MMU Health and Safety Policy

Manchester Metropolitan UniversityHealth and Safety Unit

Tel 0161 247 3317Fax 0161 247 6862Email safety@mmu.ac.uk

Visit www.mmu.ac.uk/humanresources/health/policy

Websites/Further information

Health Protection Agency – www.hpa.org.uk

Health and Safety Executive – www.hse.gov.uk

Health and Safety Unit – www.mmu.ac.uk/human/resources/health

Institution of Occupational Safety and Health – www.iosh.co.uk

National Radiological Protection Board – www.nrpb.org

Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents – www.rospa.com

Trades Union Congress – www.tuc.org.uk/h_s/index.cfm

A web version of the policy is available at www.mmu.ac.uk/human resources/health/policy

Contact your local safety representative (details available from your local staff representative)

What’s in thepolicy?

This text is available on request in large print or alternative format. Contact the Health and Safety Unit.

Introduction

This policy identifies the key elements of our health and safetymanagement system and details the commitment the Universityhas for maintaining and improving the health, safety and welfareof our staff, students and others who may be affected by ouractivities.

Our staff and students are our key resource and it is essential thatrisks to their health and safety are properly controlled through aneffective health and safety management system and commitmentat all levels within the university.

The University recognises the important role strong strategicleadership and effective management control plays in establishinga positive safety culture and preventing incidents, work relatedill-health and accidents. We are committed to improving healthand safety performance and this policy will provide the frameworkfor this goal to be achieved. The University values the importantcontribution that staff and union appointed safety representativesmake in improving health and safety. A partnership approach tomanaging health and safety is crucial to the University meetingits objectives for maintaining and improving health and safetyperformance.

Suggestions for improvement on any health and safety relatedissue are always welcomed and should be addressed through your manager or safety representative.

Vice-Chancellor Chairman of the Board of Governors

Introduction 01

Our Commitment/Your Commitment 02

Strategic Leadership 05

Management of Health and Safety 05

Organising for Health and Safety 08

Consulting and Communicating on Health and Safety 11

Planning and Performance 14

Auditing and Reviewing 16

Websites/Further Information Back page

First published: 2004Revised: 2009Next formal review: 2012

Policy is kept under constant review by the University Health and Safety Committee

01

Our Commitment

We are committed to high standards in health, safety and welfare for all staff, students and others who may be affected by ouractivities. We accept that reducing risks in the workplace reducescosts and that good health and safety is good business.

This policy sits alongside and supports other University policies and procedures.

The University recognises that the implementation of an effective health and safety policy contributes to the performance of the University and iscommitted to:

• setting a clear direction for the University to follow

• taking initiatives in establishing good practice

• supporting staff needs and development

• recognising that health, safety and welfare is an important line managementresponsibility

• recognising that the prevention of accidents, incidents or work-related ill health requires effective management and leadership

• believing that the development of a positive health and safety culture is necessary to achieve adequate control of risks

• minimising human and financial losses which arise from avoidable unplannedevents

• supporting continuous improvement in health, safety and welfare

• having a systematic approach to the identification and control of risks

• supporting the health and well-being of our staff and students

• meeting our responsibilities to people and the environment by the way we fulfilthe spirit and the letter of the law

• having in place systems that will allow the University to maintain, monitor andimprove health and safety performance

• maintaining effective means for communication and consultation on health andsafety matters

• committing to a collaborative approach which recognises the important contributionthat staff and their representatives can make to improve health and safety

• providing appropriate welfare support and positive health promotion

• providing access to competent advice on health, safety and welfare

• identifying the management of health and safety arrangements in a Health andSafety Manual

Our CommitmentYour Commitment

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• providing any information, instruction, training or supervision necessary to meet this commitment

• providing sufficient resources to meet these commitments

• providing and maintaining safe conditions, equipment and systems of work

• having in place plans for dealing with emergencies and their effects

Your Commitment

The University expects staff, students, contractors and visitors tocooperate on health, safety and welfare matters, take care of theirown health and safety and that of others who may be affected bytheir actions.

