Health and Safety Policy and Responsibilities

• Always follow instructions and safe systems of work;
• Attend any health and safety training offered to you;
• Follow our health and safety policy, risk assessment strategies, and any other relevant guidance provided to you;
• Do not knowingly behave in a way that could put yourself or others at risk of harm;
• Only undertake duties following suitable instruction and training;
• Always follow relevant procedures when moving a person or lifting an object;
• Use, handle, store and transport potentially hazardous waste or substances correctly;
• Wear suitable clothing and appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE);
• Utilise all items that are provided correctly and in accordance with training;
• Do not misuse or interfere with anything provided for health and safety;
• Report unsafe practices or unmanaged risks;
• Inform the manager, supervisor and/or Designated Health and Safety Lead of all accidents that occur;
• Current guidance and regulatory expectations include consideration of psychosocial risks such as stress and burnout.

• Keep entrances and exits clear;
• Keep floors free from slip and trip hazards;
• Never block emergency escape routes;
• Use and maintain safety signage;
• In residential or workplace settings, help maintain a clean and safe environment and report any required repairs;
• In home care settings, be aware that the adult’s home is managed by the person or a housing provider so reasonable steps should be taken to work safely within it;
• Report on environmental hazards in an adult’s home or workplace;
• Report unsafe or defective equipment;
• Maintain equipment as per manufacturer's instructions;
• Remote/home working should be assessed as part of your health and safety policy;
• Ensure any vehicles used by staff are safe and comply with Human Resources considerations; Ensure remote working/working from home is risk assessed.

The manager, supervisor, and/or Designated Health and Safety Lead must be notified of any breaches of health and safety policy or failure to work safely.

This may involve blowing the whistle on a colleague or visitor.

See: Whistleblowing or Raising a Concern

Where the registered person is not based on site, they should appoint a competent on-site Designated Health and Safety Lead.

The registered person/Designated Health and Safety Lead must:

• Develop a health and safety policy;
• Ensure that all reasonable precautions are taken to provide safe working conditions in line with legal requirements and Codes of Practice;
• Work with the staff to assess health and safety risks, develop risk management strategies, and review regularly;
• Ensure appropriate arrangements are in place for different settings, including care homes and an adult’s home;
• Make sure health and safety signage is in place (care homes);
• Make sure staff have sufficient health and safety equipment, and it is maintained e.g., first aid supplies, PPE;
• Make sure all staff are aware of their legal responsibilities under health and safety legislation and regulations;
• Make sure information about health and safety is effectively shared and communicated;
• Make sure health and safety is part of every induction of new staff, including volunteers and students;
• Monitor and review compliance with health and safety policy through supervision, audits and regular reviews;
• Ensure staff receive appropriate health and safety training in line with the requirements of their work;
• Ensure staff using manual handling equipment are supervised while developing competency;
• Remote and home working come with clear health and safety duties for employers and employees. UK guidance (including HSE and Acas) emphasises risk assessments, safe workstation setup, mental health support, and regular communication to prevent isolation, stress, and physical strain;
• Make sure staff have a way to report health and safety concerns, including whistleblowing;
• Take all health and safety concerns seriously and investigate/report as required.

Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974

• Section 2 (3) states that every employer with 5 or more employees must prepare, implement, and regularly review a written health and safety policy including arrangements for carrying it out;
• The policy, and any revision, must be brought to the notice of employees;
• Failure to have a written health and safety policy in place can result in the issue of an Improvement Notice, ordering the matter to be attended to within a fixed period;
• Non-compliance can result in prosecution and a fine.

Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999

• Employers must assess risks including stress risk assessments to the health and safety of employees and others and implement appropriate control measures and how support is provided;
• Under Regulation 3 (3), risk assessments are reviewed, making any necessary changes if and when there is reason to suspect that they are no longer valid, or there has been a significant change in the matters to which they relate.

RIDDOR (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013)

• RIDDOR places duties on employers and people in control of work premises (the Responsible Person) to report certain serious workplace accidents, some occupational diseases and dangerous occurrences (near misses) which ‘arise out of, or in connection with, work’;
• When staff or visitors are working, visiting or living in our homes and have accidents, appropriate first aid treatment must be provided and that accidents must be recorded and reported in accordance with organisational procedures and where appropriate, under RIDDOR.

Regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 (Part 3)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) states that a health and safety policy should cover three areas:

Part 1: Statement of intent

A statement setting out your general policy on health and safety at work, including your commitment to managing health and safety and your aims. The registered person, manager or supervisor should sign it and review it regularly. If the Designated Health and Safety Lead is not the registered person, they may also countersign the statement.

Part 2: Responsibilities for health and safety

The names, positions and roles of the people who have specific responsibility for health and safety.

Part 3: Arrangements for health and safety

Details of the practical arrangements in place, showing how these will achieve your health and safety policy aims. This could include, for example, conducting a risk assessment, training employees, implementing support systems for staff and using safety signs or equipment.

The HSE website provides a complete example and a blank template that can be used to record your health and safety policy, if needed.

See: Prepare a health and safety policy.

The Health and Safety Information for Employees Regulations 1989 requires employers to display the HSE-approved health and safety law poster or provide staff with the equivalent health and safety law leaflet.

The poster and leaflet are both available from the HSE website.

The poster is not free, but the leaflet is available as a free download.

The poster should be displayed in a prominent place where staff can easily see and read it. It should contain details of the enforcing authority and the Employment Medical Advisory Service (EMAS) etc.

If you are not able to purchase or display the poster, you must instead provide the equivalent leaflet to each member of staff.

Further information

See HSE: Display the health and safety law poster

Breaches must be reported internally in line with organisational procedures and, where required, to external bodies such as the HSE under RIDDOR. This information can also be found in the Accidents, Injuries and Incidents chapter of the Handbook.

See: Accidents, Injuries and Incidents

The following links to a page of the HSE website where further information and guidance about health and safety can be found:

HSE: Health and safety made simple