Our Consultancy Services
Health and Safety may not float everyone's boat but it's a necessary requirement of businesses to have sufficient arrangements in place and implemented.
So this is where Zebra Safety comes in - It's our speciciality and we take away the stress of complicated legislation and jargon for busy business owners and managers, to provide a complete service ensuring they are compliant with health and safety law and can sleep easy at night.
Our service usually starts off with an initial audit to review current arrangements and then agreement of bespoke consultancy services ranging from documentation development, to more practical on site solutions to ensure working arrangements and business premises are sufficient and safe for staff, contractors, visitors and members of the public.
We ensure that our Clients understand their responsibilities and have the right tools and knowledge to manage Health and Safety for their business with our continued advice and support.
We always respond promptly to phonecalls and emails and our clients always feel valued.
It's Easy When You Know How.
Essential Health and Safety Requirements
If your business has 5 or more employees, as an absolute minimum you should be complying with the following requirements:
Health and Safety Policy
Assess and control the risks in your workplace - Risk Assessments
Consult with employees
Provide Training and Information
Provide welfare facilities
Ensure arrangements for accidents, first aid and ill-health
Display the health and safety law poster
If you would like a free Consultation regarding your current arrangements and these requirements, get in touch.
Our Process
We work in a variety or ways, usually starting with an initial on-site visit and introduction. Leading to discussions via online meetings, the phone. and e-mail.
We can often produce the majority of documentation remotely, leaving you and your operation to continue with minimum disruption.
We're here to support you
Zebra Safety are always available to support our clients - with scheduled visits, documentation updates and Accreditation submissions.
We always answer the phone and respond to emails quickly.
We can also respond to last minute requests i.e. Tender submissions etc.
Policies and Procedures
Health and Safety Policies and Procedures are essential to document your Health and Safety Arrangements
We provide our client's with effective policies and procedures to help them manage specific Health and Safety topics.
We make Policies and Procedures specific to your business, highlighting and documenting your specific arrangements.
Our documentation is always simple and easy to read to encourage compliance.
Why do you need Policies & Procedures?
To comply with various pieces of Health and Safety Legislation, you must demonstrate your arrangements in place.
Although you may have the right behaviours and work safely, unless you have these documented, you could be subject to prosecution or claims.
Examples of popular Policies and Procedures required:
Health and Safety Policy
Drug and Alcohol Policy
Risk Assessment Procedure
Manual Handlling Procedure
Working at Height Procedure
Lone Working Procedure
Control of Contractor Procedure
Permit to Work Procedure
We can also provide other key policies, such as Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Anti Modern Slavery etc.
Risk Assessments and RAMS
Risk Assessments document your working activities and the Health and Safety Controls that you have in place.
Risk Assessments are a legal requirement and if you have 5 or more employees they should be written down.
Generic Risk Assessments should cover all your business acivities, detail your control measures and usually they have some form of traffic light scoring system highlighting if you are doing enough and the activity can be completed safely.
RAMS (Risk Assessments & Method Statements) are usually created for a specific project or job, where the environment or the work activity can change dependant on the client or the environment / situation. This is usually a requirement for Operational Businesses who visits different clients or sites.
It is essential that .RAMS are created so each specific job can be carried out safely.
Method Statements also include a step by step task sequence, detaling what tasks should be carried out in order, making it simple for employees/contractors to follow and work safely.
Risk Assessments should be completed by a competent person who has the correct skills, knowledge and experience.
If you are not sure if your RAMS are up to scratch, speak to us. We can provide great templates which you can adapt per job.
What do RAMS include?
Most RAMS Will include the following information:
Basic job details: date, location, staff, competence.etc.
Access, Tools, Plant and equipment , PPE, Materials Handling/Storage, Safety Information,Induction, Welfare Arrangements, Emergency Procedures, Protection of others, Waste arrangements plus specific safety risks and controls.. Sequence of Works.
If you need any advice or support to produce these on your behalf or would like a review of your existing documentation get in touch.
Risk Assessments are an essential element to manage a business safely and sometimes it can be difficult to know if you are doing enough and what is "reasonably practicable?"
Zebra is able to guide your business on effective contol measures and advise what is essential or good practice for specific activities.
CoSHH
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health
One of the most "Googled" CoSHH related items is "Do I need a CoSHH Assessment for washing up liquid?"
Ultimately any substance (household or not) that you use for work purposes should have a CoSHH Assessment
You should not consider that COSHH is substance specific, but COSHH is more to do with your work operations and how those operations generate potential substance exposures than the substances themselves.
All substances are toxic to some degree and the dose creates the poison.
In essence, if you wash dishes at home once or twice a day, it’s doubtful you suffer any effects from that. If you spend 8 hours a day washing dishes at work, you may suffer some degree of ill health.
