 of 12
TABLE OF CONTENTS Identification... 3 Ownership... 3 Revision History... 3 Approvals... 3 Distribution... 3 Equality Impact Assessment... 4 Consultation... 4 Implications of the Procedure... 4 Training Requirements... 4 IT Infrastructure... 4 STRATEGIC PRIORITIES... 5 RELATED POLICIES, PROCEDURES and OTHER DOCUMENTS... 5 DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998... 5 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000... 5 MONITORING and REVIEW... 5 WHO TO CONTACT ABOUT THIS PROCEDURE... 5 Dangerous Occurrences... Error! Bookmark not defined. Exemptions... Error! Bookmark not defined. Definition... 7 Reporting Procedure... 8 Page 2 of 12
Identification Procedure Title: Version: Accident Management Procedure V7 Ownership Department Responsible: Procedure Owner: Health and Safety, People Services Sarah Somers, Head of Health and Safety Revision History Effective From 04.03.15 Next Review Date: Every three years or when significant changes in work activity, process or procedure occur. Revision Date Previous Revision Date Summary of Changes 03.06.09 08.03.07 Standard review 23.09.11 03.06.09 Standard review 24.01.12 23.09.11 Standard review 01.03.15 24.01.12 Standard review 25.05.2018 Data Protection section amended to reflect implementation of GDPR and new DPA. Approvals This document requires the following approvals: Name & Title Date of Approval Version Occupational Health and Safety Committee (DCC chair) 04.03.15 V7 Chief Officer Group JNCC for ratification Not required Distribution This document has been distributed via: Name & Title Date of Issue Version E-Brief - - Email to relevant affected Staff/Officers - - Page 3 of 12
Equality Impact Assessment Has an EIA been completed? Yes No Informal assessment conducted result low risk. If no, please indicate the date by which it will be completed. If yes, please send a copy of the EIA with the procedure. Date: Consultation List below who you have consulted with on this policy (incl. committees, groups, etc): Name & Title Date Version Consulted Occupational Health and Safety Committee 04.03.15 V7 JNCC for ratification V7 Implications of the Procedure Training Requirements Any perceived training requirements needed to implement this procedure should be identified here. IT Infrastructure State here whether implementation of this procedure requires any input from IT, adaption and/or addition to any IT systems or packages? Page 4 of 12
PROCEDURE OVERVIEW The objective of this procedure is to clearly define Wiltshire Police s procedures with regards to the reporting, recording, investigating and management of accidents / assaults resulting in injury, ill health or damage in the workplace and near misses which could have caused injury, ill health or damage in the workplace. GLOSSARY OF TERMS HSE Term Health and Safety Executive Meaning RIDDOR Reporting of Injuries Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations STRATEGIC PRIORITIES The Force Priorities linked to this document are set out below. Force Priorities Linked to this Policy SP4 Developing Sustainable Policing RELATED POLICIES, PROCEDURES and OTHER DOCUMENTS All other Wiltshire Police Health and Safety Policy s and Procedures DATA PROTECTION Any information relating to an identified or identifiable living individual recorded as a consequence of this procedure will be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018, General Data Protection Regulations and the Force Data Protection Policy. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 This document has been assessed as suitable for public release. MONITORING and REVIEW The Accident Management Procedure document will be monitored and reviewed every three years by the Force Head of Health and Safety. The procedure will also be reviewed in light of legislative change, change in technology or best practice. The Force Occupational Health and Safety Committee will be responsible for approval and monitoring the procedure document and its implementation on a regular basis and the procedure will also be passed through JNCC for ratification. WHO TO CONTACT ABOUT THIS PROCEDURE Sarah Somers, Head of Health and Safety sarah.somers@wiltshire.pnn.police.uk Tel: 01380 734125 / 101 ext 7202331 Mob: 0777 336 6274 Page 5 of 12
David James Health and Safety Advisor david.james@wiltshire.pnn.police.uk Tel: 101 ext 7204833 Mob: 0781 577 9961 1. Legal Requirements The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 Section 14 provides for the Health and Safety Commission to investigate accidents. The Safety Representatives and Safety Committee Regulations 1977 (as amended) provide for the appointment of union safety representatives to investigate accidents within the work areas they represent. The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) is the law that requires employers, and other people in control of work premises, to report and keep records of: work related accidents which cause death work related accidents which cause certain serious injuries (reportable injuries) diagnosed cases of certain industrial diseases certain dangerous occurrences (incidents with the potential to cause harm) any work related injury in which an employee is away from work or unable to perform their normal work duties for more than 7 consecutive days (excluding the day of the accident) RIDDOR also requires that records be kept for any work related injury in which an employee is away from work or unable to perform their normal work duties for more than 3 consecutive days (excluding the day of the accident). Refer to the current Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) and Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for full details. 2. RIDDOR Reporting RIDDOR requires that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) be notified of any specified injuries, fatalities and dangerous occurrences by the quickest practical means without delay. The Health and Safety department will facilitate this action but are reliant on staff and line managers informing them of all work related injuries, fatalities and near misses, by the appropriate reporting procedure, in order they do so. 3. Accident Reporting Procedure Page 6 of 12
