HSE owns a significant amount of primary and secondary legislation. The primary legislation comprises the Acts of Parliament, including the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The secondary legislation is made up of Statutory Instuments (SIs), often referred to as ‘regulations’. It is enforced by HSE and Local Authorities (LAs). HSE and LAs work locally, regionally and nationallly, to common objectives and standards. For more information about HSE's enforcement activity, please visit the Enforcement pages.
The website legislation.gov.uk provides the full text of Acts from 1988 onwards and SIs from 1987 onwards and these can be downloaded free of charge. It is possible to search by subject, date and type of legislation.
Legislation that was published before these dates can be purchased from TSO, the supplier of official publications. It can also be consulted via public, academic and some company libraries.
For further advice on using these lists please see the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 Disclaimer.
HSWA - Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974
2008 Simplification plan
Health and safety law poster
Health and safety law poster pocket card