Health and Safety

Executive

Work at Height

Robert Vaughan
Falls from Height Team
Stowmarket 10 December 2004
Summary

• Drivers for change

• The Work at Height Regulations
• Where we are at the moment
• Key messages about work at height
Drivers for Change

• Statistics: fall from height a

major hazard
• Existing piecemeal legislation
• Temporary Work at Height
Directive
Statistics

• Biggest Killer 67 Fatal Accidents

2003/04
• 3884 Major Accidents 2003/04
• Until this year always 2nd biggest
cause of major accidents
• 2/3 of all major injuries caused by
‘low falls’ (below 2mtrs)
Other Drivers for Change

• Patchwork of existing legislation

Construction Health Safety & Welfare
Workplace Health Safety and Welfare.
PUWER & LOLER
• Temporary Work at Height Directive
(2001/45/EC)
Developing the Regulations

• HSC regulatory objectives

Bring existing regulations together
Have goal setting regulations
Maintain existing standards
• Draft proposals consulted on
750+ responses, challenging issues
on construction and adventure
activity providers
Where we are at the moment

• Most draft Regulations already

agreed
• Balancing goal setting with
prescription
• Further consultation on 2mtr
reference point completed
• Issue of what to do about adventure
activity workers still to resolve
Current shape of the Regulations

• Old wine in new bottles (sic):

- Organisation and planning
- Competence
- Risk assessment
- Fragile surfaces/falling objects and
danger areas
- Inspection of work equipment
- Duties on persons at work
 What is work at height?

• Work in any place from which a person

could fall a distance liable to cause
personal injury
• Includes
access and egress
work at or below ground level
• Does not include
 stairways or slips or trips on the level
 Which Industries are covered?

• Covers all industries: e.g. construction,

agriculture, manufacturing, retail,
maintenance,warehouse etc
• Duty holders are:
employers;
self-employed; and
those in control of people at work, to the
extent of their control
Organisation, Planning, Competence

Work at height should be

• Properly planned
• Appropriately supervised
• Not carried out if weather conditions
jeopardise health and safety
• Those working at height should be
• competent or if being trained supervised by
a competent person
Steps for safe working at height

• Regulation 3 of the Management of

Health and Safety at work
Regulations
• Do a risk assessment
 Steps for safe working at height

• Avoid work at height

if you don’t have to go up there DON’T!
• Prevent falls
use an existing place or means of access
Use the most suitable way of working
Select the most suitable equipment
 Steps for safe work at height

• Minimise the distance and consequences

• Minimise the consequences
• Take other suitable measures to control
the risk eg instruction, information and
training
Selecting the right work equipment

• Collective protection before personal

protection
• Working conditions
• Access and Egress
• Distance and consequences of a fall
• Duration and frequency of use/task
• Ease of rescue/evacuation
• Risk of use, installation and removal of
equipment
Work Equipment for work at height

• Existing places of work

• Collective prevention inc guard rails etc
• Working platforms - MEWPS, Scaffold etc
• Collective fall arrest – airbags, nets
• Personal Fall Protection – work positioning
work restraint/ rope access/fall arrest
• Ladders/stepladders etc
Selecting work equipment
Examples of Work Equipment
.

Avoiding work at height

Examples of Work Equipment
.
Scaffoldin
g

Edge protection

M.E.W.P
Examples of work equipment

Nets

Air bags
Examples of Work Equipment

Fall Arrest

Work Positioning
Other Precautions
• Avoid risks from Fragile Surfaces
• Prevent Falling Objects
• Warn about Danger Areas
• Inspect work equipment
• Persons at work should
• Follow instructions and training
• Advise employer of hazards/risks to
health and safety
 Reassurance for some

• Do you follow current law and good

practice?
• Do you assess risks, and properly plan
and organise work at height?
• Do you try to avoid – prevent – minimise?
• Do you select, inspect and use the right
work equipment for work at height?
• Then you should be doing enough to
comply with the draft Regulations
 Recap
• Falls from height are a priority for the HSC/E
• Regulations provide a goal setting approach
•  Risk assessment is key to planning, organising, and
selecting equipment to carry out the work
• Follow the hierarchy of
 AVOID
 PREVENT
 MITIGATE
• If you already carry out a risk assessment for work at
height and take steps to manage these risks then you
are most of the way there
FURTHER INFORMATION

Robert Vaughan
Falls from Height Team
Health and Safety Executive
Tel 020 7717 6991
Email robert.vaughan@hse.gsi.gov.uk
http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/index.htm