Free health and safety policy template for construction

Health and safety policy

________________

Part 1: Statement of intent

Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, section 2(3)

This is the health and safety policy statement of ________________.

Our statement of general policy is:

• to provide adequate control of the health and safety risks arising from our work activities
• to plan, manage and monitor our construction work so that, so far as is reasonably practicable, it is carried out without risks to health and safety
• to consult our employees on matters affecting their health and safety
• to provide and maintain safe plant and equipment
• to ensure safe handling and use of substances
• to provide information, instruction and supervision for employees
• to make sure all employees are competent to do their tasks, and to give them adequate training
• to prevent accidents and cases of work-related ill health
• to maintain safe and healthy working conditions
• to have emergency procedures in place, including evacuation in case of fire or other significant incident
• to get competent health and safety advice
• to review and revise this policy as necessary at regular intervals

This statement is displayed at ________________.

We share this policy, and any changes to it, with all our employees.

Part 2: Responsibilities for health and safety

Overall and final responsibility for health and safety is that of ________________.

Day-to-day responsibility for making sure this policy is put into practice is delegated to ________________.

To make sure health and safety standards are maintained and improved, the following people have responsibility in the following areas:

All employees

All employees have to:

• co-operate with supervisors and managers on health and safety matters
• not interfere with anything provided to safeguard their health and safety
• take reasonable care of their own health and safety, and that of other people affected by their work
• use equipment, substances and safety devices in line with their training and instructions
• report all health and safety concerns to an appropriate person (as set out in this policy)

Subcontractors

Choosing subcontractors is the responsibility of ________________.

Before we appoint a subcontractor, we will take reasonable steps to check they have the skills, knowledge and experience, and the organisational capability, to do the work safely.

________________ will ask for, review and approve subcontractors' risk assessments and method statements.

________________ is responsible for making sure subcontractors work in line with the site rules and their method statements.

Competent health and safety advice

We get competent health and safety advice from ________________.

Part 3: Arrangements for health and safety

Risk assessments and method statements

Risk assessments will be carried out by ________________.

We will record the significant findings of our risk assessments.

Action needed to remove or control risks will be approved by ________________.

________________ will make sure the actions are put in place, and will check that they have removed or reduced the risks.

Risk assessments will be reviewed every 12 months, or sooner if the work changes or there is reason to think an assessment is no longer valid.

Method statements will be prepared and approved by ________________.

________________ will explain method statements to the people doing the work, and make sure the work follows them.

Construction work

We will only accept work we have the skills, knowledge, experience and organisational capability to do safely.

Before we start work, we will make sure the client is aware of their duties under the CDM Regulations.

Where there is more than one contractor, we will follow the principal contractor's directions and the parts of the construction phase plan that apply to our work.

Where we are the only contractor, we will draw up a construction phase plan before we set up the site.

We will not start work on a site until reasonable steps have been taken to stop unauthorised people getting on to it.

We will co-operate with everyone else working on the project, and report anything likely to endanger health or safety to whoever controls our work.

When we work for a domestic client, the client's duties under the CDM Regulations pass to us if we are the only contractor, or to the principal contractor if there is more than one. We will carry out those duties when they pass to us.

Consulting employees

We will consult our employees on health and safety matters as they arise, and formally when we review health and safety.

We consult employees through toolbox talks; talking with them directly on site.

________________ is responsible for consulting employees.

Information, instruction and supervision

The health and safety law poster is displayed at ________________.

Employees can get health and safety advice from ________________.

We will give employees clear information about the risks to their health and safety and the measures in place to control them.

Workers whose first language is not English will be given information and instructions they can understand, and their supervision will be arranged by ________________.

________________ will make sure our employees working on sites controlled by other employers get the health and safety information they need.

Training and competence

We will only employ or appoint people to work on site who have, or are getting, the skills, knowledge, training and experience to do their tasks safely.

Everyone who works for us on site will have a suitable site induction before they start, from us or from the principal contractor.

Site inductions will be given by ________________.

Employees will be given health and safety training when they join us, and when their work, equipment or systems of work change.

Toolbox talks will be given every week by ________________.

Training needs will be identified, arranged and monitored by ________________.

Job-specific training will be provided by ________________.

Training records are kept at ________________.

Plant and equipment

________________ is responsible for identifying all plant and equipment that needs maintenance, and for making sure it is maintained in good repair.

Any problems found with plant or equipment must be reported to ________________.

________________ will check that new plant and equipment meets health and safety standards before it is bought.

Hazardous substances

________________ is responsible for identifying all substances that need a COSHH assessment, and for carrying out the assessments.

________________ will make sure the actions the assessments identify are put in place, and that the employees concerned are told about them.

________________ will check that new substances can be used safely before they are bought.

COSHH assessments will be reviewed every 12 months, or sooner if the work changes.

Accidents, first aid and work-related ill health

First-aid kits are kept at ________________.

Our first aider or appointed person is ________________.

All accidents and cases of work-related ill health will be recorded in the accident book, which is kept at ________________.

________________ is responsible for reporting accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences to the enforcing authority under RIDDOR.

Monitoring

To check working conditions and make sure safe working practices are being followed, ________________ will inspect our sites every week and record the findings.

________________ is responsible for investigating accidents and work-related causes of sickness absence.

________________ is responsible for acting on investigation findings to stop the same thing happening again.

Emergency procedures: fire and evacuation

________________ is responsible for preparing fire risk assessments and emergency evacuation procedures, and for putting them in place.

Each site will have arrangements for dealing with any foreseeable emergency, including how the site will be evacuated.

Everyone on site will be told the emergency arrangements at their site induction.

We will make sure escape routes are well signed and kept clear at all times.

Emergency arrangements will be tested from time to time and updated if needed.

Welfare

On every site, we will make sure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that our workers have the welfare facilities the CDM Regulations require: toilets, washing facilities, drinking water, rest facilities and, where needed, changing rooms and lockers.

________________ is responsible for checking welfare facilities on our sites.

Appendix A: Employee acknowledgement

I have read this health and safety policy, or had it explained to me, and I understand what it means for my work.

Appendix B: Version history