Ideas for Action

A gas company held a road show for staff to help raise awareness of corporate health and safety policies and procedures.

A construction company contacted a theatrical group to carry out an in-depth assessment of their health and safety culture. Based on their experience the theatre company wrote and performed a series of 15-minute plays using professional actors followed by workshop discussions. The subjects covered site induction, safety communications, sub-contractors, working at height, and the image of the industry. The event was a huge success and 30 members of staff attended each day for three days during the Week.

"We provide day care facilities for 25 adults with learning difficulties. The Week was used as an opportunity to help our staff and attendees become more safety conscious. We used the ‘Best Signs’ video to teach everyone about safety signs and, afterwards, everyone chose a sign from the film to paint. These signs were then hung in appropriate places around the centre. During the Week, the groups went to a local shopping centre where they looked for signs from the video. They had a great time pointing them out and explaining their purpose."

A small print finishing company which provides training in work skills for people with different disabilities formed a partnership with a furniture manufacturer to help teach trainees about manual handling, hazard identification and machinery safety. The trainees designed posters to promote health and safety, and the company promoted tidy work areas and the procedures to be followed in the event of a fire.

A college put together a large display in their reception which included continuous playing of the video ‘Best Signs Story’. The theme was safety signs and the display included dozens of actual signs reinforcing the message of the video. Staff were issued with an accident quiz and students were encouraged to take part in a hazard-spotting competition which was also open to visitors and contractors, and the first four out of the hat won gift tokens.

An engineering company reduced reported accidents by 33% over a 12-month period. They launched a counselling service, First Aid training days, and an ongoing programme of health and safety awareness training. During the Week, they organised daily e-mails to remind everyone of the Week’s events as well as extensive poster displays, leaflet distribution, site surveys, risk assessments, training, competitions and newsletters.

"Sixth-form students used computer graphics to design health and safety posters, which were enlarged, laminated and displayed around the school. To focus on risk assessment, each student observed a lesson and then identified the risks involved and the steps taken to alleviate the risk. The students attended a local health and safety exhibition that featured a ‘hazard alley’. Health and safety was the theme for the school assembly one morning during the Week."

A trade union safety representative ran a series of safety training days in conjunction with a local charity. Aimed at young people aged between 12 and 14 years, the events were designed to highlight opportunities for employment in the countryside while pointing out the risks associated with farming and rural occupations using ‘real life’ situations including a farmyard, and building site scenarios in the Safety Centre.

"The Council put together... seminars for employees and local businesses, newsletters, goody bags of health and safety promotional items for every employee, outgoing mail franked with the Euro Safety Week logo, adverts on car parking tickets, a badge/poster design contest, displays, fire drill practice, team meetings, suggestion schemes, display screen assessments, and small firms invited to attend safety seminars. They also received extensive press and local media coverage for their efforts."

"The Seal Sanctuary organised different activities for every day of the Week including evacuation drills, manual handling, risk assessments, and a hazard spotting competition. They staged an in-house training session based upon and expanding on the ‘Best Signs Story’ video for junior staff and, as part of the Good Neighbour scheme, external delegates."