Health and Safety
Executive / Commission
Simplification plan
Where legislation places health and safety duties on employers under the Health and Safety at Work Act, these duties apply to all; health and safety law does not differentiate between different types of employer or workplace. In the same way, employees (or those who work for an employer, whether paid or unpaid) have responsibilities under health and safety law regardless of the status of the organisation for which they work.
Public sector employers, charities and voluntary bodies all have the same heath and safety duties as any private sector employer in the same circumstances. Therefore, the simplification initiatives HSE undertakes, such as the example risk assessment for office-based businesses, will similarly benefit and provide cost savings for the public and not-for-profit sectors.
In addition, HSE has a project focussing specifically on helping schools reduce bureaucracy, costs and risk-aversion when complying with health and safety law as part of HSE’s sensible risk management initiative. HSE is working with the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF, previously DfES), the Implementation Review Unit (IRU, set up to review policy affecting schools to tackle red tape and workloads) and the Workforce Agreement Monitoring Group (WAMG) of the Training and Development Agency for Schools.
HSE has also been working with Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) to ensure the two Inspectorates work closer to reduce the regulatory burden on police forces. It was recognised that to be successful both Inspectorates need to understand each others role, responsibilities and methodologies. To this end HMIC have joined HSE on Inspection of non police premises and HSE participated in an HMIC inspection of the Metropolitan Police as part of a national police trial. A protocol or agreement for future collaboration is now being developed.
HSE will work with the Office of the Third Sector, in the Cabinet Office, to consider developing more accessible guidance for third sector organisations to meet their needs, drawing on information in HSE's 'Charity and voluntary workers - a guide to health and safety at work.