Health and safety legislation

The Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 set health and safety standards to be met, and give employers the freedom to decide how best to control any risks they have identified. 

However some risks are so great, or the proper controls so costly, that it would not be appropriate to give employers the freedom to decide how to respond to them (eg The Electricity at Work Regulations). These specific regulations identify dangerous risks and set out the specific controls required to contain those risks. 

Often, requirements are absolute – so the controls must be implemented, regardless of cost. 

The Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974 

The main piece of legislation affecting the management of health and safety in schools and colleges is the Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974 (HSWA). 

This Act provides a framework for ensuring the health and safety of all employees in any work activity. It also provides for the health and safety of anyone who may be affected by work activities in schools and colleges. Consequently, all pupils, students and visitors to educational sites (including contractors and the self-employed) are covered by the Act.    

The Act requires employers and employees (as well as manufacturers, suppliers and the self-employed) to comply with health and safety requirements. These duties are detailed in the Act. 

Following is information about some of the important sections in the Act.

Section two of the Act places a duty on employers to ensure the health, safety and welfare of employees. It requires employers to consult with trade union safety representatives on matters affecting health and safety in the workplace, and also states that employers of more than five people must prepare a written safety policy and bring it to the attention of employees. 

Section three of the Act requires employers to ensure that non-employees who may be affected by work activity are not exposed to risks to their health and safety. 

A duty is placed on employers to protect visitors, contractors, members of the public and of course pupils. Where young or vulnerable persons may be affected, the duty of care is greater. 

Section five of the Act requires employers to prevent and control harmful, noxious or offensive emissions into the atmosphere. 

Section six of the Act places duties on designers, manufacturers and suppliers to ensure that articles and substances are safe for use. 

Section seven of the Act states that it is the duty of every employee while at work to take reasonable care of him/herself and of any other person who may be affected by his/her actions. 

This section also requires employees to cooperate with their employer in relation to health and safety issues. 

Section eight of the Act places duties on employees so that no person intentionally misuses or recklessly interferes with anything provided in the interest of health and safety. 

In section ten of the Act, two corporate bodies were established to enforce the HSWA. These are the Health and Safety Commission and the Health and Safety Executive, whose roles are to provide a legal framework and to enforce the laws introduced. 

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 mirror the requirements of the HSWA, yet make more explicit what employers are required to do. 

The main requirement on employers is to carry out risk assessments to eliminate or reduce risks. 

Employers with five or more employees need to record the significant findings of a risk assessment, yet it is not necessary to record risk assessments for trivial or insignificant risks – that is, those which require common sense ‘on the spot’ decisions. 

Besides carrying out risk assessments, employers also need to:

• make arrangements for implementing the health and safety measures identified as necessary by risk assessments
• appoint people with sufficient knowledge, skills, experience and training to help them to implement arrangements of their policy
• set up emergency procedures and provide information about these procedures to employees
• provide clear information, supervision and training for employees and ensure that suitably competent people are appointed who are capable of carrying out relevant jobs safely
• work together with any other employer/s operating from the same workplace, sharing information on the risks that other staff may be exposed to – for example cleaning/ catering, or maintenance contractors. 

See our section on risk assessment for more detailed information.  

Other main regulations 

The Workplace, (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 

These regulations require employers to meet minimum standards in relation to:

• health and safety in the workplace
• welfare facilities for people at work – for example first aid and toilet facilities
• maintenance of the workplace.

For more detailed information, see our section on the work environment.   

The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH) 

These regulations (often known as the COSHH regulations) require employers to assess the risks to health from the use of any hazardous substances used in the workplace. 

The general hierarchy of ‘control’ is as follows:

• eliminate the use of hazardous substances where possible
• substitute the hazardous substance for a less harmful one
• assess and control the risk from hazardous substances
• reduce exposure to hazardous substances
• provide adequate personal protective equipment.   

The main risk – in schools, particularly – is that young or vulnerable children have access to hazardous substances. Staff must therefore be vigilant and ensure that all substances are safely stored and strictly supervised when in use. Schools and colleges should have procedures in place to control these risks. 

