What’s New on the Web...

RRC Training’s website http://www.rrc.co.uk is the place to go for free updates on everything that’s happening in the field of health and safety.

You can now access the following resources on the site, all of which are completely free of charge at http://www.rrc.co.uk/ResourceCentre.aspx:

• Weekly news updates.
• Monthly podcasts on key issues.
• Reference guides on hot topics.
• Opinion pieces.
• Useful links.

We are taking a short break in our podcasts over the Summer so the next one, on the subject of Office Health and Safety will be available on 1st September. Over the last two months, we have also covered the topics of the new REACH regulations and GHS Chemical Labelling – thrilling subjects we’re sure you’ll agree!

We are adding new resources all the time so make sure you visit the site regularly to ensure you are not missing out.

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Coming Soon

New Revision Webinars

During the last quarter we trialled revision web seminars (“Webinars”) for those on the NEBOSH Diploma programme and they were well received by the students that attended our trial sessions. Webinars are short sessions that make use of web-conferencing and voice-conferencing technology. The sessions are short, focused, interactive, immediate, visual and entail no travel – so they’re good for the environment too. We plan to do more of these in the Autumn for both NEBOSH Diploma and NEBOSH Certificate students, so look out for them.

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New NEBOSH National General Certificate Revision Programme

Even those with the best of intentions can find themselves a month before their exam feeling lost as to where to begin their preparations. Our new structured revision package has been designed to provide you with the perfect 20-day revision plan to keep you on track in this crucial period in the run up to the exams. Not only does it incorporate coverage of the key topics and sample exam questions, but it also looks at the techniques you can use to make sure you are in the best frame of mind to succeed. It will be available for the December 2007 Exams.

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Thanks for your Feedback

Many thanks to all of you who recently gave us your feedback regarding our e-newsletter. We received a huge response and while it was all very positive, we also received some useful suggestions to help us improve it further.

So what did you tell us? Well it seems as though our reputation as an international training provider is well deserved, with over a quarter of our readers being based overseas. The vast majority of respondents rate our articles on health and safety topics as being the most useful, followed by our roundup of health and safety news in the Noticeboard.

The majority of the readers who responded describe themselves as health and safety professionals and, of those who are not, 37% describe themselves as studying health and safety for career progression. A massive 96% of you find the e-newsletter easy to navigate around but many of you want to see more illustrations (we hope you notice that we have started implementing this suggestion already in this edition).

What’s also great to hear is that on average, those who responded each forward the newsletter on to two friends or colleagues. We know that finding reliable sources of easy-to-digest information can be difficult (particularly for those who are interested in international news) so if you think that someone you know would enjoy it, please pass it on. Alternatively, get them to sign up for themselves at: http://www.healthandsafetybusiness.com/Register.aspx

Some slightly disappointing news is that almost a third of respondents were not aware that we add topical health and safety news items to our website each week so you don’t need to wait three months for your next update. If you’ve not seen these items, why not take a look now by clicking here .

So now for the bit you’ve all been waiting for – who won the iPods? The winners are:

• Ms Sheila Coupe, Kent (iPod 30GB Video)
• Mr Allan Ferguson, Oxfordshire (iPod Shuffle)
• Mr John Thistlethwaite, Devon (iPod Shuffle)
• Mr Andy Griffiths, West Yorkshire (iPod Shuffle)
• Mr David Slater, Cleveland (iPod Shuffle)

We would like to thank you all again for your feedback but don’t think it has to end there. We are always keen to hear your thoughts and views so keep in touch.

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You’ve got it coming to you…

New Exeter Centre Opening September 2007

Our research shows that local businesses and students wanting to develop their careers in health and safety are looking for a high quality, accredited training provider in the South West. So here we come!

We have selected the courses most relevant to local enquiries, training needs and economic development in the region so from September 2007 we’ll be offering a full range of courses, including NEBOSH, IOSH and CIEH programmes.

