Risk assessment not just about form-filling

Norwich Union Risk Services' training and consultancy manager said that when it came to health and safety, too much emphasis was sometimes placed on "writing things down" and not enough on carrying out "dynamic risk assessments".

"No one would expect someone to pull out a folder and fill-in a risk assessment form before they crossed the road, so why over-complicate things in the workplace," he told us.

"Of course it's a legal requirement for anyone who employs five or more people to record, and regularly review, the significant findings of a risk assessment, and this is a hugely important process. But a distinction must be made between the formal process and the day-to-day assessments everyone should be making."

John explained it was bit like driving a vehicle: "Clearly there is a danger of crashing, so with that risk in mind you'd expect someone to have passed their driving test, to have a properly maintained vehicle and to be in a fit enough state to get behind the wheel. That's the formal part.

"However, once they're driving you would then expect them to continually weigh-up any dangers on the road and respond accordingly. This is what we mean by 'dynamic risk assessment'."

He said it was essential that all staff were encouraged to adopt this approach. "Let's be honest, everyone should be risk assessing all the time. By this I mean people simply looking out for themselves and their colleagues on a day-to-day basis, not filling in forms!

"Workers should regularly ask themselves 'is it safe to proceed?' If not, they need to change the way they're working or seek help from their employer when things are not right."

European campaign

John's comments came after the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced its support for a two year, European health and safety campaign, which aims to "demystify" the risk assessment process, as well as promote it.

A series of events will take place on the theme during the European Week for Safety and Health - 20 to 24 October. In addition, this year's European Good Practice Awards will be looking for "outstanding and innovative" approaches to risk assessment.

The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, which runs the Awards, stressed that risk assessment was "not necessarily complicated, bureaucratic or a task only for experts."

Further information on the European campaign, including activities, resources and the Good Practice Awards can be found on the HSE website.

For details of a one-day training course from NURS covering 'Risk Assessment', or for information on our latest course on 'Behavioural Safety', contact our training team on 0500 55 99 77. Course dates and venues can be found here.