Health and Safety (email: employer@hackney.ac.uk)

Health and Safety in the workplace

A formal qualification for employees of any organisation. It is designed to raise awareness of health and safety issues and legislation affecting everyday work environments.

Who is it for?

Anyone in a work environment, especially those in high risk areas. This qualification can be tailored to business needs to make the learning experience relevant. A minimum cohort of 8 learners is required for this award.

Benefits of good health and safety

Addressing health and safety should not be seen as a regulatory burden. It offers significant opportunities. Benefits can include:

• Reduced costs
• Reduced risks
• Lower employee absence and turnover rates
• Fewer accidents
• Lessened threat of legal action
• Improved standing among suppliers and partners
• Better reputation for corporate responsibility among investors, customers and communities
• Increased productivity, because employees are healthier, happier and better motivated

Costs of poor health and safety at work

HSE statistics reveal the human and financial cost of failing to address health and safety:

• More than 200 people are killed at work in the UK each year. This does not include work-related road deaths.
• In 2006, 30 million working days were lost in the UK to occupational ill health and injury, imposing an annual cost to society of £30bn (more than 3% of DGP).
• Surveys show that about two million people suffer from an illness that they believe to be caused or made worse by work.
• Many thousands of deaths each year can be attributed to occupational illnesses, including some cancers and respiratory diseases.

Organisations can incur further costs – such as uninsured losses and loss of reputation.

Units include:

• Understand the principles of health and safety and accident prevention
• Ability to contribute to any health and safety management system
• Understand the importance of risk assessment as a technique for accident and ill health prevention
• Understand the responsibilities placed on employers and employees
• Understand the hazard, risk and main causes of harm to workers (manual handling, hazardous substances, exposure to noise and vibration)
• Understand the importance of following systems, procedures and rules
• Understand how individual action can reduce risks to health and safety
• Appreciate how workplace equipment and task design affect health and safety

Exam

There is a multiple choice examination.

Possible next steps

Advanced qualifications in health and safety e.g. CIEH Level 3 Award in Health and Safety in the Workplace

Cost

£75

Venue

Hackney Community College

Call 020 7613 9430 or email employer@hackney.ac.uk to enrol

To print this course information, download the PDF on the right hand side of this page.

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