1.9.1 Health and Safety at work & School

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All employees (students) have a right to work in places that are safe.

Employers (teachers) have a duty of care to ensure that procedures are in place to keep employees safe and to prevent them from being harmed or becoming ill through work.

In general, employers should ensure the following:

the workplace is free from risks to health
welfare facilities such as First Aid are provided
dangerous items and substances are stored safely
machinery is safe to use, maintained and in good working order
training and supervision is provided as necessary
appropriate safety signage is provided

Employees (and students!) also have to consider their own health and safety and use protective clothing required and follow procedures.

Safe working practice

Safe work practices are a set of guidelines that an employer may produce as part of an overall health and safety management system. This would usually cover:

Training

Employees & students should be trained in the safe use of work machinery and equipment. This may be done ‘in-house’ or through off-site training courses.

Machine maintenance and guarding

All machinery should be regularly inspected, checked, maintained and repaired if necessary. Machinery should also have appropriate protective guards fitted to protect employees.

Extraction systems

If dust or fumes are produced during the use of machinery or tools, adequate extraction must be provided to ensure that airborne particles can not be inhaled.

Provision of pPE

PPE is Personal Protective Equipment.

Employers should ensure that personal protective equipment (PPE) is available to any person who may be subject to health and safety risks. These could include face masks, gloves, overalls, eye protection, high-visibility clothing etc.

Accident reporting

Employers must keep a record of any accident or injury sustained on work premises or during work hours and must report this via RIDDOR (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations, 2013) to the HSE.

This covers any accident or dangerous event that has resulted in injury, death or occupational disease.

The Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA)

The Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) was introduced in 1974 and is the main legislation for British health and safety law. To comply, all employers must ensure that all employees and visitors are protected in terms of health and safety.

All school workshops should have the HSWA on display and you should be instructed in the use of any potential tools, machinery or substances.

Consider the place where you work or study. Are you aware of the Health and Safety procedures in place?

Can you name 3 items of PPE that you have used?

Which machines have guards fitted and why?

Hazards in working environments, and in the use of tools and materials, are identified by a series of symbols.

There are standards which will need to be conformed to such as coloured backgrounds for a particular type of warning…much like road signs.

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health regulations (2002) COSHH

Employers need to prevent, reduce or control their workers’ exposure to substances considered hazardous to health. These might include:

paints, varnishes, cleaning agents, and adhesives
fumes that may be created during a process such as soldering or brazing
airborne particles such as dust created by cutting or sanding timber.
if such substances are not controlled, this may lead to workers becoming hurt or ill. This could be from skin or lung irritation or from chemicals being splashed on skin or eyes.

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health regulations (2002) - There are eight principles to consider under COSHH regulations:

plan and carry out processes to minimize release of substances

2. consider all relevant routes of exposure

3. control exposure by measures proportional to the risk

4. choose most effective and reliable control options

5. provide suitable PPE

6. check and regularly review the control measures

7. inform and train all employees on the hazards and control methods

8. ensure that the introduction of control measures does not increase the overall risk to health and safety

These are just a few of the hazard symbols you should be familiar with.

All manufacturers must be able to demonstrate safe working practices and abide with legislation so the person(s) involved in the manufacturing process can be kept safe.

Which of these do you think are unsafe working procedure?

Safe working practices are primarily the same in schools and colleges as they are in industry as they all serve to keep the person doing the work safe from harm. You should always observe the following when in a workshop environment:

do not operate machinery unless you have been trained to do so
PPE must be worn when using machinery
all guards should be utilized when using machinery
work areas should be kept neat, clean and free from hazards
all students should be aware of the emergency procedures for injury, spills, fire etc.
walkways should be kept clear and free from trip hazards
students must report to a teacher if they feel ill or are injured

Ask yourself honestly, how many of these do you do every day?

Safety Precautions

Any action carried out in advance that protects against a possible danger or injury is called a safety precaution. These are usually determined by the specific process being undertaken but you should be familiar with all of these signs.

Can you identify them all?

You should be familiar with the concept of risk assessment

The safe use of tools and machinery in a working environment requires risk assessments to be completed. Anyone working in such an environment is required to assess the potential risks and how those risks can be reduced or negated.

Go to 1.9.2 Health and safety in products >