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 

These regulations require employers to minimise the risks from manual handling operations by:

• avoiding the need to lift, carry, push, pull, lower, or support loads wherever possible
• mechanising operations where they cannot be avoided – by the use of trolleys, barrows, lifts or hoists, for example
• reducing the risks by carrying out a risk assessment – taking into account the task, the capability of the individual people involved in the actual operation, the load (this could involve the moving and handling of pupils) and assessing the safety of the environment in which moving and handling is to take place.   

Employers should provide information, instruction, training and supervision where manual handling tasks such as moving furniture or display boards, carrying files and boxes, lifting or lowering to or from storage facilities, and pushing or pulling equipment on trolleys are carried out. 

Specialist training is required for staff who assist and support pupils with physical disabilities or mobility problems. The latter can involve the use of specialist equipment such hoists and slings, and staff should not attempt to assist in any such operation unless they have received appropriate training. 

Education staff can often be involved in moving and handling loads, either in the classroom or during physical activities such as PE or design and technology. As back injuries are one of the greatest causes of sickness absence, ATL considers it unreasonable for members of staff in schools and colleges to be directed to lift or carry heavy or awkwardly shaped objects if they have not received proper training. See lifting and carrying for more information.

The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992

These regulations place minimum requirements on employers to assess the workstations of staff who use display screen equipment (DSE). 

Regulations apply generally to staff who use computers for most of their working day. However, the increased use of computers by some teaching staff may mean that they require a workstation assessment. 

Minimum requirements of employers in this regard are to:

• identify users of display screen equipment
• assess workstations to ensure that they meet minimum standards
• provide information, instruction and training on the potential hazards of using DSE equipment
• offer free eyesight tests to users of DSE equipment
• review assessments.   

Where eyesight tests show that a DSE user needs glasses for computer work, the employer must cover the cost (basic lenses and frames only). For more information, see the section on working with computers.

The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989

These regulations place specific responsibilities on the person in control of the premises to meet minimum safety standards in the way electrical systems are installed and maintained, and in the way electrical equipment is used. 

In general these regulations have three main aims:

• to prevent contact with live conductors
• to provide safe electrical systems
• to maintain systems and equipment to prevent danger.   

Work on electrical systems or repairs to electrical equipment should only be carried out by competent persons – generally qualified electricians selected from a list of approved contractors. 

In schools and colleges, adequately trained staff will sometimes be able to fit plugs, undertake minor repairs or carry out portable appliance tests. Staff who are involved in electrical appliance testing or maintenance must receive appropriate training, including refresher training.    

All portable electrical equipment should be recorded in an up-to-date inventory, with a note taken of the serial number or other form of identification. The equipment should be subject to an annual inspection by a qualified electrician, and unsafe equipment withdrawn from use until satisfactorily repaired. 

Equipment which is beyond repair or uneconomical to repair should be disposed of and removed from the inventory. 

The school or college policy should instruct all staff to carry out visual inspections of any electrical equipment they use, and to report any defects they identify. 

Staff and managers should ensure that electrical equipment is positioned safely so that fire risks are prevented and that tripping hazards from trailing cables are avoided. 

See electrical safety for more information.

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR) 

Certain work-related accidents are reportable by law to the Health and Safety Executive or the local authority. These regulations were implemented so that the Health and Safety Executive/local authority could monitor workplace injuries to investigate failings and to review existing guidance. 

The main requirements are:

• to report fatalities and list major injuries to employees
• to report serious injuries to non-employees caused as a result of work activities
• to report listed dangerous occurrences
• to report listed work-related diseases.   

Accidents to employees are work-related if they are attributable to:

• work organisation (such as supervision on a school or college trip)
• the conditions of the premises
• plant or substances (eg machinery, equipmen,t etc)
• acts of physical violence.      

An injury is reportable if it prevents the injured employee from working normally for more than three consecutive working days (excluding the day of the accident). 

The school or college should have clear guidelines on incident reporting and this should be conveyed to staff on the first day of their employment. 

