Anglia Ruskin University Higher Education Corporation
Risk Management
Title
Health and Safety Committees
Reference Number
AR-RMD-HSMS13
DOCUMENT HISTORY
Review dates
Date
Issue
Issue
Date
0.1
Nov-01
7.0
Oct - 09
1.0
May-02
8.0
May-11
2.0
May -4
9.0
Sept-12
3.0
May-05
4.0
Jan – 06
5.0
Jan - 07
6.0
Jan - 08
Author
Name:
P. Varley
Reviewer
Name:
HSPG
Authorised
by
Name:
Issued by
Name:
M. Thorne
Vice
Chancellor
Risk
Management
AR-RMD-HSMS13/Issue 8.0
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Anglia Ruskin University Higher Education Corporation
Risk Management
Health and Safety Committees
AR-RMD-HSMS13
Table of Contents
1.
2.
Executive Summary ........................................................................................... 2
Health and Safety Committees ........................................................................... 3
2.1
Policy .......................................................................................................... 3
2.2
Application .................................................................................................. 3
3. Requirements and Responsibilities .................................................................... 4
3.1
Vice Chancellor ........................................................................................... 4
3.2
Health and Safety Policy Group .................................................................. 4
3.3
University, Cambridge and Essex Campus Health and Safety Committees 4
3.4
The Secretary and Clerk ............................................................................. 5
3.5
Director of Human Resource Services ........................................................ 5
3.6
The Committee Chair .................................................................................. 5
3.7
Risk Management ....................................................................................... 5
3.8
Faculty and Support Services Safety Committees....................................... 6
Appendix 1 - The Role of the Chair .................................................................... 8
Appendix 2 - Committee Objectives ................................................................... 9
Appendix 3 - The Role of Committee Members ............................................... 10
Appendix 4 - Role of Risk Management within the Cambridge and Essex Health
and Safety Committees .................................................................................... 11
Appendix 5 - The Format for Committee Agenda and Minutes ......................... 12
Appendix 6 - Training of Committee Members ................................................. 13
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1.
Executive Summary
In addition to the University Health and Safety Committee (see ARRMD-HSMS03), Anglia Ruskin University also has a Health and Safety
Committee for each Campus, which cover issues pertinent to
Cambridge or Essex, as relevant, and reports to the University Health
and Safety Committee.
This policy details the structure and
membership of these Committees and also of the Faculty and Support
Services Safety Committees.
Appended to this policy is guidance on the following:
 The Role of the Chair (Appendix 1)
 Committee Objectives (Appendix 2)
 The Role of Committee Members (Appendix 3)
 The Role of Risk Management (Appendix 4)
 The Format for Committee Agendas and Minutes (Appendix 5)
 Training of Committee Members (Appendix 6)
Originating Legislation:
Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
Management of Health and Safety Regulations 1999
Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977
Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996
Other relevant documents:
Health and Safety Management System
Review, Formulation and Development of the University’s
Health and Safety Management System
Review, Formulation and Development of the School and
Departmental Health and Safety Management Systems
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AR-RMD-HSMS03
AR-RMD-HSMS23
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2.
Health and Safety Committees
2.1
Policy
Anglia Ruskin University is committed to ensuring that all its employees
are consistently provided with a level of competent Health and Safety
management appropriate to the degree of risk associated with their
activities.
Anglia Ruskin University will ensure, so far as is reasonably
practicable, that the risks to the Health and Safety of staff, students
and visitors will be managed in compliance with the Health and Safety
at Work etc. Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work
Regulations 1999 and other appropriate regulations and guidance.
With regard to the flow of information between Anglia Ruskin University
and its staff, Anglia Ruskin University shall adopt the provisions of the
Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977 (as
amended 1992) and the Health and Safety (Consultation with
Employees) Regulations 1996 as setting minimum standards.
To comply with the relevant legislation and guidance, Anglia Ruskin
University will:





2.2
Appoint competent persons, within Risk Management (RM), to
assist Anglia Ruskin University in understanding, coming to terms
with and complying with the Regulations
Clearly define the role of all personnel in order to help them to
effectively meet their responsibilities within the University Health
and Safety Management System (HSMS)
Ensure that all staff are suitably trained to deal with the Health and
Safety issues relevant to their position
Provide suitable and sufficient information, instruction, training and
supervision to all relevant staff, students and visitors
Establish Campus, Faculty and Support Services Health and Safety
Committees to assist Anglia Ruskin University in meeting its Health
and Safety objectives and to facilitate formal consultation with
Anglia Ruskin University employees
Application
Anglia Ruskin University recognises the benefits to be gained from
establishing Safety Committees to act as a means of formally
consulting with representatives of its employees.
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This policy document applies to the members of the University,
Cambridge and Essex Campus Health and Safety Committees and to
the members of individual Faculty/ Support Services Safety
Committees (hereafter, for the purpose of this document, the
Committees). The aim of this procedure is to guide both the formal
aspects of membership, but also to stress the pro-active role of
members. It is essential that members actively monitor heath and
safety standards between meetings and consult with the area manager
and, as appropriate, with the Faculty Dean or Head of Support
Services and Risk Management (RM).
3.
Requirements and Responsibilities
It is emphasised that the role of these Committees is to monitor and
advise on health and safety standards. Their formation does not
diminish the responsibility of Anglia Ruskin University, the Health and
Safety Policy Group (HSPG), the Faculty Dean or Head of Support
Services, or individual managers, employees or students.
3.1
Vice Chancellor
The Vice Chancellor has overall responsibility for the establishment,
ongoing development, implementation, monitoring and review of the
HSMS.
3.2
Health and Safety Policy Group
The HSPG have been delegated operational responsibility for planning
and guiding the ongoing development, implementation, monitoring and
review of the HSMS, including this procedure.
3.3
University, Cambridge and Essex Campus Health and Safety
Committees
The HSPG are responsible for:


