2. Keeping Policies Up to Date.

Bearing in mind that Policies are all about demonstrating how you are following the legislation, it is important that they are up-to-date.

Laws can change, sometimes dramatically.  Following the tragic Grenfell fire, notice was given that fire safety laws were to be radically changed, affecting the work of everyone involved in fire prevention and protection.  Relevant Policies (and supporting documents) will have to be amended to reflect these changes.

For the most part, health and safety legislation changes in smaller ways, sometimes to bring them in line with technological developments, sometimes in reaction to accidents and near misses that have occurred, and sometimes proactively e.g. when new ways of working are analysed.

And then there are unforeseen (by most, anyway) events such as the coronavirus pandemic, which prompted us to write a section on “Infectious Diseases” in our Health and Safety Policy.

How and When to Update your Policy

The Competent Person is responsible for keeping up to date with changes to legislation and reacting to current events.

1. The HSE makes legislative changes twice a year: in April and October. They give plenty of notice of forthcoming changes and provide a free update service at  HSE: Latest news on health and safety at work.  CPS should sign up to all the updated relevant to their organisation.
2. The Government also provides updates on H&S. During the coronavirus pandemic, the HSE referred visitors to their site to gov.uk for the latest information.  If your organisation requires workers to travel abroad, CPs should monitor the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office website for the latest advice Foreign travel advice - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
3. If your organisation belongs to a trade body or is a member of an association, they will give you notice of any legislative changes that will affect your work.
4. If your organisation is a franchise, your franchisor will give you guidance on making Policy changes.
5. Keep informed – watch the news, read it online, join free online groups relevant to your line of work. 
6. If you are a member of YourHS.guide (i.e. you have a free or Premium membership and have provided your email address) you will receive notifications about changes in H&S legislation.
   

Once you have the information, you need to decide whether you need to make any changes to the arrangements you have detailed in your Policy.   This should be straightforward, but if you are at all concerned about how to do this, contact YourHS.space for guidance.

Remember, not all changes to legislation are going to affect you, so don’t worry that you are going to have to rewrite your Policy every April and October.

Health and Safety Myth

Why you should consult on changes to policies

Receptionists were told that they have to wear safety footwear - steel/plastic-capped work shoes to work on reception.  Their duties include: answering phones, post, errands, computer use.  One of the receptionists wanted to know if this change in policy was as a result of any new health and safety office guidelines.

There have been no new HSE guidelines issued which go into the specifics of what safety footwear should be worn or where.  Whether or not protective footwear is required should be assessed on the basis of risk, and this has to be done in the individual workplace.  If the employer has recently changed their policy, this should have been properly discussed with employees, including explaining the reasons for the change.