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Health and Safety Executive
Health and Safety Executive
“Work at Height and
Confined Spaces – a
regulators view point ”
Ian Whittles
HM Inspector of Health and
Safety
Introduction
• Welcome
• Work at Height
– Issues
– Overview of Regulations
– WAIT Tool
• Confined Spaces
– Definition
– Regulations
– Case Studies
• Questions
Work At Height
• Issue
– Most common cause of work fatality
• 35 in 08/09
– Major cause of injury
• 08/09 4654 major and 7065 over 3 day injuries
• The causes
– High Falls – roof, ladder, scaffold
– Low Falls – ladders, vehicles
– From all walks of life
• Majors (05/06) 54 vehicle lift platforms, 33 FLT’s & 96 sales assistants!
– Ladders – account for around 14 fatalities per year
• Annual ladder campaign replaced 7000 ladders since 2007
The Regulations
• The Work at Height Regulations 2005
– In force April 2005
– Consolidated various legislation
– Define a working platform in very broad terms
– Apply to self-employed and persons in control
of premises – landlords!
– Extensive schedules detailing requirements
– Require competence throughout the whole
procedure
• Planning, maintenance and undertaking
The Key Regulations?
• Competence would indicate good compliance with a number of key regulations
• 4 Organisation and planning
– Risk assessment
• 7 Selection of work equipment
– Collective over personal measures
– Covers things to take account of
• 12 Inspection of work equipment
– Installation & maintenance
• Can they identify hazards and defects appropriate to their role?
Organisation and Planning
• Need to ensure
– Work is properly planned and thought
through
– Appropriately Supervised
– Carried out Safely
– Covers Emergencies and Weather
– Proportionate measures
WAIT Tool – Regulation 7
• Interactive tool on HSE website to help
selection of access method
• Simple guide system
• Links to further guidance on suggested
solutions
Confined Spaces
• Definition: Any place,
including any chamber,
tank, vat, silo, pit, trench,
pipe, sewer, flue, well or
other such similar place
in which by its enclosed
nature there arises a
reasonably
foreseeable specified
risk
Specified Risk
• Risk of:
– Serious injury due to fire or explosion
– Loss of consciousness due to increase in
body temperature or asphyxiation from gas,
fume, vapour or lack of Oxygen
– Drowning in a fluid due to an increase in the
level
– Asphyxiation or entrapment leading to inability
to reach a respirable environment in a free
flowing solid
Regulations
• Confined Spaces Regulations 1997
• Refers back to Management Regs
– Avoid entry and undertake an assessment by a competent person if unavoidable
• Assessment required to develop the appropriate safe system of work
• Competent persons should be able to understand the risks associated with the prevailing conditions
– contents, residues, oxygen enrichment/deficiency
• Also those associated with the task or implications of the work
– Physical dimensions, cleaning chemicals, ignition sources, ingress of substances
Regulation 4
• Must not work in or leave a confined space (other than in the event of an emergency) otherwise than in accordance with a safe system of work
• Safe system of work must be developed by the competent person and cover an extensive range of topics
• Needs to take into account the specified risks and findings of the risk assessment
• Can be generic if the risks are consistently similar but relies heavily on competence and supervision systems in including PTW
Regulation 4 – safe system topics
• Supervision
– at a level appropriate to the risk
– likely to include a Permit to Work
– Need to make the local call
• Competence
– adequate generic training on risks
– include practical session
– site issues need to be considered
• Communications
– Clear, unambiguous and effective
• Atmospheric testing
– not just absence of O2 but presence of other gases to be considered
– method of testing to systematically and continuously ensure area is safe
Regulation 4 – safe system topics
• Gas purging/Ventilation
– Residual flammable gases may have been purged so is the air still breathable
– Prevention of build up of fumes from machinery/welding may require forced ventilation
– RPE would be a last resort other than for rescue work
– Petrol driven engines are not acceptable
• Residual residues and Isolation
– Residue may react with cleaning chemicals
– Systems need isolating correctly to prevent refilling or electrical issues - PTW
• Access/Egress
– Need to consider ease of access but also emergency rescue systems
• Lighting
– Suitable and sufficient
Regulation 5 - Emergency Procedures
• Rescue and Resuscitation
– May be self rescue including use of BA
– Need to consider the rescuers
– Avoid entry
– Need to consider lifting equipment to rescue unconscious casualty
• Fire safety
– inert gas systems likely to need disabling
• First Aid
– Appropriate to the level of risk for foreseeable injury
– “Top man” likely to be first aid trained as a minimum if not whole crew
Case Study
• Worker died in a silo whilst steam cleaning out
• Catalogue of failures identified
• Underlying issue?
– Competence
• Result
– Crown Court Appearance and the company since closed
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