All accidents can be reported to the Incident Contact Centre (ICC), Caerphilly Business Park, Caerphilly, CF83 3GG. Alternatively, call on 0845 300 9923 on Mondays to Fridays between 8.30am and 5.30pm, e-mail riddor@natbrit.com or report via the Internet at www.riddor.gov.uk. 

For more information about the reporting and investigation of accidents, see our accidents/first aid section.

The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) 

These regulations place specific requirements on employers to ensure that all work equipment is safe. 

The main requirements are for employers to:

• provide safe work equipment which conforms to relevant safety standards
• ensure that the work equipment is suitable for its intended purpose and used only for that purpose
• maintain and service the work equipment appropriately
• ensure that appropriate safety devices are available, if required
• issue staff with appropriate instructions, training and supervision to use the work equipment safely.      

The Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2006

Employers already have general duties to prevent the exposure of employees to asbestos under HSWA, The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations and the Workplace Regulations. The Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations place specific duties on employers and building managers to manage the risks from released asbestos fibres. 

The regulations require the following further steps to be taken to manage the risk:

• to find out if there is asbestos on the premises, its amount and what condition it is in
• to presume materials contain asbestos, unless there is evidence that they do not
• to make and keep up to date a record of the location and condition of the materials containing asbestos or which are presumed to contain asbestos
• to assess the risk from the material
• to prepare a plan that sets out in detail how the risk from this material is going to be managed
• to take the steps needed to put that plan into action
• to review and monitor the plan and the arrangements
• to provide information on the location and condition of the material to anyone who is liable to work on or disturb it.   

Generally a specialist survey needs to be carried out to determine the presence of materials containing asbestos. Asbestos that is in good condition and which is not likely to be disturbed or damaged is usually safer if left in place and managed. 

Asbestos in poor condition or which is likely to be damaged needs to be repaired, sealed, enclosed or removed. Specialist advice, usually from an asbestos surveyor or licensed contractor, is generally sought in these situations. 

All employees working in a building containing asbestos should be given the relevant information and advice to ensure that no damage or disturbance to the material takes place. 

Concerns regarding asbestos management in school or college buildings should be conveyed to the union safety representative in the school or college, or directly to ATL.  For more see our section on asbestos.   

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 

These regulations aim to improve the coordination of health, safety and welfare throughout all the stages of construction projects. 

Those in control of building projects (ie the headteacher, principal, LA or governing body) have a responsibility under these regulations to monitor health, safety and welfare for the duration of the project. 

They have the power to stop any work that is likely to cause danger or serious injury. In some cases, additional health and safety expertise may be required to assess the safety of a job. 

The Education (School Premises) Regulations 1999

These regulations set out minimum health and safety standards for all maintained schools in England and Wales – for example on temperature, toilet facilities for pupils, ventilation and lighting. Some of the standards also have to be met by non-maintained special schools and independent schools. The regulations should be referred to when alterations or relocation is taking place in particular. 

See education premises for more detailed information.

Other relevant legislation 

Other educational or non-specific health and safety legislation may have an impact on the way schools and colleges are designed and operated. 

Specific education legislation may require other standards to be met and detail the health and safety standards expected by DfES or FE inspectors, or will relate to the overall management of the establishment, including the management of health and safety. 

Disability Discrimination Act 1995

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 defines a disability as a ‘physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities’. 

The impairment must have lasted, or be likely to last, 12 months or more to be viewed as ‘long term’.    

The Act requires employers and those in control of premises to ensure that disabled persons can access public buildings. In schools and colleges, it may be necessary to make reasonable adjustments to enable adequate access and egress for the disabled. See disability for more details.

More information

The regulations listed above are a sample of the main regulations affecting the work in schools and colleges. Many activities will be regulated by other specific legislation. 

For more information, see the Resources or Contacts pages of this health and safety section. You may also wish to download ATL's publication, The Health and safety guide for schools and colleges.

Help and advice

For individual queries, please contact ATL's London office, e-mail the helpdesk, or contact your branch secretary. You may also wish to call the out-of-office-hours helpline.

If you need confidential support and advice, don't forget you can also call ATL's stress, crisis or legal helplines.