Appointing the Chairs
Authorising the Constitutions, after consultation with the RM and the
Committees, which shall detail the membership for each
Committee, including the Chair and Vice Chair.
Note: The University Committee shall consist of senior management
personnel (e.g. Director of E&F, Director of Student Services etc) and
representatives of the Campus Committees. The Cambridge and
Essex Campus Committees shall consist of management and
employee representatives from the Building User Groups, Faculties
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and Support Services present on the Campus. All three Committees
will include employee and Student Union representatives and ex-officio
members
 Ensuring that the Committee Objectives are met
 Ensuring the provision of sufficient facilities and assistance so that
the Committees can carry out their functions
3.4
The Secretary and Clerk
The Secretary and Clerk are responsible for:


3.5
Chairing the University Health and Safety Committee
Arranging University committee meetings every semester, or more
often should the situation dictate
Director of Human Resource Services
The Director of Human Resource Services is responsible for:


3.6
Chairing the Cambridge and Essex Campus Committees
Arranging Campus committee meetings every semester, or more
often should the situation dictate
The Committee Chair
The Committee Chair is responsible for:



3.7
Providing secretarial support to the Committees, including
production of the Agenda and Minutes and the circulation of these,
together with any Schedules, to the Committee Members
Authorising additional Committee Meetings, following a formal
request by members to the Committee Chair
Establishing sub-committees, as required, to focus on specialist
areas and to define and provide recommendations to the
Committees for their review and implementation
Risk Management
RM is responsible for:




Sitting on the Committees as ex-officio officers
Acting as professional advisors to the Committees, providing
guidance on legislative and good practice standards
Providing a report at each Committee Meeting (see Appendix 4)
Drafting, after consultation with members and the HSPG, the
Constitutions for the Committees
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



3.8
Ensuring that members of the Committee have appropriate levels of
'operational' experience/competency to enable them to fully
contribute to the committee's deliberations
Publishing the List of Committee Members and Minutes of the
Committee
Meetings
on
the
RM
intranet
site
(http://my.anglia.ac.uk/sites/risk/default.aspx)
Attending at least one Faculty meeting each academic year and on
request
Preparing an annual report for the HSPG on the adequacy of the
Health and Safety Committees. This shall form part of the
University’s annual review of its HSMS performance
Faculty and Support Services Safety Committees
Faculty Deans and Heads of Support Services are responsible for:













The implementation of this procedure within their area of
responsibility
Identifying the required level of general Health and Safety
competency required by their Managers
Ensuring that there are arrangements in place to provide
appropriate information to members of staff, students, visitors etc
Chairing their Faculty/ Support Services Safety Committee, which
shall meet at least once every semester and be scheduled to
facilitate the upward cascade of information between Committees
Providing secretarial support to the Committees, including
production of the Agenda and Minutes and the circulation of these,
together with any Schedules, to the Committee Members
Authorising additional Committee Meetings, following a formal
request by members to the Committee Chair
Appointing members of the Committee, including a balanced group
of managers and elected employee representatives as well as the
Faculty/ Support Services Safety Coordinator(s)
Ensuring that members of the Committee have appropriate levels of
'operational' experience/competency to enable them to fully
contribute to the Committee's deliberations
Establishing sub-committees, as required, to focus on specialist
areas and to define and provide recommendations to the
Committees for their review and implementation
Ensuring that the Committee Objectives are met
Ensuring the provision of sufficient facilities and assistance so that
the Committee can carry out its functions
Displaying a list of Committee Members on the Faculty/ Support
Services notice boards
Providing a report each semester to the HSPG, in order to aid their
review of the HSMS
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
Faculty/Support Service committees to liaise with E&F and RM to
rectify issues prior to sending to Campus/University H&S
committees for resolving.
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Appendix 1 - The Role of the Chair
The Chair shall:

Act as the Committee Chair or, when unavoidably absent, appoint
another senior manager to act as the Chair

The Committee agendas are to be planned to ensure that all raised
topics are considered and where appropriate discussed. This
planning meeting between the Chair and the RM should be
recorded.

