What Can A Safety Consultant Do For You?

In reality, it’s not all that frightening. Fundamentally, health and safety regulations exist to keep workers safe and employers out of legal hot water. When you break it down, 99% of health and safety is just simple common sense.

Although health and safety is actually quite simple when you take the time to understand it, we know not everybody has that time. Managers and business owners have a million and one things to think about, and it can be difficult to find time for investing in health and safety beyond the fundamentals.

That’s where safety consultants like us come in. We’re equipped to work with you to maximise the quality of your safety culture, and in many cases, take the work completely out of your hands, freeing you up for other things.

What Can A Safety Consultant Do?

Safety consultants are experts in health and safety who can advise on a range of matters, and work with you and your employees to create a safer workplace.

Safety Consultancy

The bread and butter of most safety consultants. This process involves auditing the existing safety procedures and processes in your workplace or business – which might or might not involve risk assessments – then highlighting areas of concern and advising on improvements.

The benefit of having a safety consultant carry out site assessments in place of employees is the depth of experience and expertise a professional can bring. Beyond this deep understanding of human nature, legislation, procedures, and more, simply getting an independent second opinion can do wonders.

When gaps in your safety processes are identified, whether these are down to employee behaviour, ineffective processes, or outdated practices, a safety consultant can recommend the quickest and safest way to overcome this and keep everyone safe.

This process can be done on a regular basis in partnership with your business, or safety audits and management can be outsourced entirely.

Safety Sounding Board

If you are confident of your own internal safety management, you might not want to invest in a full safety consultancy package. Nevertheless, you can still benefit from the expertise of a safety consultant by using them as a sounding board.

Most professional consultants are more than happy to answer safety questions or queries over the phone or at a meeting, helping you improve your safety processes yourself with independent, no-obligation advice.

Competent Person Services

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations legally require businesses and employers to appoint at least one ‘competent person’ to ensure comprehensive health and safety management.

The definition of a competent person is ‘someone who has sufficient training and experience or knowledge and other qualities that allow them to assist you properly.’ Essentially, this person manages the day to day business of health and safety.

However, for some businesses – particularly SMEs – it might not be efficient to appoint someone from within the company, or the resource simply might not be there. In these cases, you can appoint a safety consultant as your competent person to take care of all your health and safety worries.

Specialist Risk Assessments

Health and safety regulations require employers to ensure the safety of their employees across the board when at work. Risk assessments are a great start, but not everyone has the trained eye to spot safety gaps in specialist areas, such as fire risks and asbestos. Safety consultants, however, are trained to spot potential risks in these areas and beyond, and can help you mitigate and remove risk wherever possible.

Training

Safety consultants will also usually offer training in a range of areas, from CSCS cards to health and safety in general. This expertise can be invaluable, and presented to your employees in an effective, tried and tested way that can give you peace of mind.

CDM Consultancy and Support

In 2015, Construction (Design and Management) legislation was updated to make clearer the rules and responsibilities in construction and design. This was a very comprehensive change and introduced a range of new roles and responsibilities.

Safety consultants are not only well-equipped to simplify and clarify CDM legislation, but can even act as official representatives in these new roles.

Safety Partner

Fundamentally, safety consultants exist not to be the health and safety police, but to join your side and improve the safety and peace of mind of you and your employees. They exist to relieve you of stress, clarify the sometimes murky world of health and safety, and make work safer.

If that sounds like something that would benefit you, why not call or message us today, and see how Veritas Consulting can help you.