Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) is the name given to a series of serious debilitating conditions that can arise from prolonged exposure to high levels of vibration. ​ The management of Hand Arm Vibration is not just about measuring vibration levels, and as with all elements of health and safety it’s about the impact on individuals. A system of management is required to put in place effective measures for their protection, even when they may be so determined to complete their work that they may put themselves at risk. Loss of feeling, sensitivity, joint pain, sensitivity to cold and blanching (vibration white finger) are all permanent and untreatable. HAVS will lead to loss of quality of life, potential ill-health retirement, damages claims and, as a RIDDOR reportable disease, enforcement action. Earnsby Ltd have experience across the whole spectrum of health and safety hazards you may encounter, including: building services and facilities management, major accident hazard sites; construction; mountaineering; medicine; fire; chemicals; hazardous waste; crowd control; events management; nano-technology; recycling; accommodation; catering; radiation; explosives; theatres and the arts; transport and logistics; facilities management; CSR; teaching and training; health and wellbeing; grounds maintenance; food safety; bulk fuel handling; biological safety and genetic modification; entertainments and nightclubs; engineering; sports; farming; road safety; and archaeology. Earnsby Ltd have expertise in: strategy; policy development; occupational health; out-sourcing (and in-sourcing); well-being; equality and diversity; project management; human resources; finance; and sustainability. My teams by example, challenge my staff to succeed and give them the space and support to do so.

What does Health and Safety Training mean to your business? If it conjures up dreary classroom based boredom then you’ve come to the right place! … to do it differently. With experience in providing training from classroom sessions to practical workshops to keynote presentations Earnsby Ltd can either provide the training you need or find sparkling presenters to astound, entertain and astonish. Contact Earnsby Ltd for a no obligation discussion on your training needs.

“What is a pre-mortem?” you may ask. Rarely does an accident at work result in the worst case scenario. In fact studies have shown that for every one serious injury accident there are 10 first aid events, with 30 damage accidents and around 600 near misses. So for all those near misses, and all those damage events the outcome could have been far worse if it were not for luck – it may be only a matter of being in a different place through chance, passing by the scene of the accident only minutes earlier. So whereas a post-mortem is an investigation into an event that resulted in a traumatic outcome we ignore many more accidents that could have been really serious. And these are all opportunities to learn from the events, they are the lessons that we should take heed of to prevent a recurrence – and maybe a recurrence that involves the worst case scenario. The pre-mortem is therefore the opportunity to learn from an accident that could have resulted in a fatality that fortunately did not. In the investigation we assume the worst did happen and run through the possible causes of the event to determine what else management could have done to avoid that event. Where an investigation is usually carried out in an emotionally charged state, perhaps hampered by blame, guilt and recriminations, the pre-mortem is a real opportunity to learn from experience and delve deeply into those root causes of culture, behaviour and weaknesses in procedures that can otherwise be lost. Contact Earnsby Ltd at no obligation for an informal discussion.

When an accident happens do you focus on business as usual or do you put all your resources into the incident? If you need support Earnsby Ltd can be on hand to help you through. With experience in managing business continuity from major fires, preparing legal cases and assisting the authorities in fatal accident inquiries you can be sure of our assistance to see your business through. If you need help please give Earnsby Ltd a call. 07512 014212

Need a spot check, site inspection, unannounced visit, or a regular schedule of inspections as part of your formal management system then look no further. Earnsby Ltd can offer our expertise and experience to carry out formal or informal inspections of your workplace. For a no obligation discussion on your requirements please get in touch.

Every health, safety and environmental management system needs auditing to verify its effectiveness. There are many ways this can be done, and the audit approach you choose should be appropriate to the characteristics of your business – the risk profile, size, turnover, requirements of the management system, scrutiny from stakeholders or requirements of the authorities. Not only are Earnsby Ltd are accredited as lead auditors for ISO 18001 but we have designed audit systems to be used strategically to direct attention where it is most needed. For all aspects of support from designing the type of health and safety audit that meets your business needs to undertaking a formal audit against the ISO or British Standard, please contact us at no obligation to for an initial discussion.

Your health and safety management system should comprise of the overarching company Health and Safety Policy, a formal descriptor of the roles, responsibilities, scheme of delegation and organisation employed, and a range of policies stating how various risks and activities will be approach. A good health and safety policy is one that sets your business’s approach to a topic, is clear, concise and understandable and withstands scrutiny when put to the test. At Earnsby Ltd we have years of experience in our team and with our associates, and can help with your policy writing, or provide you with bespoke policies on almost any subject. To discuss the specific policy requirements of your business please contact us with no obligation.

