1

Topic 2

Health And Safety Management

System
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Learning objective

• Outline the key elements of a

health and safety management
system
• Explain the purpose and
importance of setting policy for
health and safety
• Describe the key features and
appropriate content of an
effective health and safety policy
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• Every organization should have a

clear policy for the systematic
management of health and safety
so that health and safety risks
may be effectively addressed and
controlled and for those with five
or more employees, it is a legal
requirement that this policy
must be in writing.
• A good health and safety policy
together with an effective Introduction
occupational health and safety
management system will also
enhance the performance of the
organization in areas other than
health and safety, help with the
personal development of the
workforce and reduce financial
losses.
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Key elements of a health and

safety management system
• Commercially successful organizations usually have
good health and safety management systems in place.
• The HSE document HSG65, Managing for health and
safety, describes the occupational health and safety
management system used extensively in the UK.
▫ The Plan, Do, Check, Act management cycle
• PLAN – establish standards for health and safety management
based on risk assessment and legal requirements.
• DO – implement plans to achieve objectives and standards.
• CHECK – measure progress with plans and compliance with
standards.
• ACT – review against objectives and standards and take
appropriate action
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HSE Management Cycle

◦ PLAN – establish standards for health and safety management
based on risk assessment and legal requirements.
◦ Hazard identification and
◦ Risk assessment (risk determination and the selection of risk
reduction or control )
◦ At the planning stage, emergency procedures should be
developed and relevant health and safety legal requirements and
other standards identified together with appropriate
benchmarks from similar industries.
◦ An organizational structure must be defined so that health
and safety responsibilities are allocated at all levels of the
organization and issues such as competent persons and health
and safety training are addressed. Realistic targets should be
agreed within the organization and be published as part of the
policy.
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HSE Management
Cycle
◦ PLAN –
◦ The health and safety planning process comprises
three sections:
◦ correct information about the existing
situation;
◦ suitable benchmarks against which to make
comparisons
◦ competent people to carry out the analysis and
make judgments.
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HSE Management Cycle

◦ DO
◦ The performance phase (Do) will only be successful if there is good
communication at and between all levels of the organization.
This implies employee participation as both worker
representatives and on safety committees.
◦ Effective communication with the workforce, for example with
clear safe systems of work and other health and safety
procedures, will not only aid the implementation and operation of
the plan but also produce continual improvement of performance
– a key requirement of all occupational health and safety, quality
and environmental management systems.
◦ There should also be effective communication with other
stakeholders, such as regulators, contractors, customers and trade
unions.
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HSE Management Cycle

◦ CHECK
◦ The performance assessment phase (Check) may be
either active or reactive or, ideally, a mixture of
both.
◦ Active assessment includes work-based inspections
and audits, regular health and safety committee
meetings, feedback from training sessions and a
constant review of risk assessments.
◦ Reactive assessment relies on records of accident,
work-related injuries and ill-health as well as near
miss and any enforcement notices. Any
recommended remedial or preventative actions,
following an investigation, must be implemented
immediately and monitored regularly.
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HSE Management Cycle

◦ ACT
◦ The performance improvement phase (Act) involves a
review of the effectiveness of the health and safety
management system and the identification of any
weaknesses.
◦ The review, which should be undertaken by the
management of the organization, will assess whether targets
have been met and the reasons for any under-performance.
Issues such as the level of resources made available, the
vigilance of supervisors and the level of cooperation of the
workforce should be considered at the review stage.
◦ When recommendations are made, the review process must
define a timescale by which any improvements are
implemented and this part of the process must also be
monitored.
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HSE Management Cycle

◦ ACT
◦ Continual improvement implies a commitment to
improve performance on a proactive, continuous basis
without waiting for a formal review to take place.
◦ Most management systems include an audit
requirement, which may be either internal or external,
or both. The audit process examines the effectiveness
of the whole management process and may act as a
control on the review process. Many inquiry reports
into health and safety management issues have
asserted that health and safety performance should be
subject to audit in the same way that financial
performance must be audited.
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Key features and appropriate

content of an effective health
and safety policy
• Policy statement of intent
▫ It should contain the aims (which are not measurable) and
objectives (which are measurable) of the organization or
company.
• Setting health and safety objectives
▫ Health and safety objectives need to be specific,
measurable, achievable, agreed with those who deliver
them, realistic and set against a suitable timescale
(SMART).
• Organization of health and safety
▫ defines the names, positions and responsibilities of those
within the organization or company who have a specific
responsibility for health and safety.
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Key features and appropriate content

of an effective health and safety
policy

• Arrangements for health and safety

▫ This will include health and safety rules and
procedures and the provision of facilities
such as a first-aid room and washrooms.
• Review of health and safety policy
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• As a minimum, you should have the

processes and procedures required to
meet the legal requirements,
including:
■ a written health and safety
policy (if you employ five or more
people);
■ assessments of the risks to
employees, contractors, customers,
partners, and any other people who
could be affected by your activities –
and record the significant findings What does
in writing (if you employ five or
more people). Any risk assessment the law say?
must be ‘suitable and sufficient’;
■ arrangements for the effective
planning, organization, control,
monitoring and review of the
preventive and protective
measures that come from risk
assessment;
■ access to competent health and
safety advice;
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• As a minimum, you should

have the processes and
procedures required to meet
the legal requirements,
including:
■ providing employees with
information about the
risks in your workplace and
how they are protected; What does
■ instruction and training
for employees in how to deal the law say?
with the risks;
■ ensuring there is adequate
and appropriate supervision
in place;
■ consulting with
employees about their risks at
work and current preventive
and protective measures.
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Hughes, P., & Ferrett, E. (2016). Introduction to health and

safety at work. Routledge. Page 59 and 60