NEBOSH

National Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety

National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety

National Certificate in Construction Safety and Health

Certificate in Fire Safety and Risk Management

IOSH

Directing Safely

Managing Safely

Supervising Safely

CIEH

Principles of COSHH

Principles of Manual Handling

As our centre will be based just outside the City of Exeter, it will be easy to reach from all points of the compass and costs are substantially lower than one would expect due to our competitive local pricing policy.

For further details or to book a place on one of our courses, call a Customer Adviser on +44 (0) 20 8944 3108.

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Congratulations to Dr Roger Bentley

We are sure you would like to join us in passing on our best wishes to one of our expert tutors, Dr Roger Bentley, who has recently been presented with a Distinguished Service Certificate by IOSH’s President, Lisa Fowlie.

Roger has been on the IOSH Council of Management for eight years and has also been a member of the Branch Executive Committee and organiser of the Central Lancashire District meetings. He has also served for six years (the maximum term allowed) as a member of the Technical Committee.

Roger has been tutoring with RRC for many years and will be familiar to many of you. He regularly tutors on our NEBOSH Certificate and Diploma programmes and has played a key role in helping to develop and run our e-learning programmes.

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And the Expo winners are…

Many congratulations to the six lucky individuals who visited our stand at the recent Safety and Health Expo in Birmingham and won an iPod Nano. The winners were:

• Mr Steven Ridgley, Kent
• Mr Gary Curtis, London
• Mr Michael Lambert, Surrey
• Mr Chris Martin, London
• Mr Adrian Gallaway, Kent
• Ms Karen Davis, London

The exhibition was even busier than usual this year and the RRC stand was full of visitors taking advantage of the various competitions and giveaways available on the stand. If you didn’t get the opportunity to see us, why not visit our website (www.rrc.co.uk) or give us a ring on +44 (0)20 8944 3100.

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Wind Farms Health and Safety

By Dr Richard Griffiths, PhD, MSc, MEd, Cert Ed, Grad R.S.C, CMIOSH, MIIRSM, AIEMA, FRSH, FRIPH

Reducing dependency on fossil fuels is a key element in tackling climate change and there is now a great deal of support from the UK Government for sustainable energy solutions, wind farms being one of them.

Wind farms can have a number of effects on the environment as well as possible health and safety issues. Since the early 1970s the wind energy industry has experienced 14 worker fatalities worldwide, directly or indirectly during wind farm construction or related accidents.

Read more...

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Driving at Work

By Wendy Claxton, CMIOSH, BSc (Hons) Biological Science, DIP2.OSH

According to the Health and Safety Executive it is estimated that up to a third of all road traffic accidents involve somebody who is at work at the time. This may account for over 20 fatalities and 250 serious injuries every week in the UK.

Road accidents can cause a great deal of disruption to a business through lost time, work-related ill health and even death. Clearly employers have a duty to comply with health and safety legislation (e.g. the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999) in addition to road traffic law to ensure that employees drive safely whilst at work, through:

Read more...

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News In Brief

• The Royal College of Nursing has said that bouncer-style security guards should be deployed at all inner-city hospitals to prevent violence and abuse to staff. At least a dozen hospitals are known to have equipped staff with riot shields, stab-proof vests and crash helmets.

• A Bradford firm which fostered a culture of long hours has been found liable for a crash which left a worker paralysed. He had fallen asleep at the wheel and the Court of Appeal ruled that he could sue his employer, Atkinsons Kitchens and Bedrooms, for damages. His final award will be reduced, however, due to contributory negligence.

• Britain’s female firearms officers are said to be at risk of shooting themselves or their colleagues because the guns they are issued with are too big for their hands. Their performance is also often hampered by ill-fitting boots, trousers and shirts designed for men, according to the British Association of Women in Policing. The association estimates that 90% of all the female police officers in Britain have ill-fitting uniform or equipment.

