Virtual Health & Safety Management System (VHSMS) A Brief Guide for Head Teachers

A new online system has been developed to make the reporting of accidents and incidents easier, quicker, more efficient and less of an administrative burden. Minor accidents to pupils are not to be recorded on VHSMS. The new forms can be accessed and submitted by all staff – they will not need to ‘log in’. As the forms are hosted on the internet they can be accessed and completed from any location and using any device. There are four new online forms for reporting incidents – these replace the paper HS1 and HS2 forms. Using different forms for different types of incidents means the quality of the information recorded will improve and so will, therefore, any reports and statistics produced using this system. Reporting an Accident or Incident

The online forms cover four ‘types’ of incidents and can be accessed using the external web addresses provided:  Injury/Accident  Other Incidents (Asbestos, Gas and Dangerous Occurrences)  Violence and Abuse  Near Miss and Hazard (including incidents of property damage) The forms can be completed and submitted online by the user.

What happens when an incident is reported? When the user clicks ‘Submit’ they will be given the option to download a copy to keep for their personal records if they so wish. An automated will be sent to you (as the Head Teacher) to notify you that an incident in your school has been reported. This will provide you with a reference number for the incident report. You will then be required to log in to the system (using the details provided to you) and review the incident report. You can log in to the system by typing the below address into your browser:

Once you have logged in you will see the home page: How do I review a report?

To view each different type of report, simply select the relevant logo. Accidents where somebody has been injured Asbestos incidents, gas incidents or dangerous occurrences Incidents of physical or verbal abuse, intimidation and violence Near misses, hazards, etc.

You will be able to see a list of all those types of incidents reported in your school with a reference number brief details and current status: Incident reference number Date & time of incident Incident type Event details (hover over to see full details) Status: Open (red), pending (yellow) or closed (green)

When an incident status is OPEN you are required to review the report, edit/update it if necessary and complete the short ‘Manager’s Review’ Section. To do this you must first select the incident by clicking on the incident reference number This will take you to the incident summary page: To open view and edit the report and/or complete the Manager’s Review click on ‘Edit Incident’.

On this screen you are able to see the full report, make any necessary updates or additions, upload any relevant documents and scroll down to complete the Manager’s Review. NB. Remember to scroll down and click ‘Save Changes’.

Once you have completed the Manager’s Review the status will change to PENDING. This means that the report is awaiting review from the Corporate Health and Safety Service (CHSS) and requires no further action from yourself at that time. When a member of the CHSS reviews the report they will choose one of four options depending on the specifics of the incident:  Action  Investigate  No Action / Close  RIDDOR Reportable When they select one, you will receive an to notify you of their decision.

If they select No Action / Close the status will change to CLOSED and no further action will be required from you. If they select Action you will need to log in and view the comments left by the CHSS. They should advise you if you need to do anything. The status will remain PENDING until these actions have been completed. If Investigate is selected, the CHSS require you to do carry out and submit a local investigation into the incident. If RIDDOR Reportable is selected, it means that the incident will be reported to the HSE under RIDDOR and you are required to conduct and submit a local investigation into the incident.

To submit an investigation report go to the Incident Summary Page (as explained earlier) At the bottom of the page you will see an Investigation Tab Click on ‘Create New Investigation’, complete the form and click ‘Submit’. NB. You need only complete the parts of the investigation form that are relevant.

If you have delegated the investigation to another member of staff then you must review it and complete the Manager’s Review section (as with incident reports). A member of the CHSS will then review the investigation and, again, choose whether to close the incident or take further action. You will be notified by once this is done.

The VHSMS will also allow you to upload supporting documents to your reports. This means you can utilise this as a central filing database, keeping relevant documents linked to the correct report and eradicating the need for paper copies to be made and sent to CHSS. To do this, select the ‘Supporting Documents’ tab and click on ‘Create new Supporting Document’: Supporting Documents

Click on the ‘Document Upload’ button This will allow you browse your computer for the file you need, uploading it to the VHSMS and securely storing it. You should upload any documents you feel relevant to the incident, eg. Risk Assessments, local procedures and policies, witness statements, maintenance reports, etc.

Witnesses If you have witness details to record you can do this by selecting the ‘Witnesses’ tab on the Incident Summary Page Click on ‘Create new Witnesses’, fill out the details and click ‘Save Changes’.

If you experience any problems with your log in details or need some assistance using the system please do not hesitate to contact the CHSS team: