Services to Contractors

With Health and Safety becoming more and more a part of workplace culture so the need for competent health and safety advice increases.

Contractors need a pro-active approach to health and safety. Systems need to be easy to use, make sense to the end user and realise short term and long term benefits. These basic factors will ensure compliance with legislation and, as importantly, reduce accidents, deaths and health risks.

The services Eurosafe UK offer contractors are as follows:

  1. Audits of a contractors health and safety procedures.
  2. Production of health and safety policies.
  3. Production of risk assessments.
  4. Assistance with method statements.
  5. Health and safety consultants.
  6. Construction site safety audits on behalf of the contractor.
  7. Assessment of sub-contractors competence.
  8. Production of construction phase health and safety plans.

1. AUDITS OF A CONTRACTOR'S HEALTH AND SAFETY PROCEDURES

Eurosafe UK can attend a contractors premises to assess their health and safety procedures to ensure they meet with current legislation.

This audit will usually be undertaken with a senior manager/director of the company and we will require all existing documentation to be assessed and a questionnaire to be completed.

Our services will be charged at an hourly rate plus disbursements.

A list of recommendations will be made following the visit. These recommendations will be made to ensure your company addresses its failings correctly.

2. PRODUCTION OF HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICIES

In accordance with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 there is a requirement for any employer who employs 5 or more persons to adopt a Health and Safety Policy.

Many organisations adopt a Policy but fail to keep it up to date or ensure that it continues to reflect their companies procedures and activities.

Therefore, there is a need to revisit the company Health and Safety Policy on an annual basis (or sooner if there are major changes within the company or in legislation).

Eurosafe UK can produce the initial Health and Safety Policy and continue a relationship with the company to ensure that updates are incorporated within their procedures.

3. RISK ASSESSMENTS

In order to plan work safely it is necessary to prepare Risk Assessments.

Most companies activities are repetitive and generic Risk Assessments can be prepared outlining the hazards and the control measures necessary to reduce the risks.

Risk Assessments need to be site specific so generic Risk Assessments need to be modified to reflect the actual site conditions. Many companies have difficulty in preparing site specific risk assessments.

Eurosafe UK prepare generic Risk Assessments and subsequently train the company to produce their own site specific Risk Assessments thereafter.

When assessing the competency of contractors on behalf of our clients we often request a copy of an example risk assessment. The reason for this request is to establish whether a contractor can undertake a risk assessment as required by the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.

It is not unusual for us to comment that a submission is "not in a recognised format". This comment is often made because a contractor has simply listed a few "do's and don'ts". Inevitably this leads to the contractor asking exactly what a recognised format is.

To assist contractors who struggle with risk assessments we have included the following template which can be used to prepare generic risk assessments. Please remember though that site specific conditions should always be considered when preparing risk assessments.

Risk Assessment Template

4. ASSISTANCE WITH METHOD STATEMENTS

Difficult and dangerous work often requires detailed Method Statements which outline the correct and safe way to carry out the work. Some contractors may need help with producing these Method Statements.

Eurosafe UK can assist such companies by preparing the Method Statement on their behalf. Alternatively we carry out specific training for individuals who will need to write any future Method Statements.

5. HEALTH AND SAFETY CONSULTANTS

Many companies retain a consultant to undertake the role of advisor to their company on health and safety matters.

Larger companies may employ a health and safety officer in a full time role. However, the majority of smaller companies will require a health and safety consultant to ensure that company procedures are developed and adhered to.

Eurosafe UK operate as health and safety consultants to a large number of companies.

Many companies who have retained health and safety consultants complain that once they have signed up for the service and paid the upfront charges, they see little or no value for their outlay. However, unlike most consultants, we do not charge a retainer for our services. We prefer to charge for our services as and when required, at an hourly rate.

The majority of contractors who we are advisors to have had their health and safety policy written by Eurosafe UK. This is usually the initial stage of a long term relationship. To write a health and safety policy it is necessary to understand the company. We can then identify the companies needs and therefore be in the ideal position to recommend solutions.

It is always advantageous to a company to have recommendations prioritised. Such recommendations eventually build into a training matrix.

It is important that contractors are helped to have a pro-active attitude to health and safety - not a reactive attitude.

6. CONSTRUCTION SITE AUDITS

Eurosafe UK undertake Site Safety Audits on behalf of contractors.

