Health & Safety Working Group
7 June 2010
MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE
HEALTH & SAFETY WORKING GROUP
HELD ON MONDAY 7 JUNE 2010.
Present:
1.
Bursar, HR & Health & Safety Officer, Maintenance Manager, Michael Wilson (staff
representative), Matt Rowe (staff representative), Head Housekeeper, Catering Manager,
Head Gardener, Head Porter, James Hugall (MCR President).
Minutes of the meeting held on 25 January 2010.
The MCR President noted that his surname had been spelt incorrectly and that he was MCR,
rather than JCR, President. The minutes of the meeting held on 25 January were then approved.
2.
Matters Arising:
a) Fire Alarm Evacuations.
A report of the evacuations for 2010 to date had been circulated, which showed a small
decrease in the number of evacuations when compared with the same period during 2009.
The Health & Safety Officer has amended the report form used to record evacuations, which
now asks the Porters for specific information about each alarm call. It is hoped that in doing
this, the number of alarms recorded as “no known reason” might be reduced, as the Porters are
now required to make additional checks to try to establish the reason for each alarm.
b) York Stone paving.
Relaying of some York stone between the North Range and Anns Court had been completed.
Further work on around 70 slabs is planned during the summer and stones will be cut offsite. Pedestrian routes may need to be planned while the work is completed to prevent
accidents.
c)
Fire extinguisher servicing.
The Health & Safety Officer reported that she had engaged Connaught Fire Limited to
complete this year’s fire extinguisher servicing. The previous contractor had missed a
number of extinguishers during the services over the past two years, and Connaught Fire has
provided a cheaper quotation for the work.
d) Student Fire Safety Ambassador Scheme.
The Health & Safety Officer reported that she had met with the Head Porter, James Hugall,
Paul Jefferson and Mr Jim Meikle, the Community Fire Safety Officer regarding the Student
Fire Safety Ambassador Scheme. Both students had agreed that a fire demonstration would
be an appropriate way of raising fire safety awareness, and it was hoped to timetable suitable
demonstrations to the JCR and MCR during Freshers’ Week. The Bursar noted that the
College would not be in a position to make a payment to student ambassadors, and
suggested that students might be encouraged to volunteer their support.
Health & Safety Working Group
3.
7 June 2010
Fire Risk Assessment and General Risk Assessment Actions.
The Maintenance Manager reported that a number of weeks had been timetabled into the
Maintenance Diary to clear outstanding actions. At the same time, his staff will take the
opportunity to check the condition of student rooms and carry out any necessary repairs.
4.
Findings from Porters’ Patrols.
A report of findings from Porters’ Patrols for the year to date had been circulated. The report
lists a small number of missing or detached fire signs, and extinguishers with tampered tags,
which had been all been replaced.
5.
ANUK Verification.
The Bursar noted that the College, as a landlord of Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMO), has to
be accredited either by the City Council or an education regulator for the standard of
accommodation and the standard of service provided to students (tenants). Accreditation
through the City Council is expensive and the Cambridge colleges have recently registered with
ANUK. Part of this process requires peer verification and the College was audited during May
by the Domestic Bursar at Newnham College. A good result was achieved, and the Bursar
expressed his thanks to all involved in the audit. The ANUK Code of Practice has been circulated
to relevant Heads of Departments, and they were asked to ensure their staff are aware of the
ANUK standards relevant to their Department.
6.
2010 Health & Safety Audit.
The Health & Safety Officer reported that she had met with representatives from the University
Safety Office, who have quoted a significantly cheaper price for completing the annual audit.
The Safety Office are responsible for completing audits for the University Departments and had
also audited a small number of colleges. The Working Group agreed that the Safety Office would
be appointed to complete this year’s audit.
7.
First Aid Kits.
The Bursar reported that the Head Porter has agreed to replenish the contents of any kit
taken to the Porters Lodge, and the Bursar asked for volunteers from each department to be
responsible for taking their kits to the Porters’ Lodge for re-stocking. It was hoped that this
arrangement could be implemented from 1 September 2010.
8.
Health & Safety Training:
a)
Asbestos Awareness refresher training.
The Health & Safety Officer noted that refresher asbestos training had been arranged in
College for 18 November.
Health & Safety Working Group
9.
7 June 2010
b)
COSHH and Manual Handling (Housekeeping staff)
COSHH and Manual Handling training had recently been provided to staff in the
Housekeeping Department.
c)
Refresher rates for mandatory health & Safety training.
The Health & Safety Officer noted that she would shortly be contacting Heads of
Departments to discuss appropriate refresher training rates, noting that the frequency
would differ between departments, and it was important to avoid unnecessary training.
Control of Contractors.
A draft questionnaire to be used when appointing a new contractor had been circulated. The
form provides a process for Heads of Departments to ensure that competent contractors are
appointed, and also requires contractors to provide copies of their risk assessments/method
statements and insurance certificates. This will ensure that there is no cost to the College in the
event of an accident or damage to College property by any appointed contractors.
10.
Any Other Business.
No further issues were raised.
11.
Dates for future meetings.
The following dates for meetings during the next academic year have been agreed:
1 November 2010
31 January 2011
23 May 2011
All meetings will start at 12.15pm.