What is competence in health and safety?

Whatever business you decided to set up, your starting point was probably a good level of competence in your chosen field: whether it is kudos in customer service, panache as a personal trainer, acing accountancy…

What many business owners may not realise, is that early on in their journey they need a person competent in health and safety in their business too – by law.

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An example of what the law says

There are requirements that any business must adhere to. These include:

• You should have a Health and Safety Policy, which sets out the general approach and commitment of a business to managing health and safety, and the arrangements that have been put in place to achieve this. The policy should be documented once you have five or more employees (including yourself).
• When you start employing, you must display a health and safety law poster or give every worker a personal copy of it in leaflet form.
• You must have a suitably stocked first-aid kit(s).
• You should appoint someone to oversee first aid, e.g. an appointed person or qualified first aider
• As previously mentioned, you must appoint a competent person to support with your H&S requirements. You can contact an H&S Professional to provide competent advice and support.

You’ll also need to provide employees with the training they need to perform their role safely, offer them the right workplace welfare facilities (e.g. toilets, drinking water etc.), record /report accidents (some require reporting under RIDDOR), manage hazards and risks, and complete risk assessments.

For many low risk businesses this will all be quite straightforward, but even so, shows why a competent person is necessary. For higher risk businesses, it becomes more important still, and the level of competence required will rise.

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What is competence?

The Health and Safety Executive define competence in general terms as “someone who has the necessary skills, experience and knowledge to manage health and safety”. So it could be you as a business owner or one of your staff. Crucially, the level of competence need only be proportionate to the health and safety risks involved. So a car mechanic’s garage will require a significantly higher level of competence than a clerical office.

Many businesses actually choose to outsource the competency role to a specialist health and safety service (such as our own), although you still retain the legal responsibility for health and safety. Outsourcing will often bring a higher level of expertise and understanding, as well as free up your own resources to concentrate on your core activities.

Your competent person should be able to recognise the risks in your business and either eliminate them or mitigate them as far as is reasonably practicable. This is primarily done by preparing risk assessments and, if necessary, a method statement for how to perform the work safely. Of course, providing things like training and equipment may be part of the solution, too.

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Industry specific competence

We already cited the difference in risk profile between an office and a garage, and this highlights an important point – that you may need to appoint someone with industry specific competence. Depending on the industry this may be demonstrated by advanced qualifications or a track record of experience. You can ask us for guidance on a specific industry if you are unsure.

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Demonstrating company competence

Sometimes, especially in higher risk industries, you may need to demonstrate company health and safety competence in order to win work or for some other reason. This is not a legal requirement, rather a commercial one.

There are a number of ways to do this. You may be asked to share your health and safety policy and history of accidents / near misses; or disclose if you have received any enforcement notices or been prosecuted for a breach of health and safety legislation.

Another way to demonstrate health and safety is through a third-party assessment or accreditation.

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How we can help

At The Health and Safety Dept, we can act as your competent person for your business in an outsourced capacity, helping you prepare risk assessments and method statements, auditing your premises and procedures, training staff and keeping you abreast of the latest legislation. Additionally, we can help you achieve recognised health and safety accreditations. So whatever you need, please ask and we will be happy to help.