SIM 02/2011/01
This SIM provides interim guidance to visiting staff on the provision of welfare facilities on construction sites. It clarifies the basic expectations for compliance with Schedule 2 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (CDM) 2007 and provides guidance on enforcement.
The document provides advice on the adequacy of:
Welfare provision is fundamental in safeguarding the health and well being of workers. The provision of toilets, a supply of hot and cold (or warm) water for washing, changing facilities, drinking water and somewhere to eat and rest is a basic expectation.
CDM 2007 requires the provision of welfare facilities on construction sites in a similar way to the previous legislation (Construction Health Safety and Welfare Regulations (CHSW) 1996). The most notable change is in the role of the client.
Clients do not have to provide the welfare facilities themselves, but they do have a duty to ensure that contractors have arrangements in place to provide adequate welfare facilities. This requirement applies to all construction work. Where the construction work is notifiable, the client has a duty to ensure that construction work does not start until suitable welfare facilities are in place.
If there are particular constraints which make it difficult for welfare facilities to be provided, the client should co-operate with contractors and assist them with their arrangements.
Principal Contractors must ensure that adequate welfare facilities are provided and maintained during construction work, but they do not have to actually supply them. For example, if there is demolition work prior to construction, the demolition contractor may do so.
Where possible, flushing toilets should be provided connected to mains water and drainage systems. If mains connection is not available then facilities with a built-in water supply and drainage tanks should be used. If none of these can be provided then portable chemical toilets are acceptable as a last resort.
Mains plumbed facilities need not only be found on larger sites The photos show examples of small sites with flushing toilets and hot running water for hand washing.
Toilets should be adequately ventilated, lit and kept clean. There should be arrangements for cleaning the toilets regularly depending on usage (e.g. daily may not be sufficient) and an adequate supply of toilet paper and other consumables.
These are commonly found on smaller sites and to supplement more permanent facilities on larger sites. Often these toilets are poorly maintained and dirty.
If these units are properly maintained and serviced they can provide suitable facilities. At the start and end of certain projects they may be the only achievable way of providing toilet facilities.
The number needed depends on how many workers are on site and how often they are emptied. One reason that these toilets often appear poorly maintained and dirty is that insufficient units have been provided. BSI standard (BS6465-1-2006) recommends 1 plastic toilet to 7 persons working a 40 hour week.
Weekly emptying and servicing of plastic toilets is usually part of a hire contract. Suppliers are not keen to service them more frequently as there would be significant cost implications in amending the cleaning vehicle routes. Consequently it may not suffice for the site manager to say they are cleaned and emptied weekly and the number of toilets may need to be increased accordingly.
When deciding on the suitability and/or sufficiency of portable toilets on site the following should be considered:
Many portable toilets seen on a construction site only have hand sanitizer and a small sink. Unless other suitable washing facilities are nearby this is inadequate. Portable toilets with bigger sinks and hot water are available. The water is heated using a generator or mains connection.
The average costs per week are typically (2010):
Self-contained units with an eating area, hot water supply and chemical toilet cost about £150 per week.
Washing facilities should be next to the toilets and include:
Wash basins should be large enough to be able to wash hands, face and forearms. Some basins produced for cloakrooms may not be large enough. Inspectors need to decide if the sink size and tap arrangement allow for workers to easily wash their hands and forearms.
Hand washing should not take place in food preparation sinks. If there is no hot water in the toilet facilities a separate sink for washing hands should be provided in the immediate vicinity.
There should be arrangements to ensure the area is regularly cleaned dependent on it use and has an adequate supply of soap and towels.
Many units are provided with electrically heated water for washing. The electrical installation will probably be 240v as 110v water heaters may not be suitable. The units should therefore be protected by RCD and be subject to periodical electrical testing.
Appendix 1 provides an extract from the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 Approved Code of Practice (ACoP), paragraphs 201-204. These paragraphs can be used to assess the required numbers of toilets and washing facilities. There has been some criticism that the use of these tables can give rise to some anomalous results. However, if a dutyholder can show that they applied the information in either of the tables they will be providing sufficient numbers of toilets. Additional information on toilet facilities can be found in BS6465-1-2006.
