16 May 2023
Not all organisations have the resources/competence to manage health & safety internally, but the law requires you to have access to competent health & safety advice, to ensure that you are adhering to H&S legislation. So you may consider hiring a health & safety consultant.
A health & safety consultant can perform an extremely important role in your business. They can assist you to make sure that employees, visitors, customers, and contractors are all kept safe and help you to mitigate workplace risks.
If your business is medium to high risk and you do not have an in-house resource, you should consider hiring a health & safety consultant.
It is particularly important to choose a health & safety consultant that is the right fit for your business as the employer still has the legal duty of health & safety, so you need to ensure that you are being given competent advice.
Check out our top tips below!
It is essential when hiring a health & safety consultant that they hold the correct qualifications and have the required training and experience.
For peace of mind, you can explore The Occupational Safety & Health Consultants Register (OSHCR), it is a register of consultants who:
The profiles will look like this – Himmat Rai | Health & Safety Consultant | OSHCR
Also be sure to check out their website, Linked In profile or CV to see how long they have been in business for.
Define exactly what you need help with, is it health and safety across the business? Help reducing risks, checking, and maintaining the correct documents for compliance, or all three? Can they deliver this and can they demonstrate direct experience in your specific sector? Compliance can be a minefield so make sure they are familiar with health and safety legislation, for your specific sector? Can they make recommendations that fit your specific business?
Ask for case studies or testimonials, to support their experience and track record of business benefits.
Make sure you organise a face-to-face meeting with the consultant. You need to be able to build a rapport with your consultant, whether this is for a short-or long-term project. They need to fully understand your business and the objectives you have, so make sure they listen and ask them plenty of questions. They need to provide practical business-specific advice and not just tell you what to do.
Make sure they don’t use technical jargon, everything should be explained in simple terms and that their recommended solution is fit for purpose. They should be keen to help implement a safety culture within the organisation for long-term benefits.
Do they offer everything that you require or will they outsource elements? Do they offer additional services such as training or health and safety software, that will help you achieve your objectives?
Make sure they provide a detailed proposal, stating what they are going to do, when and how much will it cost. Make sure this meets your specific objectives and there are no hidden costs.
When you are looking to hire a Health & Safety Consultant, do NOT go for the cheapest option, you get what you pay for so be vigilant!
Please email info@sentinelsafety.co.uk for further information on our health and safety consultancy.
