Scope

• Policy Statement

• Legal Requirements

• Respective Responsibilities

• The Policy

• Health and Safety at Work Policy

• Duties of the service

• Duties of employees

• Risk Assessment

• Related Guidance

• Training Statement

• Health and Safety – Statement of Intent

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Policy Statement

Birmingham Jewish Housing Association (BJHA) is committed to providing an environment, which ensures the health, safety and wellbeing of tenants, employees and visitors to its properties.

BJHA recognises its responsibility to ensure that all reasonable precautions are taken to provide and maintain working conditions that are safe, healthy and compliant with all statutory requirements and codes of practice, including the statutory duty for employers to conduct regular health and safety risk assessments.

As a Registered Provider, Birmingham Jewish Housing Association recognise that service users have a right to make decisions about their lives, and understands that it is our responsibility to ensure our tenants are safe in their homes and staff are safe at work by complying with the statutory requirements and providing assurance to tenants. This will be achieved by identifying, managing, monitoring and reporting all H&S risks.

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Legal Requirements

BJHA recognises the requirement to comply with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA 1974) and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (1999) and all subsequent legislation. Non-compliance can result in prosecution and a fine.

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Respective Responsibilities

The Health and Safety Executive/local authorities (HSE/LAs) is the lead inspection and enforcement bodies for health and safety matters involving tenants and service users and employees.

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The HSE/LA is the lead inspection and enforcement body for health and safety matters involving workers, visitors and contractors, irrespective of registration

Factors that would tend toward an HSE/LA lead include:

• Incidents involving maintenance contractors, e.g., scaffolding or asbestos.

• Installed plant for the use of anyone, e.g., lifts or escalators.

• Where specific health and safety at work legislation can most adequately deal with the cause of the harm, e.g., related to a statutory examination of plant or the Legionella Approved Code of Practice.

• Incidents where BJHA appear to be significantly at fault

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The Policy

This policy is intended to set out the values, principles and policies underpinning this service’s approach to health & safety practices.

Duties on the Service.

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BJHA recognises its responsibility under the HSWA 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (MHSWR) to ensure that all reasonable precautions are taken to provide and maintain working conditions that are safe, healthy and compliant with all statutory requirements and codes of practice.

Employees, residents, contractors and visitors are expected to abide by safety rules and to have regard to the safety of others within the service.

BJHA’s policy is, so far as is reasonably practicable, to apply the following:

• Carry out regular and ongoing assessments to ensure the prevention of all accidents and personal injuries.

• Ensure the provision and maintenance of an environment which is without risk to the health & safety of tenants and employees and which is satisfactory as regards facilities and arrangements for the welfare of tenants and employees

• Negotiate appropriate risk management measures to reduce any identified risks or hazards to an acceptable level.

• Communicate agreed risk management measures to all necessary persons and staff involved and to ensure regular monitoring of risk levels.

• Provide and maintain equipment such that it is safe and appropriate to use.

• Provide any relevant and appropriate protective equipment or clothing required by staff to perform their role safely.

• Arrange for the safe and healthy use, handling, storage and transport of articles and substances.

• Provide information, instruction, training and supervision required to ensure the health and safety, at work, of employees and others.

• Control and maintain the office in a safe condition, with appropriate risk assessments and management as above.

• Provide a safe means of access to and exit from the place of work

• Maintain a working environment that is safe, healthy and equipped with adequate facilities and arrangements for welfare at work.

• Regularly review risk assessments, making any necessary changes from findings following Regulation 3 of the MHSWR.

• In the event of any accident or incident (such as a near-miss) involving injury to anybody, to make a full investigation and to comply with statutory requirements relating to the reporting of such incidents.

• Appoint a health and safety manager.

The Health and Safety Manager is the Scheme Manager.

Health and Safety at Work

Birmingham Jewish Housing Association is committed to ensuring the health, safety and welfare of its staff, so far as is reasonably practicable, and of all other persons who may be affected by our activities, including visitors, contractors, service users and their relatives. The service will take the following steps to ensure that its statutory duties are met at all times:

• Each employee should be given such information, instruction and training as is necessary to enable the safe performance of work activities.

• All processes and systems of work should be designed to take account of health and safety and will be properly supervised at all times.

• Adequate facilities and arrangements will be maintained to enable employees to raise issues of health and safety.

• Competent persons should be appointed to assist in meeting statutory duties including, where appropriate, specialists from outside the organisation.

• This document will be regularly monitored to ensure that its objectives are achieved. It will be reviewed and, if necessary, revised in light of legislative or organisational changes.

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Risk Assessment

A risk assessment should be undertaken, by a trained and qualified person, of the potential risks to tenants and staff associated with delivering any agreed support, before the staff member commences work. It should be updated annually or more frequently, if necessary.

Any new risks that arise (including defective appliances, equipment, fixtures or security of the premises) should be reported by staff to their line managers or supervisors, or otherwise identified during regular reviews or the service user plan.

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Only staff who are both trained to undertake risk assessments and competent to provide the support should be assigned to emergencies and in situations where the pressure of time does not allow a risk assessment to be undertaken before the provision of the support.

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A responsible and competent person will be on call and contactable at all times when staff are on duty.

MHSWR Regulation 3

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Birmingham Jewish Housing Association recognises that risk assessments are a legal requirement under MHSWR Regulation 3. The service believes that risk assessments should identify hazards and resulting risks to employees and other persons who may be affected by work activities. The service understands a hazard to be the potential for harm, with the risk being the likelihood of that harm occurring and the severity of the harm (e.g. slight injury, major injury, death).

This service will fully implement MHSWR Regulation 3, which requires employers to:

• Assess risks to employees.

• Assess risks to others who might be affected by work activities such as tenants, contractors, visitors and the public.

• Identify the measures needed to protect the persons identified above.

• Review the assessment and make necessary changes if:There is any significant change that affects risk (e.g., a new employee, machine or tenant).

• There is reason to believe it is no longer valid.

• Keep records of:The significant findings of the assessment.

• Any group of employees identified by it as being particularly vulnerable.

• BJHA will include the following as areas of potential hazard or risk, in the office, or tenants and their premises:

• Hazardous substances within the scope of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) (e.g., chemical hazards, drugs, sharps, body fluids, hazardous waste) and others not currently covered by COSHH (e.g., lead, asbestos and substances that are hazardous for reasons other than their toxicity, i.e., those which are flammable or which enhance combustion, react violently, etc.).

• Use of display screen equipment (e.g., computers).

• Electrical hazards.

• Work equipment and machinery.

• Workplace hazards (e.g., space, clutter, lighting, heating, ventilation, tripping hazards, safe access and egress, and inadequate sanitary facilities, e.g., toilets, drinking water).

• Emergencies (e.g., fire, injuries requiring first aid, dangerous spillages).

• Violence or threats and abuse.

• Falls.

• Lone working.

This is not an exhaustive list and any other potential hazard risk relating to a specific service user will be assessed.

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