Frequently asked questions
A selection of common questions we are asked, that may help point you in the right direction.
We need CHAS or ConstructionLine to be able to tender for work with Local Authority/ Principal Contractor etc. Can you help us?
Every year we help many of our clients attain or renew accreditation with Chas or ConstructionLine (or others). It is true you do not need to have an external consultant to be successful, but our value lies in knowing how to answer the questions. Our health and safety consultancy is available across Kent, London, Surrey and Sussex.
Our insurance company has done an audit, and have sent us a list of requirements. We don’t know where to start.
We can create the management documentation and paper trails needed to satisfy your insurance company. We can also advise you on any practical issues they may raise. If necessary we will fight your corner if we feel their demands are unreasonable.
One of our employees has had an accident at work. Now he’s claiming compensation against us. What do we do?
The first thing we will do is to audit your existing documentation and procedures. If there is none we will immediately get something in place to prevent a recurrence. Depending on the timescale we may be able to carry out an investigation into the accident.
We had an HSE visit. They have issued us with an improvement/prohibition notice. What do we do?
We will carry out an inspection/audit of your premises or site and immediately advise you as to what you need to do to satisfy the notice. If need be we will then work with you to upgrade your health and safety culture.
I’m selling my flat, and I’ve been told I need to have a fire assessment. I’ve never even heard of one.
You will need a fire risk assessment on the common/shared areas of the building – the communal stairs and hallway. We often carry these out and can get the report to your conveyancing solicitors via email within a couple of days. You can find to more about our fire safety assessments here.
My building company has been appointed as Principal Contractor and I have been told I need to produce a Construction Health and Safety Plan. What is this and how do I produce it?
The Construction Health and Safety Plan is the document that sets out how you as principal contractor will manage health and safety on your site, from the welfare facilities for all of your site staff, to how you will manage vehicle and plant movement around the site, and managing working at height and control of dust et cetera. The CDM Regulations 2015 require this to be written before you start on site. At our health and safety consultancy we write these all the time for our construction clients, we can normally carry out the site visit and get the document written within a week.