Wiltshire Police Reporting Procedure All employees are responsible for the reporting of all accident and assault related injuries or fatalities occurring on Wiltshire Police premises or arising from work related activities. This includes police officers, police staff, special constables, volunteers, visitors and contractors. An Immediate Report of Injury Form 230, available in the forms and templates tab on firstpoint, must be electronically completed as soon as possible following an injury at work and the completed form submitted to the health and safety forms inbox (within seven days). Fatalities and extremely serious injuries must also be reported directly to the Head of Health and Safety or Health and Safety Advisor immediately following an incident regardless of whether the incident and subsequent notification is out of normal office hours. An Immediate Report of Injury Form 230 will still be required. The Health and Safety Department complete the following actions on receipt of completed forms: review each form for accuracy and quality before formally processing cross reference the form with ill health data from the Force sickness recording system record details from the form on the relevant Force data base submit a report to the Health and Safety Executive if it fits the necessary criteria arrange for a copy of the form to be placed on the employees personal file collate and electronically save each form arrange for an accident investigation to be completed if appropriate The Health and safety section conduct regular quality assurance checks of the data contained within the accident reporting system to ensure the information is accurate and compliant Tri Force and Partnership Agencies - Accident Reporting Procedure All employees should report accident and assault related injuries and fatalities using their own force systems. 4. Near Miss Reporting Procedure Definition A near miss can be described as any event/incident not causing harm but which had the potential to cause injury or ill health. (The term near miss includes RIDDOR reportable dangerous occurrences.) Near miss events / incidents occur much more frequently than accident or assault related injuries and are therefore a good indicator of a hazard and provide a significant opportunity to review practice and procedure to prevent a subsequent incident / reoccurrence leading to an actual injury. Page 7 of 12
Wiltshire Police Near Miss Reporting Procedure If the near miss is a minor incident and can be managed immediately by the line manager there is no requirement to complete a Near Miss Form 477. A Near Miss Form 477, available in the forms and templates tab on firstpoint, must be electronically completed for more serious incidents in which an immediate solution is not available and the completed form submitted to the health and safety forms inbox as soon as possible (within seven days). During completion the form will be passed up the management chain notifying individuals who can rectify the fault/risk. This allows them to determine what is wrong, why it went wrong and what can be done to prevent it happening again. The Health and Safety Department complete the following actions on receipt of completed forms: review each form before formally processing where possible complete any control or prevention measures record details from the form on the relevant Force data base submit a report to the Health and Safety Executive if it fits the dangerous occurrence criteria collate and electronically save each form arrange for a near miss investigation to be completed if appropriate Tri Force and Partnership Agencies - Near Miss Reporting Procedure All employees should report near misses using their own force systems. 5. Accident and Near Miss Investigations Accident / Incident Investigations and Reviews Accident / incident investigation is part of the reactive monitoring system adopted within Wiltshire Police and all work related injuries and ill health plus incidents which had the potential to cause injury or ill health must be promptly investigated at the appropriate level. The level and nature of the investigation will be determined by the significance and severity of the incident concerned. Wiltshire Police operate three levels of accident / incident investigation as detailed below. As a minimum, a level 1 line manager review will be carried out for all incidences, detailing the immediate risk and management response, including any factors contributing to the incident and factors which should be immediately introduced to prevent a similar incident. Level 2 and 3 investigations will be instigated by the Force Head of Health and Safety as required. Competent members of the health and safety department who have the required technical knowledge, skills and experience (with assistance from specialist police investigators as required) will be used in all level 2 and 3 investigations. Page 8 of 12
Level 1 Minor injury and minor near miss / dangerous occurrence Local Management Review Line manager investigation to establish what happened, causes, lessons to be learnt, immediate risks, likelihood of the event reoccurring and prompt remedial action to be taken to prevent a reoccurrence. The review should also detail any further management action as required. In most cases this can be done informally by the line manager, in consultation with the person concerned and documented on the Injury Form 230. Level 2 Major injury or serious near miss / dangerous occurrence Formal Investigation More detailed and formal investigation involving the line manager, health and safety adviser and staff association representative, as required. Level 3 Fatality / HSE involvement Force / HSE Accident Investigation Formal accident investigation and report carried out by the Force Head of Health and Safety in conjunction with senior management, staff associations and the Health and Safety Executive as required. This level of investigation involves a major or fatal injury/accident. The investigation should be carried out as soon as possible after the accident / incident to allow the maximum amount of information to be gained. The investigation should contain the following key issues: Information Gathering Collect the facts about what has occurred, considering people, premises, plant and procedures as appropriate. Information should be gathered from all available sources, for example visual inspection of the scene and recording scene conditions. Viewing documents such as training records, safe systems of work, procedures, risk assessments and taking witness statements from witnesses, staff and supervisors Page 9 of 12
as required. Where appropriate photographic or other evidence may be considered, using the resources/skills available in the force for any incident/scene investigation. Immediate Causes Try to establish the immediate causes of the accident, for example personal factors such as lack of training and task factors such as the workplace conditions and normal working procedures. The investigation should also consider non conformances with health and safety procedures and safe systems of work. Underlying Causes Accident investigation should also look at underlying causes that have manifested in the accident/incident. These may include management/supervision, deficiencies in risk assessments and/or control systems etc. Investigation Interview Techniques It must be highlighted that accident investigation is not to apportion blame but discover the facts and use them to prevent a similar occurrence. As with criminal investigations, open questions such as what, when, where, who and how should be used. If possible, indication should be given about what immediate action will be taken to prevent a similar occurrence and that there could be further improvements depending on the outcome of the investigation. Recommendations and Follow Up Recommendations for the management of immediate risks should be highlighted to management for their prompt action. Longer term improvements should be highlighted to management and actioned through the more formal accident report. Level Two and Three Investigation Reports It is essential that all documentation regarding the accident investigation is maintained and held by the local department and Force Health and Safety section. As a guide, all accident/ ill health investigation reports must contain the following information: Full name and sex of injured person Address Status employee, member of public Age Shoulder number Experience and length of service Training and qualifications Page 10 of 12
Full description of circumstances Exact area where event occurred Date and time of day Weather conditions Where possible / appropriate photographic evidence Actions leading directly to the incident Direct, immediate, underlying and root (where applicable) causes of the incident Details of the severity of the incident Training All police line managers and police staff line managers receive basic accident management and investigation training as part of their overall Risk Management Training provided by the Force. However, police officers line managers will already have significant skills and valuable experience from investigating criminal and road traffic incidents. This along with good people management skills will enable then to carry out a suitable and sufficient investigation of workplace accidents. Advice and guidance can be sought from the Health and Safety Department as required. 6. Accident and Incident Analysis Wiltshire Police regularly review and analyse all accident, near miss and ill health data. The Force Health and Safety Section, along with staff association representatives and line managers are responsible for the identification of trends and analysis of statistics. Quarterly Accident and Incidents Performance Report The process of producing quarterly health and safety reports with graphical displays and data is established practise with details being analysed to identify any trends or areas of good or poor practice. This information is disseminated to all senior managers and the Force Occupational Health and Safety Committee for their awarenesson and appropriate action. Annual Health and Safety Performance Report The Force Head of Health and Safety is responsible for publishing the Annual Health and Safety Performance report, which provides a detailed comparative analysis of the previous year s accidents, injuries and near misses. The report also breaks down and compares the accident statistics by employee type, injury type and location using graphical data supported by appropriate commentary. This information is communicated to all relevant staff and is passed through the Force Occupational Health and Safety Committee, Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner Committee and Senior Command Team members for discussion and analysis. Page 11 of 12
Accident and Incident Benchmarking Wiltshire Police also participates in an annual accident and injury benchmarking exercise with Forces within the South West and Wales Regions. The significant findings of this exercise are also communicated to relevant parties including the Force Occupational Health and Safety Committee, Senior Command Team and Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner Committee. Page 12 of 12