1. Expectations of the Enforcing Authority
Katie Dunlop MSc BSc (Hons)
HM Inspector of Health and Safety

2. HSE: Strategy New HSE strategy Increasing culture of risk aversion
“To prevent death, injury and ill health to those at work and those affected by work activities”
Workplace fatalities fell last year to 180
23 fatalities in Scotland
Over 100,000 employees still suffer serious injuries every year
Several thousand still dying prematurely from work-related diseases

3. Leadership Fundamental in the governance of health and safety culture
Leaders in organisations
Leaders in your own specialist area
Take ownership of issues
Win management attention

4. Money talks!
Health and Safety can be seen as an expense that can be done without
Can be seen as bureaucracy and burden
Reality health and safety makes good business sense
Improvements in costs, productivity and reputation
Can increase moral and productivity and reduce absences and staff turnover

5. Leadership Not just from the top down Bottom up can be more effective
Everyone must understand own responsibilities
Health and safety has high profile at Edinburgh University
Can be a challenge to enable everyone to play own part

6. Competence Health and Safety training
Not expecting you all to be health and safety experts
First line of defence
Role to build competence throughout the University as a whole
Best results are where health and safety integrated within all aspects of your role not simply as something that has to be done
Relevant to task each person is performing
Clear on responsibilities to take care of own health and safety

7. Accountability
Everyone has a role
Everyone responsible
Everyone accountable
Responsibility to manage risks lies with those that create it

8. Focusing on the risks that matter
Proportionality
Focusing on the risks that matter
Not about paperwork, about proper work
Many health and safety myths:

9. HSE ban throwing mortar boards at Graduation Ceremonies!

10. Lord Young Report www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/lordyoung/index.htm
Welcomed by HSE
Important milestone for reputation of real health and safety
Refocus on managing workplace risks
Often used as a convenient excuse to hide behind

11. Proportionality What does this mean in University sector
Identify real and serious risks
Two major causes of ill health and injury in education sector are work-related stress and slips and trips

12. Stress
Work-related stress costs society £4 billion and over 13 million working days each year
Management Standards introduced in 2004
Provide framework for managing stress
6 key areas: change, relationships, support, roles, control and demands

13. Slips and Trips
Slips and trips account for 60% of serious injuries at estimated cost of £49 million a year
Shattered lives campaign
Online e-Learning Package - STEP
Includes specific course for those working in education sector

14. Proportionality Understanding of risk is core life skill
Need to embed this basic understanding in the curriculum
Applies to all departments
Young people more risk naïve than 20 years ago
Lot of work now underway to bring health and safety into mainstream education curriculum

15. Conclusion Three relevant pillars of HSE strategy: Leadership
Accountability
Proportionality
Including the themes of:
Competence
Training
Learning

16. Conclusion It’s not rocket science!
Strategies only work if they make sense and result in real action on the ground
Thank you
Any questions