News Archive - Health and safety help for business

Thurrock's small businesses are being urged to take up the opportunity to reduce costs associated with health and safety through a new partnership scheme.

The Estates Excellence partnership project offers specialist knowledge and expertise to small businesses aimed at helping them manage risks to their workers and business.

The partnership sees companies, councils, regulators and other organisations using their specialist knowledge and expertise to guide small firms and help them manage risks to their workers and business. Thurrock Council's Health and Safety team are supporting the project in conjunction with Essex Fire and Rescue Service and the HSE.

More than 20 small businesses have already signed up to take part in the Thurrock scheme which is the first area to deliver the project following a pilot scheme.

Places are still available and businesses who take part should reduce their injuries and illness from work. Support, guidance and training aims to help businesses overcome the burdens - both real and perceived - of managing risk effectively to benefit from reduced insurance costs and lost working time.

The total reportable injury rate for all sectors in Thurrock was 584.5 per 100,000 employees. This rate is much higher than the county level rate for Essex (481.8 per 100,000 employees)

The average unit cost of a workplace fatality to an employer is £160,000. The average unit costs of a reportable injury or an ill health case to an employer are £3,100 and £4,000 respectively. Such costs can be avoided by complying with health and safety legislation.

Between 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012 In Thurrock a total of 928 fires occurred in non-domestic premises and vehicles The average cost of a commercial fire is around £21,000 and losses attributed to fires across the UK stand at approx £1.3 million a day.

Participating businesses will be visited by specially trained staff to establish current knowledge and practices to identify the support they would most benefit from. This can include free training on topics such as Fire Safety, Manual Handling, Risk Assessment and Security. Businesses will also be able to take advantage of free occupational health testing including hearing tests and lung function.

Thurrock Council's Portfolio Holder for Public Protection, Councillor Angie Gaywood said: "I welcome this initiative with open arms. It's a golden opportunity for our local hard pressed small firms to benefit from free, good quality, tailored advice and get management of real risks right."

Any small or medium size business wanting to sign up or find out more about Estates Excellence should contact the Estates Excellence project team on 01245 706278 or email: estates.excellence@hse.gsi.gov.uk