Every situation should be judged on an individual basis taking into account the distance that has to be travelled from the further parts of a site to the nearest facilities and the time it takes for someone to get to them either on foot or by transport. The time should be as short as possible, certainly less than 10 minutes. In most cases it should be possible to be make adequate arrangements significantly under this time limit.
On large sites the main facilities can be a fair distance from some work areas and additional toilets may therefore need to be provided. Positioning facilities e.g. at the site entrance or near the car park is important to encourage their use.
Facilities for the smallest transient sites e.g. one man in a digger in a field, have to be based on judgement depending on the variables, e.g. length of time in field and duration of work, distance from other available facilities.
Where construction workers are using facilities in existing buildings, they should be available at all times, have arrangements to ensure they are kept clean and have an adequate supply of toilet paper, soap, towels etc.
On small sites, the local café or public toilets are sometimes used for welfare. There should be a proper agreement (not necessarily in writing) for allowing use. These facilities should be available at all times the site is open.
A supply of drinking water should always be available, preferably mains-fed.
All sites should have facilities for securely storing clothing including provision of a drying area for wet items. Rest facilities for shelter and a place to eat and drink should also be provided and arrangements in place to ensure they are kept clean and tidy.
Welfare provision is one of the generic risks to be considered at all visits. Where on-site standards are poor, enforcement action should be taken to secure compliance.
The legal requirement for provision of general welfare facilities is not based on control of any specific chemical and biological hazard. CDM 2007 regulations 9(1) (b), 13(7) and 22(1) (c) linking to Schedule 2 is the primary legislation. While the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations do not apply to construction sites, the ACOP to these regulations contains requirements on the minimum numbers of toilets and sinks to be provided. These tables are reproduced in appendix 1 for inspectors to use as guidance on what should be reasonably achievable on construction sites.
Although the duty to provide welfare is for the PC or contractor, the Client (and CDMC) also has a duty to ensure the arrangements are in place. For larger clients tracking back is appropriate where problems are found, for example:
Provision of welfare is classed as “Compliance and administrative arrangements” under the Enforcement Management Model (table 4). Absence or inadequate provision of a defined standard, that is, no toilet, hand basin, drying room etc, gives an initial enforcement expectation of an Improvement Notice. Unless local factors affect this expectation an IN should be issued. A Prohibition Notice is not appropriate.
Inspectors should consider prosecution for repeated failure of compliance but prosecution as a first offence for welfare breaches is not appropriate.
201 Table 1 shows the minimum number of sanitary conveniences and washing stations which should be provided. The number of people at work shown in column 1 refers to the maximum number likely to be in the workplace at any one time. Where separate sanitary accommodation is provided for a group of workers, for example men, women, office workers or manual workers, a separate calculation should be made for each group.
| 1 Number of people at work | 2 Number of water closets | 3 Number of wash stations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 6 to 25 | 2 | 2 |
| 26 to 50 | 3 | 3 |
| 51 to 75 | 4 | 4 |
| 76 to 100 | 5 | 5 |
202 In the case of sanitary accommodation used only by men, Table 2 may be followed if desired, as an alternative to column 2 of Table 1. A urinal may either be an individual urinal or a section of urinal space which is at least 600 mm long.
| Number of men at work | Number of water closets | Number of urinals |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 | 1 | 1 |
| 16 to 30 | 2 | 1 |
| 31 to 45 | 2 | 2 |
| 46 to 60 | 3 | 2 |
| 61 to 75 | 3 | 3 |
| 76 to 90 | 4 | 3 |
| 91 to 100 | 4 | 4 |
203 An additional water closet, and one additional washing station, should be provided for every 25 people above 100 (or fraction of 25). In the case of water closets used only by men, an additional water closet for every 50 men (or fraction of 50) above 100 is sufficient provided at least an equal number of additional urinals are provided.
204 Where work activities result in heavy soiling of face, hands and forearms, the number of washing stations should be increased to one for every 10 people at work (or fraction of 10) up to 50 people; and one extra for every additional 20 people (or fraction of 20).
