Control of Document: ACL Senior Leadership Team (SLT)
Applies: Whole Service
Policy Aims and Intention:
The aim of this Policy is to ensure the effective management of health and safety in Adult Community Learning (ACL) Essex, including compliance with all relevant health and safety legislation, Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) and other external funding agency requirements.
Responsibility Group: ACL Senior Leadership Team
Original Date of Acceptance: 27th April 2004
Last Review date: 18th November 2022
Next Review date: 18th November 2023
Audience: All ACL learners, apprentices, staff, volunteers, partner organisations (including employers for all work-based training provision), and other internal and external stakeholders.
The Policy
ACL is committed to ensuring high standards of health and safety for its employees, learners, apprentices, and other visitors to its premises. ACL complies fully with the Essex County Council Health and Safety Policy Statement, and the Adult Community Learning Health and Safety Code of Practice.
The above Policy and Code of Practice detail the organisational arrangements for ensuring compliance with legal health and safety responsibilities, ECC, ESFA and other funding agency health and safety requirements.
Full details of these policies can be found on the ACL Intranet
Health and Safety Policy and Procedures (essex.gov.uk)
The policy and code of practice comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and other legal requirements specified in Appendix 1 of Health and Safety Regulations Guide (HSC13 (REV1) published by the Health and Safety Executive.zzz
In addition to compliance with the ECC Health and Safety policies there are additional processes and procedures exclusive to ACL, which can be found within this policy.
Method of implementation and Communication
- Responsibility for implementing this Policy rests with all managers and employees, as detailed in the Essex County Council Health, Safety Policy Statement and the Adult Community Learning Health and Safety Code of Practice and other relevant Essex County Council Policies.
- Details of the ECC health and safety policy can be found on the intranet – regular updates are sent out from relevant teams.
- Health and Safety is a mandatory agenda item on all ACL meeting agendas. Where an incident has occurred, this is recorded and followed up by the Senior Leadership Team.
- Weekly newsletters provide all ACL staff with any relevant updates relating to Health and Safety.
- Noticeboards in centres provide Health and Safety information including fire exits and marshals, first aiders and safeguarding.
- Learner and Apprentice handbooks include relevant health and safety information and include details of how to keep safe and healthy at work; this includes reporting accidents, incidents, or ill health.
- Health and Safety is part of the induction process for every learner, apprentice, or service user. Induction refers to the learner/apprentice handbook and includes how to keep safe and healthy at work; this includes reporting accidents, incidents or ill health.
- Employers of apprentices are given details of how to report concerns, incidents or accidents to ACL – this includes what needs to be reported and when. Full details can be found in the Employer Toolkit for Apprenticeships
- Both the website and VLE have links to all health and safety for staff, learners, apprentices and other service users.
- Any issues or incidents are reported using the My Safety system on the ECC Intranet. All accidents, incidents or near misses are investigated within 10days by the relevant ACL Manager. All Health and Safety incidents are reviewed by the Corporate Health and Safety Team and, where necessary, they will initiate further investigations.
Training
Health and Safety training is part of the ECC employee onboarding process and a mandatory part of induction for all staff. All ECC staff must complete Corporate Governance Modules, which includes sections on Health and Safety. Either once every three years or whenever there is a corporate update
Staff who have responsibility for maintaining health and safety within ACL centres and or carrying out risk assessments attend regular training and hold appropriate qualifications e.g., IOSH, Fire Marshal Training, First Aid.
Risk Assessments
Generic risk assessments are contained within ACL health and safety code of practice. Where local risk assessments are required, responsibilities and guidance can also be found in the codes.
- prior to an apprentice starting their programme to ensure the employers premises meet the standard required by HSE. A HASP and Standard 10 form are completed and held on file.
Risk assessments are reviewed annually or when something changes
Roles and Responsibilities
Responsibility for implementing this Policy rests with all ACL managers and employees
Within ACL this is:
Senior Leadership Team and Strategic Advisory Board (Governing Body)
Responsible for ensuring the service is safe for learners, apprentices and service users and that ACL remains compliant with all processes and procedures.
Business Operations Manager
Is Designated Lead Manager for liaison on health and safety matters with ECC, ESFA and other external agencies, responsible for implementation of all health and safety processes and procedures within ACL including adherence to the service Codes of Practice
Centre Leads
Designated as the local Health and Safety Co-ordinators and responsible for the health and safety of learners, apprentices, and service users within their centre.
Line Managers and Leads
Ensure all Health and Safety Policies and procedures are implemented within their area of responsibility.
Employer Engagement Officers
Responsible for ensuring all apprenticeship workplaces are suitable and safe.
All Employees
Have a duty to look after their own safety and the safety of others affected by their work, this includes learners, apprentices and service users.
Contractors and Visitors
Visitors to ACL premises, including contractors, clients, service providers and members of the public must comply with both ACL and Essex County Council health and safety procedures and requirements.
Within ECC this is:
Council Leader and Cabinet Members
The Cabinet is responsible for policy decisions. Other Committees support and / or monitor the work and decisions of the cabinet. Decisions taken by the cabinet and individual portfolio holders must comply with health and safety legislation and the County Council’s Health and Safety Policy
Chief Executive
The Chief Executive is the most senior employee responsible for the implementation of the County Council’s Health and Safety Policy and has overall accountability for all health, safety and welfare matters.
Monitoring Officer
The Monitoring Officer is responsible for advising the Council where any proposal, decision or omission by the Council, its committees and subcommittees or officers would contravene health and safety legislation.