In particular by:

• not undertaking any actions which constitutes a danger to yourself or others

• cooperating with the University and supporting its policies and procedures onhealth and safety

• bringing to the attention of your manager/supervisor any situations or practices that may lead to injuries or work-related ill-health

• using equipment in a safe and responsible way

• maintaining good housekeeping in areas in which you are working

• reporting all near misses, incidents and accidents

• undertaking such health and safety training relevant to your work activities

0504

Strategic LeadershipManagement of Health andSafety

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Strategic Leadership

This section deals with the responsibilities of formal groups whoprovide direction and oversight and agree the objectives on healthand safety.

The Board of Governors

The Board of Governors will:

• assure the development and implementation of an appropriate health and

safety policy

• receive sufficient information, and where necessary training to enable them to

actively discharge their corporate responsibility for health and safety

• assure that its actions and decisions reinforce the messages contained within the

health and safety policy

• have a responsibility to be kept informed and alert to relevant health and safety risk

management issues

• be kept informed about any significant health and safety compliance violations and

the outcome of the investigations into their causes

• consider the health and safety implications of all its decisions.

The Estates and Services Advisory Group

In addition to the Board of Governors responsibilities the Estates and Services Advisory Group will:

• advise on the relevance of the present health and safety policy statement to ensurethat it reflects the University’s strategic priorities and is periodically reviewed.

• monitor the implementation of the annual health and safety plan

• receive reports on the effectiveness of the health and safety management systems

• receive regular health and safety reports at its meetings from the University Healthand Safety Committee

The Directorate

The Directorate are the most senior management groups within the Universityand are in a position to consider and implement policies and procedures concerning health, safety and welfare.

The Directorate will:

• accept its collective responsibility for providing health and safety leadership

• keep abreast of health and safety legislation and its implications for the University

• implement the health and safety policy commitments within the University

• implement and maintain an appropriate communication strategy on health andsafety within the University

• be informed of any significant health and safety compliance violations and instigateappropriate action

• be informed of and be alert to relevant health and safety risk management issues

• monitor that appropriate consultation takes place in respect of decisions that affecthealth, safety and welfare of staff and students

• consider that health and safety issues are integrated into their planning

• receive regular updates on health, safety and welfare matters

• consider and approve health, safety and welfare policies on behalf of the University

• consider the health and safety implications of all of its decisions

• agree the health and safety priorities for inclusion in the annual health and safety plan

• receive and consider reports on health and safety performance

Management of Health and Safety

The University is committed to the effective management of healthand safety and recognises that this is a line managementresponsibility.

• The management of health and safety arrangements, including specific details of individual duties and responsibilities, are documented in the University’sHealth and Safety Manual

• The management of health and safety arrangements will be reviewed periodically toensure that they are up to date and relevant

Organising forHealth andSafety

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The University organisational framework will identify the responsibilities and relationships which will promote a positivehealth and safety culture.

This section of our policy identifies the senior individuals who are responsible for delivering the policy commitments. Details of their duties and responsibilities are setout in the University’s Health and Safety Manual.

Vice-Chancellor

chairs the Directorate and is the most senior executive officer and has overall responsibility for ensuring the commitments of the policy are delivered within the University.

Deputy Vice-Chancellors

are members of the Directorate and will deputise for the Vice-Chancellor during theVice-Chancellor’s absence.

Human Resources Director

is a member of the Directorate and is responsible for ensuring that the policy commitments are delivered in practice and acts with the authority of the Vice-Chancellor in matters concerning health, safety and welfare.

Chief Operating Officer and Financial Director

is a member of the Directorate and is responsible for the allocation of adequate resources to enable the University to meet its health and safety policy commitments.

Director of Services

is a member of the Directorate and is responsible for delivering the policy commitments for the Services Group.

Registrar

is a member of the Directorate and is responsible for delivering the policy

commitments for Student and Academic Services.

Deans/Pro-Vice-Chancellors

are members of the Directorate and are responsible for delivering the policy commitments for a designated location.

Consulting and Communicatingon Health andSafety

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A detailed organisational chart and designation of local responsibilities andduties are contained in the University’s Health and Safety Manual. A shortenedchart is presented below:

* The Human Resources Director acts on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor in respect of the Health and Safety Policy.