The fact that a substance is not classified as harmful does not mean it will not cause ill health with sufficient exposure.
Hazard checklist
Does any product you use have a danger label?
Does your process produce gas, fume, dust, mist or vapour?
Is the substance harmful to breathe in?
Can the substance harm your skin?
Is it likely that harm could arise because of the way you use or produce it?
What are you going to do about it?
- Use something else?
- Use it in another, safer way?
- Control it to stop harm being caused?
Will an MSDS (material safety data sheet) do?
No an MSDS is not the same and a CoSHH Assessment is still required.
Translating important data from an MSDS can be difficult and they can be tricky to understand.
Zebra Safety can complete this easily for you and your business.
It is essential that you share CoSHH Asssessments with staff who use the substances and they sign to say they understand.
Safe Systems of work
A Large amount of accidents at work occur due to lack of / or failure in safe systems of work
Safe systems of work (SSOW) are structured processes designed by health and safety experts to reduce the risk of harm when employees face unavoidable hazards at work.
Health and safety legislation requires employers to create systems of work that, as far as is ‘reasonably practicable’, allows employees to work in an environment that does not create unnecessary risks to their health.
Although it may not be possible to eliminate all risks, safe systems of work are an important tool for mitigating them and protects employees and employers.
The SSOW should be easy to understand, clear and direct. Its purpose is to give employees specific instructions on how to work safely and should not be mistaken for general guidance.
Tasks and activities are broken down into sequential steps that employees should complete in order.
What should they include?
SSOW should:
Be designed for a specific task or activity
Identify all hazards related to the task or activity
Detail each individual step for safely completing the task or activity
Be easily accessible for everyone who needs it
How do we do this?
Complete a full risk assessment for the task or activity
Identify and examine hazards that present significant risks.
Establish methods that reduce the level of risk for these tasks or activities.
Document a step-by-step process and train staff on how to apply it.
Monitor how the SSOW performs and reassess it regularly.
Fire Risk Assessments
A thorough site visit with a straightforward report.
Zebra Safety offers a competent Fire Safety Risk Assessment service with detailed, easy to understand Fire Risk Assessment report, complete with a priority ordered action plan to help your take the appropriate action in your workplace or property.
We offer guidance and advice to help you ensure your premises is safe for everyone.
Why do you need a Fire Risk Assessment?
The Fire Risk Assessment is just the starting point of Fire Safety Management at your premises;
Fire Risk Assessments are a statutory requirement for all businesses. Any business employing five or more persons must record the findings of the risk assessment and act on those findings where necessary.
Zebra Safety's Fire Risk Assessments are designed to meet the specific requirements of your premises and will meet all the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.
Zebra Safety will always ensure that our clients’ premises are adequately assessed for fire risks to life, property and business continuity.
A comprehensive consultation is available following the fire risk assessments to discuss any significant findings and required actions to achieve a satisfactory standard of fire safety within the premises.
What do we review?
Every premises is different, but we always review the following:
The building’s use, layout and construction
The number and nature of occupants (including vulnerable occupants)
History of fire loss in the building
Electrical equipment or other sources of ignition
The presence of combustible fuel sources, e.g. paper, wood or gas sources
Areas where oxygen may be present in larger quantities e.g canisters
Smoking areas
Defense against arson
Portable and installed heating devices
All lighting equipment
Storage for any dangerous or flammable liquids
General fire hazards
Escape routes and how they are maintained
Check that emergency lighting is installed and working
Measures in place to limit fire spread
Fire safety signs (location and use of)
Equipment such as fire alarms, sprinklers and fire extinguishers
Checks to make sure regular fire safety training and evacuation drills happen
The correct fire safety documents and records are kept.
Who Needs a Fire Risk Assessment?
This service is not only a necessity for business owners for legal and insurance purposes but also for:
Property Management companies & Landlords
Letting Agents / AirBNB's / HMO's
Care Home providers
Schools and Learning Facilities
Sports and Social Clubs.
Competent Person
Anyone can "do" Health and Safety right?
Unfortunately not.
A competent person is probably something you may have heard about when talking about health and safety, but what exactly does it mean?
Do you need one? How do you find one? What makes them competent? Who can take on the role of competent person if you don't have someone internally?
What is a Competent Person?
Keeping it simple = a competent person helps an organisation to comply with health and safety law and take all reasonable steps to keep people from harm and comply with Health and Safety Regulations.
The Regulations are Black and White: You must get help from a competent person to enable you to meet the requirements of health and safety law.
A competent person is someone who has sufficient training and experience or knowledge and other qualities that allow them to assist you properly. The level of competence required will depend on the complexity of the situation and the particular help you need.
Why Choose Zebra Safety?
Rebecca Docker CMIOSH our Director and Founder has 25 years experience in Health and Safety and a Chartered Health and Safety Professional.
