University Safety Office
Checklists
Safety Office
Updated September 2008
This general health and safety checklist is not exhaustive – and is provided as a general guide only
for Schools / Services to follow during their own internal inspections of facilities.
If you want a specific list to be generated for any given area of activity please contact the University
Safety Office and let us know what you want.
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
Management Section
University Safety Policy and
School Safety Policy; Local
Rules.
Has a School Safety Policy been
documented and does this link in with
the University Safety Policy?
Are the policies suitably up to date?
Are they available to all staff?
Are responsibilities identified for
controlling of significant hazards and
risks?
Are arrangements to control risks
been identified and documented?
Commitment.
Is there a commitment to allocating
adequate resources for health and
safety?
Do senior managers support health
and safety initiatives?
Have School Safety Officers
School Safety Officer
been identified, trained and
School Biological Safety Supervisor
where required are active?
School Radiation Safety Supervisor
School GM Chair
Inspection and Improvements. Is there evidence of action being
taken to make improvements to
health and safety and are plans based
on previous safety audits and
inspections?
Are the programmes on schedule?
Communication.
Are employees consulted and
informed about health and safety
issues that affect them?
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Is there a health and safety
training programme?
Risk Assessment:
Have risk assessments been
carried out and implemented
for your school activities?
Safe Systems of work,
protocols and review existing
procedures.
Health, safety and control of
contractors.
Issues
Are employees inducted and
informed about reporting systems,
defects, concerns, accidents, etc?
Do employees have access to health
and safety information, e.g. risk
assessments and safe methods of
work?
Is there cooperation between your
and other departments to identify and
resolve specific problems?
Is there suitable training for all
School / Service Managers?
Is there suitable training for all
School / Service Supervisors?
Is there suitable training for all other
School / Service staff?
Is there suitable training for all
School Students where specific
Safety training is required beyond
that provided in their courses of
study?
General Activities
COSHH
BIOCOSHH
GM
Are standard operating procedures
identified and available where
required?
Are safe systems distributed and
communicated to all in the School /
Service that need to use them?
Are safe systems actually followed
by people in the School / Service and
how do you demonstrate this?
Are more safe systems of work
required in the School / Service?
Are suitable controls in place for the
management of contractors in the
School / Service?
Are the controls observed and
functioning properly and how do you
demonstrate this?
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
General Section
Accidents, Ill Health and
Dangerous Occurrences.
Are arrangements in place to record,
report, investigate and implement any
corrective actions following an
accident?
Are arrangements in place to
proactively monitor accident trends
over time and take appropriate
actions?
Display Screen Equipment.
Are arrangement in place to ensure
that regular DSE users receive
instruction on the safe set up / use
and assessment of their workstation,
and that the information required by
the USO website are met?
Control of Substances
Are arrangements in place to ensure
Hazardous to Health.
that any hazardous substance is
identified and assessed and any
necessary controls are put in place,
including emergency information,
e.g. first aid, where necessary?
Are their arrangements in place to
ensure that hazardous substances are
used, transported and stored
correctly?
Are the stores suitable and are the
controls employed adequate?
Manual Handling.
Are arrangements in place to assess
Lifting, carrying and supporting significant manual handling activities
of loads.
and implement measures to eliminate
or minimise the risk?
Wherever possible is equipment
provided, e.g. trolleys, to minimise
the risks?
Are arrangements in place to train
and instruct employees involved in
carrying out significant manual
handling?
First Aid.
Are sufficient First Aiders identified
Not every School has to have a for the School / Service activities?
trained first-aider, but there
Include field trips and out of hours
should be ready access to
activities.
equipment and trained staff – Is there suitable first aid equipment in
see the "Emergency
place in the School / Service?
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Arrangements posters.
Issues
Is the first aid equipment in date and
maintained in an accessible form?
Welfare Facilities.
Are there a sufficient number of clean
toilets and washbasins in addition to
hot and cold running water, hand
drying facilities, sanitary disposal
facilities and accessible facilities
where required?
Are drinking water and hot water
facilities available?
Are changing rooms provided where
necessary where employees can
change into their special clothing for
work?
In labs are the hand wash sinks
separate from the lab process sinks?
Is their provision for eating meals?
This could be desks in clean offices.
Personal Protective Equipment Are arrangements in place to ensure
(P.P.E.)
that the correct type and standard of
PPE is selected?
Are there arrangements in place to
ensure that employees know which
type of PPE to use and how to use it?
Are arrangements in place to ensure
that PPE is cleaned by the School and
kept in good condition?
Vehicles and Pedestrians:
Are traffic and pedestrian routes
Arrangements for complying separated as far as possible?
with the Transportation policy. Are they arrangements for ensuring
transport of students and others
safely?
Do you have a list of all employees
using their own cars for work and
have you ensured they have
completed the Care Drivers
Assurance Form?
Have you ensured employees using
University owned / hired vehicles
have completed Insurances assurance
forms?
Violence and Aggression:
Are there arrangements for safe
Have procedures been
visitor access?
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
implemented to control risks of
violence and aggression at
work, including community
work?
Do meeting rooms / receptions have
controls installed and can
interviewers call for assistance
immediately?
Are external parts of the premises
secure and access routes well lit?
Are appropriate actions / reactions
identified to control risks with those
who work in the community?
Workshops:
Who has access to the workshops,
Does the School / Service have and who is restricted?
workshops?
Are people with permission to use the
workshops identified and trained?
Are restrictions enforced?
Are checks carried out to see if they
are observed?
Machinery and Equipment:
Are they maintained?
Are arrangements in place to Are safety guards in place and are
ensure that potentially
they inspected regularly and
hazardous machinery and
documented?
equipment is safe?
Are operatives trained?
Have you assessed the risk of hand
and arm vibration and implemented
appropriate controls to mitigate the
risk?
