Over 80% of workplace accidents in the UK are caused by poor planning or a lack of adequate risk assessments. Inadequate assessments can lead to fines, imprisonment, and personal liability for any individual responsible for workplace health and safety.

Who should perform a risk assessment at work? Research indicates that 38% of businesses lack suitable fire risk assessments, and 32.5% of serious accidents happen due to the failure of assessing risks at work. In such a scenario, a risk assessment needs to be performed by competent and qualified individuals.

This includes employers, managers, supervisors, business owners, safety officers, or any employee responsible for risk management at work. Here, you will learn about risk assessments, common types of risks in the workplace, and how to conduct a risk assessment safely. Let’s explore!

Risk Assessment Process

What is a Risk Assessment?

Risk assessment is an effective safety management method to identify workplace hazards, assess the hazards and potential risks, and take preventive measures to ensure a safe workplace. A risk assessment is both a legal and mandatory requirement for any workplace with five or more employees.

It includes information on the hazard and a procedure to follow step-by-step on how to assess the risks. It also includes a Risk Assessment Template and adequately manages the risks detected. The construction industry is one of the areas among many workplaces across the UK where this is generally done. 

Is Risk Assessment a Legal Requirement?

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The UK Health and Safety Law consists of two main pieces that address work-related stress and risks. These are,

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 

The primary legislation for workplace risk assessment in the UK is the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which requires employers to conduct suitable and sufficient risk assessments. 

It demands that every employer shall make an adequate and fit evaluation of the hazards to the health and safety of their workers at the workplace.

This is supported by the Health and Safety at Work etc., Act 1974, which establishes the general duty of care to ensure employee safety. This implies that the employers are obligated by law to:

  • Recognise any danger to the health of their employees, such as conducting a risk assessment.
  • Engage in control measures aimed at avoiding or minimising work stress.

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 is the primary legislation governing workplace health and safety in the UK. It imposes a duty of care on employers to ensure that they safeguard their employees against the threat of workplace stress. Other responsibilities include, 

  • Employers are primarily responsible for occupational safety.
  • Providing proper employee training to ensure that health and safety are correctly understood and implemented.
  • Providing appropriate welfare facilities for employees.
  • Providing a sound operational environment that is well-maintained and safe.
  • Providing relevant information, instruction and supervision appropriately.

It is also important that employers ensure that they are compliant with the law on the Working Time Regulations 1998. 

Common Types of Workplace Risk Assessments

Risk assessments that are required in any working environment need to be suitable for the operations that are being conducted. The common types of risk assessments, which are both a legal and a regulatory requirement in every workplace, include the following,

Fire Risk Assessment

In every workplace, fire safety measures must be put in place, including adequate and appropriate fire risk assessments.

COSHH Risk Assessment

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COSHH stands for Control of Substances Hazardous to Health. The risk assessment of COSHH has to be carried out in the workplaces where hazardous materials are kept, used, or produced. Learn more about how to do a COSHH risk assessment at work.

Manual Handling Risk Assessment

The purpose of the manual handling risk assessments should be any work environment where an employee is likely to be exposed to the risk of injury and/or become ill due to the requirement to lift, carry or move loads. 

DSE Risk Assessment

Display Screen Equipment (DSE) risk assessment must be fulfilled in the workplaces where computers, laptops, etc., are used by employees (and other people).

Who Should Perform a Risk Assessment?

Most of the responsibility for the health and safety of the workplace lies with the employers, although the duty cannot be assigned to any single individual. 

Although the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 clarifies that general obligations of all individuals, both employers and employees, to business owners, managers, among others (such as maintainers or supervisors of work premises), are to ensure health and safety in the workplace.

Employers should work with their employees to:

  • Identify the risks of stress or any other workplace hazards,
  • Decide how to remove, reduce and minimise the risks,
  • Agree on what steps to take, which will be effective,
  • Make any changes to avoid or reduce risks and potential hazards,
  • Regularly review the plan and keep track.
Workplace Risk Assessment

Let’s take a look at the key figures who are responsible for risk management at work!

Employers/Business Owners

They are ultimately liable towards health and safety, and as such, they should have assessments carried out, particularly when they have five or more employees. The risk assessment should be in written form here.

Managers or Supervisors

They often perform assessments in their respective departments or, in the case of work-related stress. For example, managers and supervisors, along with employers, are responsible for ensuring safety at construction work. 

