Agenda item

The Executive Director Core Services will submit a report, for information and reference, presenting issues in the 2019/20 Health and Safety Report which also provides a comprehensive overview of health and safety performance within the Authority.

The Executive Director Core Services submitted a report, for information and reference, presenting issues in the 2019/20 Health and Safety Report which also provided a comprehensive overview of health and safety performance within the Authority.  A copy of the full Health and Safety Report 2029/20 was appended to the report.

The report, which was presented by Mr S Dobby (Head of Corporate Health, Safety and Emergency Resilience), indicated that the year April 2019 to March 2020 had seen further improvements in the Council’s health and safety performance and also the implications of challenges faced in the delivery of these services and maintenance of the performance.  Positive indicators were summarised with comparative data for 2018/19.

There had, however, been some negative indicators and these were also summarised together with comparisons to the previous year.  Mr Dobby also briefly outlined the reasons for these negative indicators.

The information and data collected provided a number of opportunities for improvements and these, together with proposals to address them, were outlined within the report.  These related to the completion of risk assessments and the implementation and monitoring of risk controls; the need for the reporting of ‘near misses’; and a review and implementation of the Council’s occupational health and safety management system

Despite the negatives, the Council had not experienced any formal enforcement action by the Health and Safety Executive or by the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service.  In addition, the Council had achieved the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents Order of Distinction for Occupational Safety and Health and the British Safety Council International Safety Award.

It was noted that this year reiterated the need for a greater reliance on Business Units to fulfil aspects for the overall health and safety function and ensure that good health and safety practice was embedded and evidenced within services.

The full Health and Safety Report provided information on:

·         The major causes of accidents to employees together with the remedial, responsive and proactive measures taken to reduce the risk of injury and work-related ill health

·         The causes of accidents, the types of injury occurring, and the parts of the body injured.  It also incorporated a summary provided by the Service Director Finance of the Employer’s Liability Claims

·         The issue of work-related violence and aggression to employees.  It outlined the number of reported work-related violent incidents to employees and also provided details of the services of the Health, Safety and Emergency Resilience Services as they related to statutory occupational health

In the ensuing discussion, the following matters were raised:

·         Mr Dobby explained why ‘near misses’ needed to be recorded as this, amongst other things, allowed an analysis of underlying causes and hopefully thereby prevent accidents occurring in the future

·         Reference was made to the two major accidents that had occurred during the year and to the review of risk assessments and safe systems of work that had been undertaken

Written responses to questions asked by members of the Committee were provided as follows:

·         Questions were asked about accident numbers in the first 7 months of the year and to the financial impact of days lost.  It was reported that numbers in quarters 1 and 2 had bene much lower than in previous years.  There had been 9 accidents in Quarter 1 and 18 in Quarter 2.  Fourteen accidents had been reported to date in Quarter 3.  Services had been consulted on the reasons for the reduced numbers and managers were content that there had not been unreported accidents or accident forms awaiting submission.  All services had been requested to revise their risk assessments and safe systems of work on the basis of Covic-19 and this may have had a positive effect on accident numbers.  The accident reporting process had been revised in April 2020 to ensure it was reflective of increased remote working to ensure the ability to report accidents was maintained.  Campaigns had been developed to remind employees of the importance of accident reporting.

The cost of accidents had been estimated and shared with the Senior Management Team.

·         It was noted that the Health and Safety audit programme, which would commence in Quarter 4 and routine monitoring within services would ensure that Business Units had completed the required Risk Assessments and also that the Occupational Health and Safety Management System had been implemented

·         The detailed explanation of each accident was not inputted within the Health and Safety Report.  This information would, therefore, have to be collated manually from individual accident forms.  Each incident form submitted was reviewed and followed up as necessary to ensure that any actions required to prevent recurrence were taken.  Incidents occurred in a variety of places from offices to public places to schools due to the varying nature of work activities

·         The underlying cause of the reported absence type was not centrally collated but was discussed with the employee through the Council’s sickness absence processes.  Estimates from anonymised generic feedback/categorisation from counselling indicated a roughly 50-50 split of cause, in the employees’ view, being work/non work related.

Overall sickness absence for this year was as follows:

o   Quarter 1 – 1.82 days per employee

o   Quarter 2 – 1.71 days per employee.

From the results from the Health and Wellbeing survey and both Pulse Surveys, a Mental Health Support Programme had been developed which included Mental Health training for all managers and employees.  This would also include training employees to become mental health First Aiders.  Wrapped around this was an Employee Assistance Programme which was now available to all employees which provided a 24/7 helpline, online portal and App

·         Procedures were in place to ensure that accident risk assessments were reviewed, and actions taken.  This included individual follow up with managers where a risk assessment was not indicated as being available.  This was inherent to the Health and Safety Audit Programme that would recommence in Quarter 4 and the ‘internal’ monitoring undertaken within services

·         In relation to incidents in relation to assaults on staff, it was reported that incident numbers in quarter 1 and 2 were much lower than in previous years: 6 in Quarter 1 and 8 in Quarter 2.  Five had been reported to date in Quarter 3.  Services had been consulted on the reasons for the reduced numbers and managers were content that there had not been unreported accidents or accident forms awaiting submission.  All services had been requested to revise their risk assessments and safe systems of work on the basis of Covid-19 and this may have had a positive effect on accident numbers.  The accident reporting process had been revised in April 2020 to ensure it was reflective of increased remote working and to ensure the ability to report accidents was maintained.  Campaigns had been developed to remind employees of the importance of accident reporting.

RESOLVED that Health and Safety Report 2019/20, and the continuous efforts made to improve upon performance in this area, be noted.