Vice-Chancellor

Deans/Pro Vice-

Chancellors

Director ofServices

Deputy Vice-Chancellors

RegistrarHuman

Resources Director*

Chief Operating Officer andFinancial Director

Consulting on Health and Safety

Effective consultation is essential if the University is to satisfy its commitment to promote a collaborative approach to health and safety.

The University will consult on the introduction and modification of policiesand procedures in respect of health and safety. The consultation will takeplace through dedicated task groups and the following formal consultationprocess.

University Health and Safety Committee

This statutory committee has the important role of promoting health, safety andwelfare throughout the University. It has full staff side representation and meetsat least three times a year. The committee’s terms of reference are contained inthe health and safety manual.

The following statements reflect the committee’s principal obligations:

• consider and approve policies on health, safety and welfare

• consider the implementation of health and safety legislation and recommend appropriate action

• promote good standards of training in health and safety at all levels within the University

• appoint task groups to examine specific health and safety issues

• receive health and safety management audit reports

• receive reports on near misses, work related ill-health, incident and accidents reports and recommend appropriate preventative action

Local Site Health and Safety Panels

These panels support senior staff in promoting and monitoring health, safety andwelfare of a specific site. They are an essential tool for monitoring and measuringhealth and safety performance at local level. Specific terms of reference andmembership details are contained in the health and safety manual.

They will:

• provide a focal point for resolving site issues on health, safety and welfare

• consider health and safety issues relevant to their site and decide on appropriate responses

• be representative of the areas based on the sites they cover

• monitor the effectiveness of local health and safety management systems

• receive accident and ‘near miss’ reports

• receive and consider health and safety reports

• provide an annual report to the University Health and Safety Committee

• provide opportunity to formally consult with trade union representatives

Communicating on Health and Safety

The University will endeavour to provide effective communicationchannels in respect of health, safety and welfare. The Universityaccepts that effective communication will combine to form an on-going briefing which will keep our staff and students up to date and informed.

Examples of communication include:

• publicising the University’s policy on health and safety widely through a variety of media

• undertaking regular health and safety briefings with staff, students and theirrepresentatives

• providing details of management of health and safety arrangements in the Healthand Safety Manual.

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Planning andPerformance

Planning for Health and Safety

Planning is essential to ensure that our health and safety proceduresreally work in practice. Planning involves identifying priorities and setting key objectives.

The University will:

• include health and safety considerations in it’s strategic planning

• produce an annual health and safety plan that identifies objectives that are realisticmeasurable and achievable

• utilise appropriate compliance standards in the plan

• ensure that the annual health and safety plan is subject to consultation through theUniversity Health and Safety Committee

• ensure that the annual health and safety plan identifies outcomes and how theseare to be achieved

Measuring our Health and Safety Performance

Measurement is essential to maintain and improve health and safetyperformance.

We will measure our performance by having active and reactive monitoring(checking before things go wrong and when things go wrong).

This can be achieved by:

• having in place good risk control strategies

• monitoring compliance with health and safety laws that are relevant to our activities

• maintaining accurate records and investigating near misses, work related ill-health,incidents and accidents and identifying their causes

• comparing our performance against similar institutions

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Auditing and Reviewing

Health and Safety Management audits will be used to check that our policy, organisation and systems are effective and relevant.

We will use audit and review to improve our ability to manage risk, especially by:

• checking levels of compliance with our health and safety performance indicatorsagainst legislation and good practice

• undertaking annual health and safety audits of a site

• undertaking single issue compliance audits

• analysing near misses, work-related ill-health and injuries for cause and trends

• identifying areas where performance can be improved

• feeding audit findings into a management action plan with a timetable forimplementation

• checking that agreed objectives are achieved within a given time scale

• communicating audit outcomes to staff and students

• the University Health and Safety Committee reviewing audit reports andmanagement action plans and monitoring their implementation

• the University Health and Safety Committee receiving annual reports from local sitehealth and safety panels and reviewing performance across the University

• the University Health and Safety Committee establishing University-wide themesfor each session to be addressed by local site health and safety panels

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