Let’s get it straight – risk assessment is a different discipline from risk management. Risk management is about the consideration of the likelihood and consequences of foreseeable events occurring, and using this knowledge to prioritise action and determining what risks to take. All too often in the health and safety world this form of decision making is applied to the requirement to carry out, and implement the outcome of, a risk assessment. Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require: “Every employer shall make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to … health and safety … at work for the purpose of identifying the measures he needs to take to comply with the requirements and prohibitions imposed upon him by or under the relevant statutory provisions ... “ The requirement is to carry out a risk assessment to identify the “statutory provisions” (i.e. legal requirements) associated with that activity and implement them before an activity commences. Quite often the statutory provision will be in the form of other regulations (e.g. Manual Handling, Display Screen Equipment, Control of Asbestos at Work, CoSHH etc). Where there are no specific regulations the general duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 19674 will apply, and usually the requirement is to reduce the risk “as far as is reasonably practicable.” And that risk reduction is not to a “reasonable” level, it is the point at which the cost or resources of the control measure FAR OUTWEIGH the exposure to risk from carrying out the activity. Making that assessment can be difficult, which is where British Standards, codes of practice or industry guides become essential, and the advice of a “competent person” is often required. For help, with no obligation, please contact Earnsby Ltd.

At the very heart of health and safety is the “management system”. The system you choose should be right for your company, meeting the multiple requirements arising from your risk profile, the demands of your customers, the demands of your business’s leaders and the health, safety and wellbeing of your staff. In the simplest form a plan-do-check-act model may be all that is required, alternatively you may wish to implement the requirements of ISO 45001, and even achieve accreditation to that standard. Earnsby Ltd can provide advice to your business on which model may be best for your business at this time, we can help you develop and evolve the system over time with the evolution of your business, and we can help with the achievement of ISO 45001. For a no obligation discussion please get in touch.

Earnsby Ltd have the expertise, experience and knowledge to provide a range of consultancy bespoke services. For new clients we can offer a free service in providing a spot check review of your arrangements as an overview of your management system. But to understand the culture of your business, the risks involved and the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats takes rather longer and we can carry out a review to the depth you require. What we won’t do is to provide a “consultants charter” to create work for ourselves. We want to share the expertise in organisations that get health and safety right, and the preferred approach is for us to build up your knowledge and confidence to be able to manage your own health and safety obligations, whilst being there when needed for advice, support or for the more technical aspects. Earnsby Ltd aim to be your partner in creating efficiency, expertise and assurance for your business so you can sleep at night.

As far back as in 1992 the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations introduced the requirement for all employers to appoint a “competent person” to provide specialist expertise in managing health and safety at work. Earnsby Ltd can provide your company with that expertise as the “competent person”, or competent adviser for your business. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999: “Every employer shall, subject to paragraphs (6) and (7), appoint one or more competent persons to assist him in undertaking the measures he needs to take to comply with the requirements and prohibitions imposed upon him by or under the relevant statutory provisions” This competent person service can be as hands-on as you wish. That can be as infrequent as acting in a non-executive role as a critical friend in challenging your health and safety performance at regular but infrequent intervals, to an active undertaking all of your risk assessments and being on hand as often as is needed we can provide all the support you need. At no obligation please contact us for a discussion on how we can help.

The key to health, safety and environmental protection is the all-encompassing approach. It starts at the top of the organisation with leadership and the recognition that ultimately the board, or non-executives, have to drive the agenda. So getting the corporate governance structure correct is vital and that means embedding health safety and environmental protection into the hierarchy, into the committee structure for corporate oversight, and in selecting and monitoring the key performance indicators.

At Earnsby Ltd we want your staff to be safe, healthy and happy, we want you to avoid unnecessary damage and loss, and we want your customers to be delighted with your culture and their experience. So here at Earnsby our commitment is to find ways to help businesses improve. If we find that you’re doing everything you need to then great, we hope that our input helps you to sleep more easily and focus on your outputs. However, it’s rare that everything is as good as it can be and it’s a wise company that seeks an independent view on a regular basis. The starting point is a free one-hour consultation for us to learn the basics and to discuss with you what needs doing. Depending on the size and risk profile of your business we can then come and see for ourselves how you’re working, talk to the staff and find our what they think, we will review your documentation and we will examine your health and safety performance. The outcome will be a report with our professional, independent opinion on how you’re doing what you need to do next. Of course Earnsby Ltd will be happy to undertake that work on your behalf, but equally we will be delighted if you want to do that in house and not see us again for many months! It’s up to you. No pressure, just good solid, sound advice to steer you and provide competent, professional, independent leadership to guide you on your way. Give us a shout and let’s talk.