Corporate Leadership Team
Ensure health and safety is an integral part of Corporate Leadership Team business performance.
Corporate Health and Safety Board
The Essex County Council Corporate Health and Safety Board (CHSB) and Corporate Leadership Team (CLT) accepts its health and safety responsibilities, and in doing so will ensure the effective and proactive management, support and control of its operations in line with the health and safety policy and legal requirements. The ECC Corporate Health and Safety Board plays a key role in ensuring employees, third parties and contractors are adequately consulted and communicated on matters relating to their health and safety at work.
Executive Directors
Ensure all CLT decisions reflect the intentions and objectives of the Essex County Council’s Health and Safety Policy.
Directors and Heads of Service
Ensure all decisions made by their Service reflect the intentions and objectives of the Essex County Council’s Health and Safety Policy.
Service Area Health and Safety Champions
Represent the interests of all employees on health, safety and / or welfare issues.
Corporate Health and Safety Team
Provide an advisory service to support Executive Directors on the implementation of ECC’s Health and Safety Policy in their Function area and support managers in discharging their health and safety responsibilities by providing advice, guidance, information and training.
Occupational Health
Provide advice to managers and employees on all aspects of health in relation to work.
Monitoring and Evaluating the Policy
This policy is reviewed annually as part of internal quality procedures to ensure that ACL policies are current, remain aligned to the ECC corporate Health and Safety Plan and accurately reflects the service activity. This includes:
- At least termly, documented inspections of all ACL main premises by an appropriate local ACL Managers and / or ACL Centre Leads.
- At least annually, a review of all main, satellite and outreach teaching premises including risk assessments carried out by a team of appropriate, qualified and competent ACL Health and Safety Risk Assessors,
- At least annually, a review of all classroom-based activity including risk assessments by the individual subject tutors, which are regularly monitored by their respective Curriculum Lead
- Monthly reports to the ACL Senior Leadership Team by the Business Operations Manager, on all reported health and safety incidents,
- Investigation of all reported health and safety incidents by appropriate local managers.
- The ACL Operations Group and ACL Employee and Learner Forums meet quarterly with Health and Safety standard items on agendas to exchange information and review the effectiveness of provisions throughout ACL.
- ACL annual review of HASPS for apprentices
- ACL Business Operations Manager remains part of the Function Health and Safety Committee and represent ACL at external Health and Safety meetings.
The ECC Corporate Health and Safety Plan will be a standing item at the Corporate Health and Safety Board and so monitored on a quarterly basis. Performance of the Corporate Health and Safety Management Plan is presented to Cabinet Members Board annually to allow for new objectives and targets to be developed and implemented.
Detailed arrangements for monitoring and review of health and safety can be found in the following Essex County Council policies (HSP documents) and Health and Safety Forms (HSF):
- HSP 1.0 Health and Safety Policy Statement.
- HSP 2.0 Roles and Responsibilities.
- HSP 4.0 Health and Safety Management Plan,
- HSP7.0 Health and Safety Information, Communication and Consultation
- HSP 8.0 Health and Safety Consultation Arrangements
- HSF002 ECC Health and Safety Handbook
- HSV005 ECC Corporate Objectives.
- HSF006 Function Health and Safety Objectives.
- HSF007 CHSB Terms of Reference
- Adult Community Learning Health and Safety Code of Practice
The arrangements include:
- ACL Business Operations Manager is part of the Function Health and Safety Committee.
- At least termly, documented inspections of all ACL main premises by appropriate local ACL Managers and / or ACL Centre Leads.
- At least annually, a review of all main, satellite and outreach teaching premises risk assessments by a team of appropriate, qualified and competent ACL Health and Safety Risk Assessors,
- At least annually, a review of all classroom-based activity risk assessments by the individual subject tutors, regularly monitored by their respective Curriculum Leads,
- Regular reports to the ACL Senior Leadership Team by the ACL Business Operations Manager, on all reported health and safety incidents,
- Investigation of all reported health and safety incidents by appropriate local managers.
Further Information
Copies of the publications referred to in this Policy are available via the ACL Vice Principal Quality and Compliance and/or the ACL Business Operations Manager, or on the ACL Virtual Learning Platform: https://vle.essexacl.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=9
Each ACL premises displays a Local Health and Safety Organisation, and Arrangements notice, which identifies key employees with responsibility for health and safety at each local site.
Links to Other Relevant ACL Policies:
ACL Children and Young People Safeguarding Policy
ACL Disability Policy
ACL Equality and Diversity Policy
ACL Exclusion Policy
ACL Harassment and Bullying Policy
ACL Learning Support Policy
ACL Adult Safeguarding Policy
ACL Staff Development Policy
ACL Teaching and Learning Policy
ACL Fitness to Learn Policy
ACL Physical Intervention Policy
Links to Other Relevant ECC Policies:
ECC Working with DSE
ECC COSHH Policy
ECC Electricity and Electrical Equipment Safety
ECC Manual Handling Policy
ECC Lone Working Policy
ECC Driving for Work
ECC Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
ECC Visitors and Security
ECC Management of Contractors
ECC Work Related Violence Policy
ECC Legionella
ECC PEEP
ECC Planning for Emergencies
ECC Fire Safety
ECC First Aid
ECC Accident and Incident Reporting
ECC Information Governance policies
ECC People and Transformation policies (HR)
- This policy is located on the ACL pool drive in Policies and Strategies
- The document is uploaded to the VLE