Competent Persons/Safety Officers

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Personnel who are specially trained or aware of the tasks/hazards, for example, in HSE guidance. Safety officers are responsible for construction site safety as well.

Employees/ Workers

Employees are also responsible for ensuring occupational safety. Adequate training on risk identification and conducting workplace risk assessment safely is part of the safety management system.

Five Steps to Perform a Risk Assessment: A Complete Guide

According to a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) report, a business was ‘fined £274,000 after two workers became trapped in moving machinery in two separate incidents‘. This is why conducting a successful risk assessment at work is of utmost importance.

Let’s take a look at the core five steps to perform a risk assessment efficiently!

Step 1: Identify the risks and potential hazards

  • Observe around your workplace, consider what can be harmful (workplace hazards).
  • Assess the way people work and the usage of plant and equipment.
  • Find out what chemicals and substances are used.
  • Figure out the safe or unsafe working practices.
  • Check on the overall condition of your facilities.
  • Check your accident and ill health records because they will enable you to see the less noticeable risks. 
  • Consider non-routine activities, such as maintenance, cleaning or variations of production cycles.
  • Consider health hazards, including manual handling, use of chemicals and causes of work-related stress.
  • In relation to every hazard, consider how the employees, contractors, visitors or members of the public can be injured.

Step 2: Assess the risks and risk level

After you have determined the hazards, determine the likelihood that somebody would be injured and the severity of the situation. This is an evaluation of the degree of risk.

  • Assess who might be harmed
  • Evaluate the control measures being taken to manage the risks.
  • Find out what additional steps you should take to mitigate the risks/
  • Inform individuals who must act.
  • Prioritise when the action is needed.

Step 3: Control the risks and potential hazards

  • See what you are already doing, and the controls you already have. 
  • Find ways to eliminate the risk
  • Prioritise the risks and manage the risks accordingly
  • Implement additional controls, including redesigning the job, replacing the materials, process or machinery.
  • Arrange your tasks in such a way that you are not exposed to the materials, machinery or process as much.
  • Recognise and attach actionable steps to be taken to work safely.
  • Supply employees with protection gear and ensure their use.

Step 4: Record your findings and risk assessment process

Risk Assessment Template
  • You are required to document your noteworthy findings when you have five or more employees.
  • Document the hazards (harm-causing things)
  • Find out who might be harmed and keep a record.
  • Keep track of what you are doing to mitigate the risks.
  • Include a Risk Assessment Template and examples to assist you. Paperwork should not be your first priority, but ensure that, in practice, you seek to manage the risks.

Step 5: Review the controls and risk management

  • You need to check the controls which you have implemented to ensure that they are functioning. Review them in case they can no longer be efficient.
  • Review when the workplace is changing, and this may create new risks such as alterations to staff, processes, and the resources or materials involved.
  • Review when your workers have identified any problem, or when there are accidents or near misses. 
  • Record any changes in your risk assessment record and include risk management training records in your risk management system.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What happens if there is no risk assessment?

A lack of risk assessment in the workplace can significantly increase the risk of accidents, injuries, financial repercussions, or any other work-related hazards. 

Do you need to be trained to do a risk assessment?

Although formal, accredited training is not strictly required by law to perform a risk assessment, you can enrol in online training courses to learn the necessary skills and competencies to perform a risk assessment.

Do employees have responsibility for risk assessment?

Employers are primarily responsible for conducting risk assessments at work. However, employees also have a legal responsibility to contribute to risk assessments and workplace safety.

Who is legally responsible for a risk assessment?

By law, the employer (or a self-employed individual) of a workplace is responsible for risk assessments.  Besides that, managers, supervisors, safety officers, and even employees also have a legal requirement to ensure risk management at work.

Conclusion

Risk assessments are a crucial part of every safety management system. A risk assessment addresses dealing with hazards and must deal with the harm to an individual working in a place where risks could occur. If you’re wondering who should perform a risk assessment, it should be done by a competent person.

A workplace safety management system includes many crucial aspects like risk identification, appropriate control measures, risk assessment process, risk assessment training, and much more. It not only prevents risks and potential hazards from occurring, but also protects the safety of everyone working in risk-prone environments.

Lastly, ensuring safety at work should be a bare minimum since everyone wants to work in a safe and sound environment. The UK Health and Safety at Work legislation should implement the safety guidelines strictly and ensure proper compliance from everyone.