Health and Safety Training Courses: A Buyer's Guide
Effective health and safety training has taken on far greater prominence over the past few years as the business environment becomes increasingly litigious. This, of course, is partly to insure companies are sitting pretty when suits are brought against them, but its also a way of insuring the workforce is happy, healthy and productive. However, as the importance of the need for health and safety training is relatively new, an outline of exactly what purpose it serves, why it should be implemented and how to go about finding an effective provider is useful. This article aims to assist businesses select the best health and safety training providers to suit their needs.
First of all, though, it is important to establish what health and safety training involves and what it should achieve. Well, just consider the statistics for a moment: in the UK over two hundred people are killed each year in accidents at work and one million are injured, while two million suffer illnesses that are either directly caused or exacerbated by their work. These figures certainly make sobering reading and effective health and safety training minimises the risk of your company becoming just another statistic. It should also give employees a greater sense of the esteem they are held in by their company, instill a more positive outlook in the workplace and boost morale. Oh, and the law requires businesses to provide whatever information, instruction and training is needed to ensure their employees are working in a safe and healthy environment.
Convinced of the Need for Proper Health and Safety Training?
Well, the next step is to consider the type of training you need, which will largely depend on the size of your company and the kind of work it does because some training requires a degree of specialisation, while others simply involves handing out information for the workforce to read. Regardless of this, here are a few health and safety basics that all employees should be versed in:
- Where the fire alarm, fire extinguisher and emergency exits are in case of fire. This should also include frequent fire drills and a general awareness about leaving the emergency exits free of clutter and obstructions.
- Where the first aid kit is kept and basic instructions of how to use it.
- The potential hazards in the workplace encountered on a daily basis.
- The various avenues that can be pursued to get advice with regard to any work related health and safety issues, including any local organisations or agencies that could be of assistance.
Beyond these basic requirements it is worth reviewing whether any specialist training is required. Consider the capabilities, training, knowledge and experience of your workforce and focus on the types of accidents and cases of ill health that occur most frequently in the workplace. Some things to look at:
- The basic induction training for new employees naturally includes a component of health and safety training, but the extent of this training could be determined on a case by case basis, based on the level of experience and position taken up in the business. Ideally your training provider should have a system for assessing the amount of training a new employee requires, saving you time and money.
- Whether you want all employees to undergo the training or just those of management level and above (so they will be able to instruct junior employees and identify hazards and evaluate risks in the workplace). Bear in mind general training will naturally involve greater numbers of people, but more specialised training might take longer and be more labour intensive.
- Keep in mind that young employees are particularly vulnerable to accidents, so ask whether the training provider has developed particular methodologies to make the training interesting for them. It is also important that younger employees are adequately supervised.
- The potential hazards in the workplace encountered on a daily basis.
Which is the Right Health and Safety Training Company for You?
Now that you have outlined the sort of training required, it is time to start looking for a provider who suits your needs. The fact that you know what your needs are will help matters, but here are a few other steps to assist you:
- Look for providers whose work has been accredited or approved by an official body, such as a trade union. Look at the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority website (www.qca.org.uk) for course that will give you an accredited health and safety qualification.
- Ask your business competitors who have undergone health and safety training whether they were happy with the service. Also, keep your eyes peeled for any health and safety systems that impress you in other workplaces and ask questions about who provided them and what the standard of training was.
- Determine whether the timescale for any proposed training will be sufficient, considering that good training takes time and needs adequate preparation.
Beyond these basic requirements it is worth reviewing whether any specialist training is required. Consider the capabilities, training, knowledge and experience of your workforce and focus on the types of accidents and cases of ill health that occur most frequently in the workplace. Some things to look at:
- The basic induction training for new employees naturally includes a component of health and safety training, but the extent of this training could be determined on a case by case basis, based on the level of experience and position taken up in the business. Ideally your training provider should have a system for assessing the amount of training a new employee requires, saving you time and money.
Finally, it is a good idea to ask any prospective training provider to hold a trial session. That way you can review whether their training method is suited to your business, and they have up to date teaching materials and methods. This will also give you a chance to ask your employees which provider they like best and find the most effective one. Heres to a safe and healthy future for you and your business!
