Health And Safety For Small Businesses - Why It Matters

Health and safety is one of the most important priorities for your business. Why?

1. The health and safety of your employees matters.

2. An accident at work can have financial and reputational consequences.

3. It’s your duty as an employer.

Larger companies tend to have departments dedicated to health and safety. For a smaller business, it’s unlikely there are dedicated health and safety personnel on-site. But just because you don’t have a health and safety expert on-site, doesn’t make it any less important. In fact, it makes it even more important to ensure you’ve got the right health and safety policies in place for your workers. 

Want to ensure your health and safety policies are up to scratch? Consider the following to help make your small business a safe and secure place to work.

Establish a health and safety policy

A health and safety policy is a must for every business. Your policy should include the health and safety measures and practices you’ve put in place to protect your employees and any visitors to your business. A detailed risk assessment will help you identify any risks to your business, giving you the chance to prevent them. 

If your business lacks someone with health and safety expertise, you should consider hiring an external provider who can evaluate the relevant risks and help draft a policy on your behalf. The Health and Safety Executive also has some useful resources, like this YouTube video, to help you manage your risk assessment:

Invest in equipment to keep your employees safe

The right equipment can make all the difference to your employee’s health and safety. Protective equipment is a must for many roles, while aids such as a mobile scaffold should be carefully maintained to ensure they don’t pose a safety risk. All equipment inspections should be carried out by an experienced person to ensure they meet the required standard.

Provide training to help make safety everyone’s priority

Health and safety should be everyone’s priority, and as an employer, you can help ensure your employees feel confident and capable of maintaining safety. The benefits of health and safety training can’t be ignored, and you should make this training a key part of any employee onboarding programme to ensure policies are understood from day one. Training should be refreshed regularly, and all relevant training materials should be made accessible for employees to reference them as needed.

In 2022/23, 135 people were killed in workplace accidents, many of which could have been prevented with more in-depth training.

Review your policies regularly

Your business may face new risks all the time, which is why it’s important to review your policies regularly. As your business grows, you can evaluate emerging risks, and ensure your commitment to health and safety remains strong.

For small businesses, health and safety issues can matter even more than they do for big businesses. There’s a lot at stake, and a preventable incident could signal the end of your business. Make health and safety a priority to help keep your employees safe, and to help protect your business. With health and safety taken care of, you can keep your focus on running a successful business.