Staying Safe At Work: How To Ensure Compliance on a Construction Site
Compliance: for many organisations across the UK, this is all about meeting regulatory requirements. However, for those thousands of people working in construction sites across the country, it’s about a lot more than that: it’s about safeguarding the lives of everyone involved in your project, from contractors to site visitors. We understand the complexities of ensuring compliance on your worksite: that’s why we’ve developed this comprehensive learning resource to keep your workers safe - and your worksite on the right side of the law.
When it comes to understanding your legal obligations, making sense of all of the requirements out there can be a mind-boggling experience. To make this process a little bit easier, we’re going to take a closer look at the key regulations you should be aware of, before delving into some tips you can use to ensure you’re meeting them.
The key to achieving compliance on your construction site is understanding the regulations that govern your industry as a whole. Each of these have been set out by the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE), and include the following:
- The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974): This cornerstone legislation has been created to ensure the health, safety and welfare of employees in your workplace.
- The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (2015): Focus on the management of health, safety, and welfare when carrying out construction projects.
- The Work at Height Regulations (2005): Specifically address the dangers of working at height and how to safely manage those risks
Each of these regulations outlines exactly what your construction site needs to do to meet legal compliance. Your obligations will differ depending on your worksite, so take Bryson’s advice: read up and go over the details about what applies to your site.
In a nutshell, these regulations highlight the importance of several key pillars of construction site safety, including regular training, using correct PPE and using the correct safety signage. We’ll get onto that next - keep reading to learn more.
As discussed, there are several elements when it comes to ensuring legal compliance on your construction site. Whilst your obligations will depend on the kind of site you’re working on, virtually all of those will mandate regular health and safety training, as well as the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and safety signage. Let’s take a look at each of these in a bit more detail
The Role of the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS)
If you haven’t heard of the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS), now’s the time to get in-the-know. This scheme is crucial in the UK for ensuring that your workers are adequately trained and qualified for the tasks they’re performing. Ensuring compliance with CCS requires you to:
- Ensure that all of your workers have the necessary skills and training to complete their tasks safely.
- Provide workers with regular updates and refresher courses to ensure their skills are current; and
- Ensure verification of your team’s credentials before giving them tasks.
So - what kind of elements should be covered in this kind of training? While this list isn’t exhaustive, it will certainly include elements like keeping your site tidy and free from hazardous debris, as well as organising and storing tools safely. Beyond that, it will outline the importance of preparing an emergency response plan, setting up safeguards and ensuring that the right tools are used for each task.
The benefits of ensuring you’re in line with CCS requirements are significant and extend beyond legal compliance. When workers are properly trained under the CCS, you can expect better craftsmanship across your construction site. For more tips on this topic, just reach out to a Bryson expert who will be happy to help.
Using PPE to Achieve Compliance
Yes, training your staff is extremely important. However, that is only the first measure you should take to comply with key compliance standards. Virtually all pieces of health & safety legislation will require you to use PPE properly and according to what task is being worked on. Let’s take a look at some key PPE requirements:
- Head Protection: Hard hats are mandatory on construction sites to protect against head injuries from falling objects or collisions with fixed objects.
- Eye and Face Protection: Safety glasses, goggles, or face shields should be worn when there is a risk of flying debris, chemical splashes, or harmful light radiation.
- Hearing Protection: In noisy environments, earplugs or earmuffs must be provided to protect against hearing loss.
- Respiratory Protection: Respirators or masks are necessary in environments with harmful dust, fumes, or gases.
- Hand and Foot Protection: Gloves and steel-toed boots are essential for protecting hands and feet from injuries caused by sharp objects, heavy materials, or hazardous substances.
The list of PPE you may require doesn’t end there. To achieve true compliance, you need to embed your use of PPE within a culture of safety on your worksite. This means conducting regular risk assessments to determine the need and ensure that it is suitable for the tasks at hand, as well as providing training on the correct use, maintenance, and disposal of PPE. Aside from that, you should also regularly inspect PPE for wear and tear, and replace it as needed to maintain its effectiveness.
Using Safety Signage
Last, but not least, let’s take a look at using safety signage to ensure legal compliance on your worksite. All health and safety regulations address the importance of using safety signage, and should be seen as an absolute essential as opposed to a bonus on your worksite.
It’s not only about knowing what kind of signage to use. It’s equally about how and where you use them. We advise you to place signs in prominent locations where they are easily visible and legible. We also recommend using standardised symbols and colours to ensure clarity and quick recognition, as well as regularly inspect signage for damage or fading and replace it as needed.
Below, we’ve put together a short (but not exhaustive) list of the kind of signage your worksite needs to ensure compliance:
- Warning Signs: These signs alert workers to potential hazards, such as "Danger: High Voltage" or "Caution: Slippery Surface."
- Mandatory Signs: These signs indicate actions that must be taken, such as "Wear Hard Hats" or "Eye Protection Must Be Worn."
- Prohibition Signs: These signs indicate actions that are not allowed, such as "No Entry" or "No Smoking."
- Emergency Information Signs: These signs provide information on emergency procedures, such as "First Aid Kit" or "Emergency Exit."
As we reach a conclusion, we’d like to remind our customers of one very important point: ensuring compliance with legal standards does not always ensure total safety for those on your worksite. Safeguarding lives and removing workers from risk is an ongoing process. Bryson is here to help.
Stay Compliant with Bryson
Here at Bryson, we’re more than just a site supplier. We’ve got the knowledge, experience and inventory you need to keep your workers protected and your site on the right side of the law. To get started, browse our full selection of products or speak to an expert now.