Ensure that all groups of employees (including management) are
formally represented

Ensure the implementation of the Committee’s recommendations,
ensuring that adequate resources are provide to promptly achieve
the required affect

Formally review the effectiveness of the Committee’s activities
every 2 years and, after consultation, ensure that its remit, as
necessary, is modified

On the advice of the RM, ensure that adequate training is made
available to aid Members in carrying out their functions (see
Appendix 6)

Invite specialist advisors, either internal or external, to attend
Committee Meetings as required to aid its deliberations
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Appendix 2 - Committee Objectives
The agreed objectives of the Committees shall include:

Monitoring the effectiveness of the University’s HSMS and any
Faculty, Support Services or Campus specific arrangements

The
examination
of
accident
trends
recommendations for corrective actions

The examination of safety audit reports

Consideration of reports provided by the enforcing authority
inspector

Assisting in the development of safety rules and safe systems of
work (SSW)

Monitoring the effectiveness of the safety content of employee
training

Monitoring the adequacy of safety and health communication and
publicity in the workplace

Carrying out, as a Committee or Sub-committee, health and safety
inspections

Monitoring the introduction of any measures at the workplace,
which may substantially affect the health and safety of employees,
students and third parties

Monitoring the impact of the introduction of new technologies into
the workplace, which may have health and safety consequences for
employees etc.

Monitoring the impact of the introduction of new equipment and/or
substances into the workplace, which may have health and safety
consequences for employees etc.

Monitoring the impact of the introduction and implementation of
new of organisational procedures

Monitoring the implementation, and effectiveness, of risk control
measures, as identified by risk assessments

Evaluating the impact that changes to health and safety legislation
are likely to have on the organisation

Monitoring the adequacy of the allocation of resources for health
and safety.
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and
providing
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Appendix 3 - The Role of Committee Members
The role of a Committee Member is to support the University’s HSMS by:

Actively monitoring health and safety performance within their area
of appointment and, where action is required, promptly consulting
with the area manager and, if necessary, with the Faculty, Support
Services or RM, to aid the introduction of suitable remedial
measures

Assisting in the investigation of accidents, reported hazards or
employee complaints

Assisting the Faculty, Support Services or Campus to improve
health and safety standards by assisting in the formulation and
review of HSMS development plans

Carrying out specific agreed monitoring activities, including:
 The introduction of any measures at the workplace that may
substantially affect the health and safety of employees,
students and others
 The introduction of new technologies into the workplace that
may have health and safety consequences for employees,
students and others
 Changes to health and safety legislation that are likely to
have an impact
 The implementation of safety management procedures
 The implementation of risk control measures identified by
risk assessments
 The allocation of resources for health and safety
 The adequacy of safety and health communication and in
the workplace
 The effectiveness of the safety content of employee and
student training
 Assistance in the development of safety rules and safe
systems of work
 Reports provided by HSE or other regulators
 Health and Safety audit reports
 The examination of accident trends, with recommendations
for action
 Providing advice and encouraging the individuals that they
represent to comply with organisational and legal health and
safety requirements
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Appendix 4 - Role of Risk Management within the Cambridge and Essex
Health and Safety Committees

Act as an ex-officio advisor to the Committee.

Provide a report to each meeting covering:
 Health and safety performance since the last meeting,
including an analysis of accident causes and causal trends.
 Highlight any significant events and lead the discussion to
ensure that the maximum benefit is achieved.
 Health and safety activities by external agencies e.g. HSE,
Fire Authority, Insurers, and consultants and recommend
actions to ensure that requirements are implemented.
 The content and probable effect on the School, Support
Service or Campus of new/proposed legislation or official
guidance.
 Planned changes to the School’s, Support Services’ or
University’s overall health and safety management system.
 The implementation and review of any School, Support
Service, Campus or overall University health and safety
development plan activities.
 The impact of planned technological and organisational
changes
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Appendix 5 - The Format for Committee Agenda and Minutes

The following shall provide the standard format for the meeting
Agenda:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Apologies for absence
Matters arising
Standing items
The Safety Advisor’s report including accident statistics
Items notified by members
Any other urgent business
Date of next scheduled meeting

Items for the Agenda must be communicated to the Chair a
minimum of 10 working days before each meeting

Urgent or emergency items may be raised via this procedure and
included as appropriate at the Chair’s discretion

Persons raising items must be prepared to justify their request. In
doing so they should state the activities that have taken place within
the area to control the problem, and/or the reasons why it should be
more widely discussed or communicated

Copies of the Agenda shall be distributed to all Committee
Members, managers and displayed on designated notice boards

The Committee Secretary shall take notes at each meeting and
produce draft Minutes for approval by the Committee Chair

After approval, copies of the Minutes shall be distributed, within 10
working days of the meeting, to all members of the Committee list
and, in the case of the Cambridge and Essex Health and Safety
Committees, displayed on the RM website.
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Appendix 6 - Training of Committee Members
Committee Members shall be required, as a condition of membership, to
undertake training in accordance with the following:

Formal training within three months of being appointed to the
Committee which shall cover as a minimum:







Principles of safety management
Pertinent legislation
The role of the Committee
Risk assessment
Accident investigation
Workplace inspections
Typical workplace hazards and control actions

Refresher training shall be provided at three yearly intervals

Additional specialist training shall be provided when identified as
pertinent

Training shall, as far as is practicable, be carried out during normal
working hours

Any costs including travel and subsistence will be met by Anglia
Ruskin University
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