Whilst a contractor will endeavour to keep the site tidy and maintain all equipment to the necessary standards it often happens that the operatives, working under pressure, will try to take a short cut.

Poor housekeeping and lack of appropriate equipment often results in costly accidents.

Eurosafe UK attend site on behalf of the contractor to report on the site conditions. This report helps to assist the site management in attaining and maintaining a safe site.

Many contractors ask Eurosafe UK to attend the site within the initial few days of setting up site. Our assistance ensures that all the necessary documentation is in place and that the site welfare conditions are set up in accordance to legislation.

At strategic phases of the project we may be asked to attend site again.

We always attend site without prior notice so that we can report on the true condition of the site. This enables the contractor to see how successful his health and safety culture is.

Health and safety is not just extra paperwork - it's a culture that should be adopted to reduce (or negate) the risk of accidents or death.

Our reports are issued on site, in a hand-written format. These reports are to be acted upon immediately by the site foreman.

7. ASSESSMENT OF SUB-CONTRACTORS COMPETENCE

The definition of competence is an issue that has seen increased focus over recent years, especially following the introduction of the CDM Regulations 2007.

An employer must be confident that an employee is deemed competent to enable him/her to undertake the task required.

Competence can be measured in a number of ways including qualifications, experience, ability to perform the task with the resources available etc.

Any person/company that employs or sub-contracts their work should take necessary steps to ensure that the sub-contractors have the necessary competence to undertake the work.

Larger companies are used to a process known as pre-qualification. This process will assess the systems a company has in place to deem competence.

Most pre-qualification procedures endeavour to evidence a health and safety culture within an organisation. In the case of a self employed person then it would endeavour to ascertain that the individual has an understanding of their responsibilities for their own, and others, health and safety along with the qualifications and experience to perform the tasks required of them.

Eurosafe UK can pre-qualify a companies sub-contractors. This usually consists of the preparation of a relevant questionnaire which asks the contractor to provide information such as a copy of their health and safety policy and evidence of training, along with a couple of interactive scenarios that test the companies procedures and ability to undertake such paperwork as Method Statements and Risk Assessments.

Eurosafe UK will assess the return and report easily our findings, which are detailed on a Microsoft Access database which can be kept updated.

Recommendations are made that may include a requirement for contractors to undertake formal training, or produce a health and safety policy (in accordance to the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974).

Our recommendations will clearly outline the areas a company should improve so that the contractor can be employed 'safely' on future construction projects.

It is sometimes said "a contractors reputation is only as good as the sub-contractors he employs" - make sure your subbies are the best.

8. PRODUCTION OF THE CPP (CONSTRUCTION PHASE HEALTH AND SAFETY PLAN)

On CDM projects it is necessary for the Principal Contractor to prepare a CPP. This document is developed from the initial health and safety information produced by the CDM Co-ordinator.

A CPP is a working document that develops throughout the contract. All construction workers and visitors to site should be made aware of the CPP. In fact the CPP is a document that carries risk of prosecution for the Client and therefore it would be a very unwise contractor that would dismiss the importance of this document. If there is no CPP available on site the Client may be held responsible and prosecuted accordingly.

Eurosafe UK are able to produce a CPP on behalf of the Principal Contractor.

We prepare either the working document (prepared so as to ensure it is adequate to enable construction to start) or we prepare an outline document (a framework CPP).

The framework CPP enables a contractor to put in the relevant details to produce a site specific document. Training is required to ensure that the company understands fully how to develop the framework document into a CPP.

The framework document is produced in an electronic format for easy reproduction.

Should a Principal Contractor require Eurosafe UK to prepare the CPP for them we would work in conjunction with the company to ensure all relevant information was available. Requests would be made to the sub-contractors to prepare their required Risk Assessments/Method Statements for the job.

Eurosafe UK will usually assess the Method Statements and Risk Assessments for the initial trades to enable the works to start on site.

Further Method Statements/Risk Assessments required throughout the contract would be assessed by the Principal Contractor.

If a Principal Contractors employee does not feel confident of their own ability to assess the adequacy of such presented paperwork, Eurosafe UK can undertake one on one training or recommend a training course for the individual to attend. (See training section)

Some companies ask Eurosafe UK to prepare their CPP due to their assessment of resources at any particular time. Holidays, sickness or a change in programme can all leave a normally adequately resourced company under pressure - Eurosafe UK can assist at such times. Please contact us for detail.