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Kevin Jones joins facebook

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Health and safety leadership checklist

Are you a good health and safety leader?

check out the HSE's tips

http://www.hse.gov.uk/leadership/checklist.htm

www.she.ltd.uk

Citrus Training

she ltd can recommend Citrus Training for all types of construction health and safety training. Check out there web page at www.citrustraining.com or telephone 08448 00 77 55

www.she.ltd.uk

save electricity with Spike Milligan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiO4qkAPFsM

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New fuel measures: Winners and losers

Gordon Brown has agreed a package of measures with the big energy companies aimed at helping people with soaring gas and electricity bills. read more....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7610873.stm

www.she.ltd.uk

Environmental tip of the month

BBC's guide to saving energy

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6076658.stm

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banned due to Health and Safety

The following are banned due to health and safety reasons (allegedly):

Organ grinder and his toy monkey 'banned' from busking due to health and safety reasons

(The Mail) http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1041919/Organ-grinder-toy-monkey-banned-busking-health-safety-reasons.html - no risk assessment

Lifeboat banned by health and safety... three hours after saving drowning schoolgirl (The Mail - again) http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1045170/Lifeboat-banned-health-safety--hours-saving-drowning-schoolgirl.html - fears about the safety of the hull

Graveside flowerpots banned from churchyard for health and safety reasons (The Telegraph)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2687695/Graveside-flowerpots-banned-from-churchyard-for-health-and-safety-reasons.html - cotta pots or glass jars could fragment and injure gardeners, leading to the parish being sued

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Small businesses advised to shun experts - FT

Health and safety consultants have come under fire from the government, which is urging small employers to save more than £100m ($179m) a year by shunning fee-charging experts in favour of state-run advice. read more... http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/13002462-787d-11dd-acc3-0000779fd18c.html

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IOSH response to Financial Times

Letter to Financial Times re: ‘Small businesses advised to shun health and safety experts’
Wednesday - September 10, 2008

Sir,
The recent headline ‘Small businesses advised to shun health and safety experts’ is completely wrong – the Better Regulation Executive (BRE) fully recognise the importance of health and safety assistance to small firms! What they have suggested is that ‘low risk’ small firms could consider doing more for themselves in-house, with more help from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Local Authorities. And the government will obviously need to ensure there are adequate resources to provide this level of support.

The real imperative is for businesses, large or small, to get the best advice. Unfortunately, the government do not set minimum qualification levels and it’s difficult for employers to always recognise competent health and safety practitioners. So, we’re delighted to see BRE now support our call for better government guidance on ‘competence’ and indeed, have produced our own free guide for employers to help with this.

As the Chartered body for health and safety professionals, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) believes the current lack of clarity about competent advice could be damaging. Not only to individuals whose lives and long-term health may be put at risk; but also to businesses acting with no or inadequate advice, leading to decisions that are either dangerous or over the top. Interestingly, recent HSE research found the top two solutions suggested for preventing any ‘over-cautious’ decisions were ‘definitive guidance’ and ‘access to professional health and safety advice’.

So, engaging properly qualified health and safety professionals is essential for employee wellbeing and for UK enterprise to flourish. Any death at work is a personal tragedy for everyone concerned and has huge economic impact too. It’s been estimated that work-related injury and illness can cost society up to a staggering £31 billion per year. We all need to do more to prevent this and find better ways of working. Business leaders, decision-makers and the workforce are entitled to be guided on when and where to get the best advice.

Ray HurstPresidentIOSH (Institution of Occupational Safety and Health)The GrangeHighfield

Kevin gets stuck in confined spaces

I went to a great IOSH event this week on confined spaces. I had a go on an emergency air supply unit. I was glad to take it off!

For more information on confined spaces go to the HSE's micro website : http://www.hse.gov.uk/confinedspace/index.htm

Kevin Jones

www.she.ltd.uk

HSE's Myth of the Month

Banning this and and that

The reality
There have been many reports of HSE, and health and safety law, being responsible for banning all sorts of things. For example, flip flops at work, knitting in hospitals, school sports days, a charity Christmas swim and even cuddly toys on dustbin lorries.

Actually, HSE has banned very little outright, apart from a very few high-risk exceptions (e.g. asbestos which kills over 5,000 individuals a year). HSE believes that health and safety should be about taking practical steps to manage real risks, not bureaucracy leading to the banning of everyday activities.

Next time you hear of a 'ban', if in doubt check it out.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/myth/index.htm

www.she.ltd.uk

HSE's Working at height roadshow

HSE Post

National Construction College, Erith, Kent - 25 September 2008. The Road show will comprise a series of practical demonstrations, presentations and exhibits that relate to working at height.
Further information on work at height roadshow

www.she.ltd.uk

Weekly update - HSE's ladder exchange

It’s easy to get involved the concept is simple; if you have a ladder which is bent, broken or battered you can part exchange it for a new one with a discount of up to 50%. If you plan to use a ladder at work make sure it’s the right ladder for the job.
Pre-use checklists and list of exchange outlets

For more information goto http://news.hse.gov.uk/2008/09/12/ladders-exchange-2008-get-involved/#more-4792

www.she.ltd.uk

Weekly update - business savings

edie.net news

The combined savings made by businesses using the government-backed environmental advice website NetRegs are in the region of £58m.

http://www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp?id=15259&channel=1&title=Small+businesses+save+%A358m+by+going+green

www.she.ltd.uk

Weekly update - HSE's ladder exchange

LADDERS EXCHANGE

"Don't let a dodgy ladder shatter your life, exchange it today!"

http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/ladderexchange.htm?ebul=hsegen/01-sep-2008&cr=2

www.she.ltd.uk

Weekly update - HSE's transport site inspection

The HSE's Workplace Transport team has produced a new web tool to help employers find the information they need to make their worksites safe for traffic movements. The tool is based on the existing inspection checklist which can still be downloaded in PDF format. The web guidance, listed by section number, links the questions on the checklist to the information that duty holders need to bring their sites up to a safe standard.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/workplacetransport/checklist/index.htm?ebul=vehicles/sep2008&cr=1

We have gone one better and have a word template - contact us for more information at

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Weekly update - HSE information

New on HSE's website this week. The site is updated daily - visit: http://www.hsenews.com?ebul=hsegen/01-sep-2008&cr=1

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Weekly update - bus incident

From the BBC:

Police have released CCTV footage of a 14-year-old boy being struck by a bus outside a school in southern Scotland.

< http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/1/hi/scotland/7598674.stm >

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