inspreform healthandsafety ppt

FOD: Delivering Quality Fieldwork 2011 to 2015Health and Safety Regulation - Targeting the Risks

Wendy McVeyHealth and Safety Executive

November 2012

Inspection ReformThe Change That Matters

UK Health and Safety – Risk-based Inspections

21-23 November, BIS Conference Centre, London, UK

FOD: Delivering Quality Fieldwork 2011 to 2015

Today I will talk about:

1. UK context – regulatory model and UK risk profile

2. Reasons for risk-based targeting

3. Approach to major hazards – hazard-based targeting

4. Risk – based targeting – industry level

5. Risk – based targeting – work place level level

6. Targeting your resources strategically –and beyond inspection

Health and Safety Regulation - Presentation


National Regulators

Examples: Health and Safety Executive and Food Standards Agency

National role in directing, monitoring and supporting regulation by local authorities

Also direct regulation – HSE directly regulates major hazards, high and medium risk sectors.

400 Local authorities regulate the lower risk activities – food inspections and health and safety inspections are often done together by one inspector

Health and Safety Regulation in the UK


Hazard – Potential to cause harm

Risk – Likelihood of harm

Uncontrolled hazard = high risk

Controlled hazard = low risk

No hazard – no risk!

Health and Safety Regulation

FOD: Delivering Quality Fieldwork 2011 to 2015Overview

Higher risks

Medium risks

Lower risks

Major hazards

Hazard-based regime - HSE

Risk-based regime - HSE

Risk-based regime - LAs


Off-shore installations(oil & gas)

Chemical installations Explosives

Nuclear installations

Higher risks

Medium risks

Lower risks

Major hazards

National Regulator:Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

Permissioning regime


Higher risks

Medium risks

Lower risks

Major hazardsNational Regulator:

Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

Construction

Waste & recycling

High risk manufacturing

Risk-based inspection regime


Risk Profile of Manufacturing industries in the UK

Health and Safety Regulation - Targeting the Risks

Basic & molten metalsShip building & repairFood (dairy and meat)

Motor Vehicle RepairStonework, WoodworkFabricated metal

Other food manufacturingPlastics, rubber, mineralsPaper and board

Leather, electronics, printing, textiles, computers

Medium to low

High


National Regulator:Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

Health care

Public sector

Education

Medium andlower risk manufacturing

Higher risks

Medium risks

Lower risks

Major hazards



Local Regulator:

400 local authorities

Catering

Beauty

Shops

Offices

Higher risks

Medium risks

Lower risks

Major hazards



Higher risk premises enforced by HSE

3 broad categories of workplaces HSE inspects:

Major hazards (eg nuclear, off-shore oil and gas, chemical plants) – Permissioning regimes apply

Other higher risk sectors, eg construction, waste management and the higher risk manufacturing processes – Target these sectors for inspection

Workplaces about which we have intelligence which indicates poor health and safety management – Intelligence-led targeting only

Overview and Context – Enforcing Authorities


Lower risk workplaces enforced by Local Authorities:

Examples: leisure, retail, catering, beauty sectors

Local Authority regulators have flexibility to join forces – “one stop shop” approach across different disciplines

Can provide supportive advice to small businesses

Overview and Context – Enforcing Authorities


Benefits of a risk-based approach:

Best use of resources for best outcomes

Intelligence based targeting ensures maximum results for the investment made

Unnecessary regulation stunts business growth

Unnecessary regulation leads to a loss of credibility

Inspection is not always the best approach



1. Targeting Major Hazards:

Which areas of your economy present the greatest hazards – ie no matter how well controlled you would still need to regulate heavily?

In the UK our major hazards include:

nuclear installations,

oil and gas rigs off-shore,

large chemical plants,



Major hazards, such as nuclear, oil and gas, chemical plants operate “permissioning” regimes

Dutyholders must produce a “Safety Case” to be permitted to operate

Regulator assesses the safety case and verifies it through a substantial and structured programme of inspections

The business pays for this work – all costs are recovered by the state regulator (“polluter pays principle”)

This is a hazard-based approach

Approaches to dealing with major hazard industries:



1. Targeting Higher Risk Industry Sectors:

Which areas of your economy present most risk of injury or ill-health to its workers or the public (excluding major hazards)?

What evidence do you have? H&S statistics?

In the UK currently, higher risk industries include:

construction

waste and recycling

Ship building

Meat and dairy



High risk industries:

In the UK, construction, waste and recycling, ship building and a number of manufacturing sectors are considered high risk – based on health and safety statistics

These are targeted for inspection because the industry is considered high risk

If the business is found to be in material breach of Health and safety law, they are charged for HSE’s time. (New Fee for Intervention regulations).

