Health & Safety Handbook
Health and safety has a reputation for being bureaucratic and complicated. In reality, for most small businesses, the core requirements are straightforward and proportionate. This handbook explains what the law requires, what you actually need to do, and how to stay compliant without drowning in paperwork.
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 is the foundation of UK health and safety law. It places a duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of their employees and others affected by their work.
"Reasonably practicable" is an important phrase. It means you must take precautions unless the cost and effort of doing so is grossly disproportionate to the risk. You don't need to eliminate every conceivable risk — you need to manage significant risks sensibly.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the regulator responsible for enforcing health and safety law in most workplaces. Local authorities enforce it in retail, hospitality and some other sectors. The HSE can inspect your workplace, issue improvement notices, and prosecute for serious breaches.
If you have 5 or more employees, you must have a written health and safety policy. This doesn't need to be long — a clear statement of your commitment to health and safety, who is responsible for what, and how you manage risks is sufficient.
Self-employed people with no employees have fewer obligations, but you still have a duty not to put others at risk through your work activities.
Good to know
- Use the HSE's free resources — they provide sector-specific guidance for most industries
- Focus on significant risks, not trivial ones — proportionality is built into the law
- Involve employees in health and safety — they often know the risks better than management
- Review your health and safety arrangements regularly, especially when things change
Watch out for
- Assuming health and safety doesn't apply to small businesses — it does
- Treating health and safety as a box-ticking exercise rather than a genuine commitment
- Not having a written health and safety policy if you have 5 or more employees
- Ignoring HSE guidance for your specific industry
Related guidance
Pathways
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