Have you assessed the noise
produced and implemented
appropriate controls to mitigate?
Are arrangements in place to ensure
students are adequately supervised
while using hazardous equipment?
Fire Safety
Fire Action.
Is there a written Fire Action Plan for
the building?
A generic fire plan is available from
the USO.
Are ALL occupiers, including
visitors, aware of the actions to take
in the event of fire?
Are there adequate Fire Wardens?
This includes covering lunches,
sickness and leave.
Is there someone overall in-charge –
A Fire Marshal?
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
Comments
Are all Fire Wardens & Marshals
trained?
Training is available from the USO.
Fire Alarms.
Are the fire alarms audible?
Are they tested WEEKLY by
Portering / University Staff?
Means of Escape:
Are the routes available at ALL
Includes all corridors, stairways times?
and external escape routes.
Are ALL doors on escape routes
unlocked at the start of the working
day?
This includes double-leaf doors held
in place by drop-down bolts.
Are escape routes clear of ALL
.
storage materials?
Are fire doors closing properly?
Are fire doors being wedged open?
Are electronic door mechanisms
(mag-locks) linked to the fire alarm
to fail-safe in the open / unlocked
position?
Are procedures, Personal Emergency
Evacuation Plans – PEEP’s, in place
for assisting disabled staff / students
out of the building?
Are Evac Chairs available and are
staff trained in their use?
Fire Drills:
Has an annual fire drill been carried
Should be at least annual – See out and has it been recorded?
University Safety Policy for
Have staff received Basic Fire
general rules and Fire Safety: Training?
Guidance for Staff.
Training can be provided by the
USO.
Do all new staff receive Induction
Training, which includes: location of
fire equipment, escape routes, raising
the alarm and calling the fire brigade?
Is all fire training recorded?
Statutory Inspections
Are the necessary specific
Fixed and mobile lifting equipment,
statutory inspections / test
e.g. passenger lifts, mechanical
arrangements to be carried out hoists?
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
by specialist contractors in
place for the following
equipment where installed /
used in the premises?
Pressure Systems, e.g. steam heating
systems, autoclaves, compressed air
systems / air receivers?
Have these been notified to the
University Engineer for inclusion in
the insurance surveyor's programme?
Has all Local Exhaust Ventilation
(specialist ventilation systems to
remove hazardous substances such as
gases or dusts) been tested?
Has any fixed specialist fall
protection equipment fitted to a
building, e.g. running lines, fixed
anchor points for harnesses been
inspected and tested?
Premises
Asbestos.
Asbestos was extensively used
in building fabrics until 1999
where the use of all asbestos
containing materials became
illegal to be used.
Notices and Signs.
Lighting.
Heating.
Ventilation.
Is the Asbestos survey available for
viewing?
Do you provide information to
contractors where the school have
carried out work itself?
Have employees been informed about
areas where asbestos is located and
the necessary controls to maintain
safety?
Is all work on asbestos planned and
organised by Estates?
Are they clear and unambiguous?
Are Fire Action Notices located at all
break-glass call points?
Are suitable signs located adjacent to
green break-glass boxes explaining
actions how to open in an
emergency?
Is it subjectively acceptable?
Note DSE assessments also include
notes on the quality as well as
quantity of lighting.
Is it a subjectively acceptable and a
"reasonable" temperature?
Is it subjectively acceptable?
In some areas there is a need for
quantitative testing of ventilation as a
risk management precaution.
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
Housekeeping.
Is the area suitably clean, free of
obstructions, damaged carpets and
other tripping hazards?
Are the flooring surfaces suitably
non-slip for the activities (bearing in
mind the foresee ability of spills and
wet surfaces etc)?
Is storage an issue leading to safety
problems? (Overhead, obstructing
routes, causing clutter under desks,
etc.)
Are the means of access in a suitable
condition for the workplace
concerned?
In the case of temporary workplaces
(such as scaffolds) or places accessed
by ladder etc, are the means of access
clearly identified with labels and ID
numbers for inspection purposes?
Are stepladders / ladders of industrial
specification and not for domestic
use?
Are the means of access subject to an
inspection programme which is
documented and available?
Is there use limited to authorised staff
having received appropriate
instruction and / or training?
Is out-of-hours use being controlled?
If so how and is it working?
Are arrangements in place to ensure
that gas appliances and associated
equipment such as flues are
maintained according to the
manufacturer instructions?
Are arrangements in place to ensure a
competent person maintains the
equipment?
Are gas cylinders identified on your
fire plan?
Have you, where possible, removed
the need for cylinders in your premise
or installed appropriate testing and
alarm arrangements?
Means of Access:
Especially Floors, Passages,
Stairs, Ladders/Scaffolds.
Gas and Gas Cylinders.
Comments
Health and Safety Check List
Topic
Issues
Are manufacturers instructions used
for the day to day use of gas
appliances and cylinders?
Pressure Systems.
Are pressure systems being examined
as part of the insurance surveyors
programme / scheme, and is their
current condition satisfactory?
Are manufacturer instructions used
for the day to day use of pressure
systems?
Electricity.
What are the arrangements for
checking and testing portable
equipment?
Are the arrangements being
observed?
How do you demonstrate this?
Are suitable records being kept?
Are they up to date, updated and
examined for changes at the
subsequent PAT inspection?
Emergency Procedures.
Have the worst reasonably
Do you need additional
foreseeable contingencies been
Emergency Procedures beyond identified?
those operating at the
Are plans in existence for such
University level?
contingencies?
(e.g. Specific Chemical or
Is the unattended experiments
Biological Hazards, specific
procedure being observed?
fire / explosion risks.)?
Other Health and Safety Risks
Are arrangements in place to
manage other significant health
and safety risks not covered in
this checklist?
Comments