• Health and safety concerns caused Camden Council in North London to ban barbecues at community festivals. Professional caterers must now be hired to run charcoal fires, but community groups cannot afford the cost.

• A 20-year-old stable girl died at the West Bridgford Equestrian Centre in Nottingham in May, when she was kicked in the head by a horse as she assisted at the birth of its foal. She had been working at the centre for only a few weeks. Police and health and safety experts are investigating the incident.

• Vale of Glamorgan Council has banned telephone operators from greeting callers in Welsh, following concerns raised by union officials that staff who usually only speak in English could damage their voice.

• A window cleaner died in Wigan when he collapsed due to a heart condition and his head was submerged in a bucket of water. He had earlier been the victim of an assault and is thought to have suffered a blackout while working.

• Official figures show a fall in the number of attacks on fire-fighters in England and Wales, from 1,200 in 2005/06 to 400 in the past year. According to the Fire Brigades Union, however, the figures are seriously wrong and bear no relation to daily experience. They have called for action to protect fire crews from a “daily diet” of bricks, bottles and missiles.

• Following a challenge to the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 (CDM 2007) by the leader of the Conservative Party in Parliament, CDM 2007 will not be annulled or amended. David Cameron had called for CDM 2007 to be annulled over concerns that the increase in liability placed on small businesses may render them vulnerable to prosecution; but following parliamentary debate there are to be no changes.

• A holidaymaker walking his dog near the village of Clehonger in Herefordshire in May was trampled by a herd of cows. He suffered a serious chest injury and was taken to hospital.

• The High Court has awarded damages of £948,565 to a man suffering from mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos. He worked at a shipyard for four years in the 1960s and has to care for two grandchildren.

• While giving a lecture on firearms awareness at Thames Valley police headquarters, a firearms officer accidentally shot one of the group of 11 call operators attending. The victim was wounded in the abdomen and required surgery. Investigators from the Independent Police Complaints Commission are examining how the pistol came to have a live round, why the safety catch was not on and whether the officer checked the status of the gun before the session.

• The skipper of a Thames passenger ferry died in June when he was attacked by two drunken passengers as the boat moored at Tower Pier in London. The ferry was on a scheduled service from Greenwich to Westminster, operated by City Cruises. Two men were subsequently charged with murder.

• Workers fled a fire at a chemical plant near Crewe in June when sparks ignited material in a crushing machine. More than 80 fire-fighters were needed to put out the blaze and a 400m exclusion zone was set up around Aztec Chemicals, which makes aerosol products. No injuries were reported.

• Research by the University of Manchester shows that a quarter of young cancer specialists in the UK are suffering from stress. More than one in ten are also clinically depressed. Reasons cited include being overstretched, keeping up to date with knowledge, fear of making mistakes, talking with distressed relatives, and poor senior support and team relations.

• A Hertfordshire fire-fighter died in June after being hit by a car as he tackled a vehicle blaze on the hard shoulder of the A1(M). One of his colleagues was also injured in the accident.

• In an effort to limit staff exposure to second-hand smoke, Liverpool City Council are to ask residents not to smoke at least half an hour before home visits and during them.

• A worker died at the Hollywood Bowl in Barking, East London, while cleaning a tenpin bowling machine. He had failed to unplug it first and was trapped and crushed.

• South West Water has been fined £20,000 with costs of £11,800 for supplying customers with water contaminated with diesel. The company pleaded guilty to four charges of supplying water unfit for consumption following an incident in Exeter in February 2006.

• An investigation by the HSE into the crash at Elvington airfield near York in which a BBC “Top Gear” presenter was injured, identified failings in the BBC’s safety management systems regarding risk assessment and procuring services from others. There were also failings by Primetime Landspeed Engineering, which owned the car which crashed and trained the TV presenter. The crash was caused by the failure of a tyre at 288 mph and no prosecution is planned.

