Health and Safety Executive

HSE and local authorities hit back at 'health and Safety' myths

Councils join 'sign up to sensible risk' campaign

HSE/GNN/WM/099/07 3 July 2007

Local authorities today signed up to a campaign to combat the growing number of myths that are undermining important health and safety legislation.

London Borough of Brent, Stratford District Council in Warwickshire, Hampshire County Council and Newport City Council joined the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Local Government Association (LGA) to make a public commitment to follow the 'ten principles of sensible risk management' at the LGA national conference in Birmingham today.

Geoffrey Podger, HSE Chief Executive said:

"We've all heard the stories about health and safety banning hanging baskets or making children wear goggles to play conkers. This is not what we are about - it is not what HSE wants, not what the LGA wants and not what the law requires.

"We want to focus our attention on practical steps that protect people from real risks that can lead to injury and even death, we do not want to stop people from living their lives."

He continued,

"This is an opportunity for Local Authorities to join with us in tackling this issue by publicly 'signing up to sensible risk'. Together we must seek to embed the principles of sensible risk management into our working culture and the decisions we make to ensure that focus remains on the real task of saving lives."

Backing the call Paul Coen, LGA Chief Executive said:

"The vast majority of health and safety decisions we make go unnoticed because they are proportionate and effective. However, 'myths' about health and safety gone mad and the rare decision that does prove to be excessively restrictive has undermined our achievement in protecting our workers and the community through sensible health and safety policies.

"Excessive health and safety is damaging our reputation with council taxpayers, and is a hindrance in our ability to provide quality service delivery. The challenge for us is to restore confidence in the decisions we make and the good work we do by successfully balancing our duty to protect vulnerable members of the community with their right to enjoy a fulfiled life.

"I fully support HSE's ten principles of sensible risk and encourage you to join with us in publicly committing to taking a sensible approach by 'signing-up to sensible risk'".

HSE's ten principles of sensible risk provide practical advice to organisations on what risk management should - and should not be.

More information can be found at http://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/index.htm

Notes to editors

  1. Photos available on request
  2. The HSE launched a set of key principles on sensible risk management in August 2006, to help people focus on real risks. This followed a series of stories about alleged 'health and safety' stopping people taking part in leisure activities etc. The campaign established 10 principles of sensible risk management, outlined below:

    Sensible risk management is about:
    • Ensuring that workers and the public are properly protected
    • Providing overall benefit to society by balancing benefits and risks, with a focus on reducing real risks - both those which arise more often and those with serious consequences
    • Enabling innovation and learning not stifling them
    • Ensuring that those who create risks manage them responsibly and understand that failure to manage real risks responsibly is likely to lead to robust action
    • Enabling individuals to understand that as well as the right to protection, they also have to exercise responsibility
    Sensible risk management is not about:
    • Creating a totally risk free society
    • Generating useless paperwork mountains
    • Scaring people by exaggerating or publicising trivial risks
    • Stopping important recreational and learning activities for individuals where the risks are managed
    • Reducing protection of people from risks that cause real harm and suffering
  3. As part of the campaign, HSE has also launched the 'myth of the month' cartoon. Each month the HSE website carries a cartoon exposing the various myths about 'health and safety'. These can be viewed at www.hse.gov.uk/myth

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Updated 12.01.12