If you haven’t had a workplace safety audit recently then it’s time you thought about bringing an external provider into your organisation to assess the security of your workforce.

No matter what industry you operate in, health and safety audits should be a fundamental part of your employee strategy. That’s why HLS Training has put together a guide on everything you need to know before booking your external audit.

What is a Workplace Safety Audit?

A health and safety audit is an official assessment of an organisation’s safety standards.

It assesses all areas of your workplace processes, procedures, policies and systems to find areas for improvement.

A good health and safety audit doesn’t just tick boxes; it should be used to proactively improve areas where your workforce might be at risk of harm, or smooth over procedure to ensure your team knows exactly what to do when something goes wrong.

How often should a health and safety audit be conducted?

Health and safety audits are not a legal requirement, however that doesn’t mean they’re not vital to improving your business.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidance document recommends that regular audits are conducted, but how often is entirely up to your business. We would recommend conducting annual or bi-annual audits of each site.

In the construction industry, regular audits may be a condition of your insurance policy.

What does a Health and Safety Audit cover?

A health and safety audit should cover:

  • An evaluation of your health and safety, policy, procedures and systems
  • A full assessment of your compliance with the legal requirements and regulations within your industry
  • An inspection into how well your employees understand and adhere to health and safety procedures
  • A review of all accident reports
  • An assessment of potential risks that could lead to accidents or incidents occurring in the future

Within these areas, a good health and safety audit should cover the following criteria:

  • If your health and safety policy is easy to understand
  • Whether your staff are aware of your procedures in an emergency
  • Are your processes documented?
  • Are your processes stored efficiently and easily accessible by every member of your team?
  • If your safety systems work properly
  • If your safety systems achieve the right outcome
  • Do you look after the health and wellbeing of employees?
  • Are you supplying the right safety equipment?

By being honest about your company’s health and safety culture, you will be able to improve your processes to make yourself and your employees completely safe in their place of work.

The benefits of an external Health and Safety Audit

The benefits of an external Health and Safety Audit

There are a number of benefits that can result from a comprehensive health and safety audit:

  • The safety of all company employees

Workplace health and safety audits identify areas where employees can be better protected against harm. This is the main reason for conducting the audit.

  • Compliance with the law

Health and safety audits give you reassurance that you’re fully compliant with all health and safety laws and regulations.

  • Reducing company costs

By identifying risks before they become an active issue, you can prevent costs incurred by potential injuries and accidents in the future.

  • Improved morale

When employees feel safe at work, they feel happy at work and are likely to be more productive.

At HLS Training, we know the difference a health and safety audit can make to your workplace. Our multi accredited consultancy has been built by ex-labourers who have worked on site and understand the inner workings of a multitude of industries. We know our stuff, and our training is geared towards helping you improve areas of your business that might have been identified in your workplace health and safety audit.

If you feel there are gaps in your company’s policy, procedure or systems, feel free to get in touch and we’ll answer any questions you have about our services.

Book your course today.