Health and Safety Responsibilities of Directors - HSC Consultative Document

The HSC has just published a Consultative Document for a Code entitled Health and Safety Responsibilities of Directors. This is intended to be 'guidance', rather than a formal Approved Code of Practice with statutory effect.

The substantive proposals are very short, comprising 5 "action points", each with a brief commentary. The action points listed are as follows:

Action Point 1

"The board needs to accept formally and publicly their collective role in providing health and safety leadership in their organisation."

Action Point 2

"Each member of the board needs to accept their individual role in providing health and safety leadership for their organisation."

Action Point 3

"The board needs to ensure that all board decisions reflect their health and safety intentions, as articulated in the health and safety policy statement."

Action Point 4

"The board needs to recognise their role in engaging the active participants of their staff in improving health and safety."

Action Point 5

"The board needs to ensure that it is kept informed of, and alert to, relevant health and safety risk management issues. The Health and Safety Commission recommends that boards appoint on of their number to be the 'health and safety director'."

In many respects the contents of the draft Code reiterate good practice for directors which is already published elsewhere by the HSE and others. However, the "recommendation" that the board should point a designated "health and safety director" may be controversial.

CMS Cameron McKenna will be submitting a response to the Consultative Document. Comments from our clients and contacts would be welcome.

Full text of the consultative document can be downloaded from the HSE's website http://www.hse.gov.uk/condocs/. For further information please contact Mark Tyler by e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone on +44 (0)20 7367 2568.