Approaches to dealing with the higher risk industries:



2. Targeting the rest:

Which of the local workplaces you could inspect present the biggest risks to health and safety?

What evidence do you have?

Approach to everything else:

How to know where to inspect?

Need local information

Intelligence-led approach



To target “health and safety poor performers” we need evidence, for example:

Accident and ill-health record of the business, and / or

Enforcement record of the business, and / or

“Valid” complaints about the business, and / or

Records of previous inspections, and / or

Other intelligence, eg from insurance companies or other regulators


Approaches to targeting the right workplaces:

FOD: Delivering Quality Fieldwork 2011 to 2015Health and Safety: Risk and Regulation

Pulling the intelligence together

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) used to overlay different sources of intelligence about the workplaces in the UK

Identifies those: in higher risk industries, with a poor enforcement history, with records of accidents or complaints, and which we have visited and given poor inspection

“rating” (discussed later)


Purpose of an inspection?

Where an inspection is warranted – ie workplaces which are likely to present sufficient risk – the purpose of inspection is to secure sustained compliance with minimum legal requirements for health and safety


Approach to Inspection – Matters of concern:

Matters of evident concern (MEC):

Unsafe conditions

Unsafe practices

Matters of potential major concern (MPMC):

Things you will not see without looking / asking, eg hidden underground LPG pipelines

Immediate action

Be aware of any potential MPMC for this workplace


Approach to Inspection – management systems:

Strengths and weaknesses of H&S performance?

How reliable and sustainable is the approach?

Underlying reasons for deficiency, eg competence, attitude, resources, accountability?

Have they learned from previous experience?

Full inspections rarely required – assess these things based on sample topics

Base sample topics on the risk profile of the workplace, eg…………


Example: – Steel Fabrication

Workplace transport

Noise and vibration

Falls from height

Lifting operations

Machinery safety

Maintenance


Sampling relevant topics at inspections:

Management controls…Driver controls…Site lay-out…Etc…..


Following an inspection, a rating is allocated:

Inspector score assessment of the risk at a workplace against: health, safety, welfare and confidence in management

Using: conditions found on site, records of management systems, interviews and so on.

This provides good intelligence for future targeting.


FOD: Delivering Quality Fieldwork 2011 to 2015Health and Safety: Risk and RegulationRating the Performance of a Business

Confidence in management of H&S

Le

vel o

f h

aza

rd


Applying Ratings in Prioritising Inspection

Le

vel o

f h

aza

rd

Inspect FrequentlyInspect Rarely

Don’t Inspect


Confidence in management of H&S


3. Targeting strategically:

What are the riskiest health and safety topics?

Where are these most prevalent?

What other tools do we have to tackle these?

In the UK we seek to use the right intervention with the right issues at the right places

This requires an evidence based approach at all levels



Examples:

Supply chain: encouraging large businesses to influence standards through their suppliers?

Working with those at risk – ie employees as well as employers?

Education and awareness: educate in schools and colleges, work with worker and industry groups, and provide easy to use guidance and advice channels for businesses?

Take agriculture….


Other techniques to consider (as well as inspection):


Working at heights

Cancer-producing substances (eg Asbestos)

And our statistics tell us in which kinds of industries and workplaces these issues are most serious, for example ….


Campaigns:


Occupational asthma – in the UK, caused by work in: Bakers, Motor vehicle repair shops, Wooden furniture manufacture

Workplace transport – in the UK, issues mostly in: Logistics, postal and courier services, Retail – large supermarkets and warehousing Food industry


Where the hazards are likely to be found:


Example: – Skin disease in the UK, a problem for: Bakers Beauticians and nail bar operators Hairdressers Caterers Cleaners Construction workers Health care workers


Where the hazards are likely to be found:


Risk-based approach to investigations and complaints

Handling / investigating complaints: Not all complaints are valid, and some are trivial Small central Administrative team deals with most of these

– only a small % are passed to inspectorsInvestigating reports of accidents or ill-health: HSE investigates about 6% of the reports received Clear criteria is used to direct what we investigate – ie only

the most serious Investigating trivial complaints and investigations is

not an effective use of professional regulators, or public money



Summary of key points about risk-based targeting:

No inspection without a purpose Intelligence is the key Intelligence about relative risks across industry sectors Intelligence about specific businesses Intelligence about which risks are greatest at which types

of business Intelligence about where inspection works best and

where other methods are better Good systems to pull this together for practical use (eg

Geographical Information Systems)



Thank you for your attention

For more information on the UK’s approach to risk-based targeting, please see HSE’s web site:

www.hse.gov.uk

inspreform healthandsafety ppt

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