Rebecca is listed on the OSHCR (Occupational Safety and Health Consultants Register) which is the HSE's recommended route to finding a competent Consultant.
Why work with an OSHCR Consultant?
OSHCR consultants are qualified to provide a high level of health and safety advice across many specialist areas. All listed consultants:
Hold chartered-level membership with their professional body and our bound by its code of conduct.
Have valid PI insurance.
Are committed to continuing professional development.
Competent Person Packages
Start Up Package - £399 per year
Certificate of membership
Entitled to designate us as your “Competent Person”
Unlimited advice via advice line & email between the hours of 9.00 – 5.00 Mon – Fri.
Updates & relevant guidance on legislative, industry & best practice changes
(for less than 5 employees)
Growth Package - £899 per year
All features in bronze plus all the additional features listed below…
Develop a bespoke Health & Safety Policy
5 Generic risk assessments
5 Online training credits included
10% Discount on further consultancy or training rates.
(for 5-20 employees)
Established Package - £1399 per year
All features in bronze plus all the additional features listed below…
Develop a bespoke Health & Safety Policy
10 Generic risk assessments
10 Online training credits included
Assist with pre-qualifications and tender questionnaires
10% Discount on further consultancy or training rates.
(for 20-50 employees)
Competent Person or Advisor?
Sometimes a Health and Safety Consultancy may not be prepared to commit to being your competent person(s) and instead position themselves as ‘competent advisers’ – often because they believe this will make them less exposed or liable to the HSE should something go wrong.
Unfortunately not only is this incorrect (as negligent advice will attract regulatory attention anyway) but it can be a good indicator that they are not confident in their competence to advise you sufficiently.
Potential Consequences:
Failure to appoint a competent person(s) can lead to a prosecution for breaching the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which can in turn lead to action by your regulatory authority, fines, shutting your business down orin cases where the consequences of a breach were extreme, up to 2 years imprisonment.
Is it worth the risk?
Health and Safety SSIP Accreditations
What are Health and Safety Accreditations?
There are various health and Safety Accreditations such as CHAS, Safe Contractor, SMAS and Constructionline to name a few.
SSIP (Safety Schemes in Procurement)was founded in May 2009 and is supported by HSE.
SSIP aims to simplify prequalification and encourage straightforward mutual recognition between its accreditations.
One way an organisation can demonstrate competence in health and safety is to be assessed by a third party. This is also known as conformity assessment. Health and safety conformity assessment schemes originated in the construction sector, but are now used more widely.
The Benefits:
The aim of SSIP is that potential clients can go to the Accreditation website and check your Health and Safety status, detailing if you have required Health & Safety documentation that will help you potentially win Tenders and projects over other companies.
It makes the process so much easier than sending out various tender documents for assessment.
Many Clients will now only use contractors and consultants selected from an approved database who have demonstrated the appropriate level of competence in their H&S management systems. Clients can be assured that contractors and consultants who have been assessed and accredited by an SSIP member scheme have achieved the initial threshold of competence to provide specific services.
How do Zebra Safety support your accreditations?
Zebra Safety will manage the whole process for you.
We will review your activities, existing documentation and develop the appropriate documentation for you.
We will provide templates and advise how to complete.
You will always need to provide evidence of your safe working arrangements and we will support you with this.
What do Accreditations ask for?
The key documents you will need are:
Health and Safety Policy
Sample Method Statements and Risk Assessments
Information on H&S Training (certificates/records/matrix etc)
Sub-contractor assessment and monitoring processes
Site Inspections, Employee performance monitoring
Work Equipment maintenance and inspection
Workforce involvement i.e. Toolbox Talks, Meetings
Accident records and procedures / any Enforcement action
HSE Competent person evidence
Any additional information for some industries i.e. Working at Height Procedures, Permits to Work
Why use Zebra Safety for your Competent Person?
We have a 100% pass rate!
We make the process seamless and easy for our clients.
We are clear about what is required.
Having completed many accreditations, we understand the process and the systems so we can complete your accreditation in a fraction of the time, it may take yourselves or others to do.
Accreditations - CHAS / Safe Contractor / Construction-line
Development of documents and submission management to achieve SSIP / Health and Safety Accreditations.
Risk Assessments / RAMS and Safe Systems of Work
Development of Risk Assessments, RAMS and Safe Systems of Work to ensure your safe working practices are documented and communicated.
Competent Person
Qualified, Safety Practitioner to act as your competent person.
Requirement for all businesses particualrly SSIP Accreditations.
Fire Risk Assessments
Site visits to your premises to review fire arrangements and development of a comprehensive, easy to read report detaling areas of non-compliance.
Policies and Procedures
We can develop bespoke Policies and Procedures to detail your arrangements for health and safety.