• Investigations by the British Airline Pilots Association and the BBC have found that short-haul pilots’ performance is being affected by fatigue. Crews can make up to six complete flights a day without leaving the cockpit and many say they have flown despite being unfit through exhaustion.

• A traffic warden was seriously ill in hospital with head injuries in late June after being attacked in Wandsworth, South London, as he issued tickets to cars parked outside a pub following a funeral. The warden was employed by Central Parking Systems, which has a contract with the borough council. Two men were later arrested in connection with the attack.

• Following a lengthy civil action, Belfast High Court has granted thousands of serving and retired police officers in Northern Ireland the right to claim compensation for stress-related illnesses suffered as a result of years of sectarian violence. The Court found that there had been “systematic failures” in the way officers were treated. Compensation claims are expected to exceed £100 million.

• The Metropolitan Police and the London Borough of Barnet both pleaded guilty to an offence under the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 following the deaths of two schoolboys who drowned in a police swimming pool in July 2002. The Metropolitan Police accepted responsibility for failing to ensure the safety of swimmers and have been fined £75,000. The council failed to carry out a proper risk assessment and has been fined £16,500.

• An amateur pianist, who liked to entertain guests in hotels and on cruise ships after professional players had ended their sessions, was prevented from doing so on health and safety grounds when staff discovered that he had not insured his hands.

• An employee of Network Rail has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter by detectives investigating the Grayrigg train crash. The derailment, in which a passenger was killed, may have been caused by failure to carry out maintenance on the track properly. There have been claims that a vital inspection of a set of points was not completed five days before the accident in Cumbria in February.

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Noticeboard

Accreditation for Asbestos Site Clearance Notifications Ocean Tug Capsizes in UK Waters More Dangerous Goods Banned in the EU Cadbury Fined under Food Safety Legislation Project Notification Form F10 for CDM 2007 UK Lags Behind on Safety Duties of Directors CBI Report on Staff Training Workplace Cancer Study Methods Underestimate Risk No Change in Small Claims Limit for Personal Injury New Standard on UK Biodiversity Conservation Online Guidance on Waste Disposal The Corporate Manslaughter Bill IPCC Third Report on Global Climate Change Assessment HSE Warning to Local Authorities on Repairs and Maintenance REACH Comes into Force EU Bans Severe Animal Testing of Cosmetics Disappearing Arctic Sea Ice Europe’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Slip HSC Consultation on Directors' Health and Safety Duties Survey of Potential Breast Cancer Carcinogens Progress on Merger between the HSC and HSE Government Proposes On-the-Spot Health and Safety Fines Accident-Prone People Exist Concern Raised over Medium-Density Fibreboard Global CO2 Emissions Exceed Worst-Case Scenario European Week for Safety and Health

Government Strategy on Business Waste Forthcoming British Standards on Health and Safety EU Directive on Indicative Occupational Exposure Limit Values and Updated Version of EH40 Risk of Parkinson’s Disease Increases with Pesticide Exposure and Head Trauma REACH Information Online Train Drivers Exposed to Magnetic-Field-Induced Cancer Risk Radiation Hazard for Tobacco Smokers EU to Investigate UK Landfill Scam Lyme Disease on the Increase The WEEE Regulations Employment Tribunals Service Faces Major Reorganisation WHO Report on Environmental Ill-Health European Court Finds in Favour of HSWA WEEE Likely to Raise Council Tax Welsh Water Prosecuted over Cryptosporidiosis Outbreak HSE Report on Measurement of Acoustic Spectra from Leaks BSI Fire Safety Standards BP Abandons Plans to Build UK Carbon Capture Project Outlook for Global Energy Use Growth Safety Warning on Unspent Aircraft Oxygen Generators The Impossible Economics of Nuclear Power Generation DTI Has Another Name Change EU Plans to Turn Wine Lake into Biofuel European Nuclear Industry Makes Slow Progress

Read more on all of these stories here...

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