What do risk assessments cover

What are the elements employers need to cover? And what should happen next? Put simply, a risk assessment is a careful examination of what, in your workplace, has the potential to cause harm to people — whether that be employees, volunteers or members of the public. Under Health and Safety at Work Act etc HSWA , employers have a legal duty to protect the health , safety and welfare of their employees and anybody else who might be affected by their activities.

In order to fulfil this duty, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations states that employers must conduct a risk assessment of their premises to identify these potential causes of harm and take steps to reduce the likelihood of accidents. As part of your risk assessment, you should:. The aim is to decide what steps are needed to reduce injury and ill health and comply with health and safety law.

If you employ five or more members of staff, it is a legal requirement to keep a written record of the the main findings of your risk assessment. Tackling a risk assessment can seem like a substantial task; however, it can be broken down into smaller, more manageable steps. You may wish to structure your risk assessment around our simple six-step approach:. In identifying hazards, you may have noticed that some risks have already been addressed. It is important to note that you are not expected to completely eliminate all risks.

The HSE advise that the risk assessment process is not about creating huge amounts of paperwork; it is about identifying and implementing sensible and proportionate control measures to keep risk to a minimum.

In some cases, no action will be needed. Risk assessments are living documents and should be reviewed at least annually. These risks need a different approach because of their complexity or specific legal requirements. For example, if you identify noise as a hazard during a risk assessment, then you should read the specific guidance about noise and carry out a noise risk assessment.

For information on workplace health, safety and wellbeing, you can speak to one of our specialist advisors. You may be trying to access this site from a secured browser on the server. Please enable scripts and reload this page. Skip to main content. Phone us free on Search. Some of our services are paused. Please see our services update page for more details. How to carry out a risk assessment What's involved and a form to complete your own with. Biological: including tuberculosis, hepatitis and other infectious diseases faced by healthcare workers, home care staff and other healthcare professionals.

Step 2: Decide who may be harmed, and how. For example: Home care supervisors must take due account of their client's personal safety in the home, and ensure safe working and lifting arrangements for their own home care staff.

In a supermarket, hazards are found in the repetitive tasks at the checkout, in lifting loads, and in slips and trips from spillages and obstacles in the shop and storerooms. Staff face the risk of violence from customers and intruders, especially in the evenings. In call centres, workstation equipment i. Step 3: Assess the risks and take action. Step 4: Make a record of the findings. Step 5: Review the risk assessment. A risk assessment must be kept under review in order to: ensure that agreed safe working practices continue to be applied e.

Note: This content is provided as general background information and should not be taken as legal advice or financial advice for your particular situation.

Make sure to get individual advice on your case from your union, a source on our free help page or an independent financial advisor before taking any action. Previous Next. UNISON representatives have used risk assessments to press for and win better working conditions, more resources for health and safety and greater workforce involvement in health and safety issues.

Find out more about becoming a safety rep. Any serious incidents must be reported by law to the Health and Safety Executive HSE so you need to make sure your employer knows about the incident. Serious incidents include death in service, major injuries, other dangerous incidents such as the collapse of scaffolding, disease, or any injury that prevents employees from working for over three days.

Notify your safety rep or your employer if you find a risk in your workplace. Your employer should take steps to eliminate or reduce the risk and record their findings and any actions taken. A guide for UNISON safety reps on risk assessment, detailing how to work with employers to ensure that risk assessments are done properly in the workplace. Revised January This information sheet aims to give safety reps a basic understanding of fire safety and fire risk assessments under the current law.

The information contained within this article is not a complete or final statement of the law and is based on the laws of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. While UNISON has sought to ensure that the information is accurate and up to date, it is not responsible and will not be held liable for any inaccuracies and their consequences, including any loss arising from relying on this information.

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