Contractors, the self-employed and business owners have to make sure that the risks when working at height are assessed and managed by law. If at all possible the work that is to be done at height should be avoided unless it's absolutely essential. If the work can't be avoided it's necessary to do everything possible to reduce the risks, such as helping to prevent falls, falling materials and objects and to reduce the risk of injury. Skills required to manage such work can be learnt in the SMSTS course (Site Management Safety Training Scheme).
Method Statements
Method statements are widely used within the industry as these are beneficial when communicating the steps that need to be taken when conducting the work. There are a few main issues to cover when working at height and these include:- Risk assessments
- Establishing necessary precautions
- Writing and communicating method statements
It's essential that you understand how to complete all of the above, especially when working at heights. This is because working at heights is the biggest cause of deaths and serious injuries within construction; especially in the smaller sized projects. Of all the deaths more than 60% are caused by falling from roofs, falling through roof lights, or falling from working platforms, ladders, the edges of roofs and scaffolding.
Don't Break the Law - You Could be prosecuted
As an employer or a self-employed contractor you must make sure all the risks are established, make a record of your findings, work out what precautions you need to take and to review the assessments from time to time or when changes to the work are introduced. You can learn all of these skills on the Site Managers Safety Training Scheme that is available all year round, all over the UK.
The course is designed for business owners, the self employed and for managers. It's a five day course and leads to a fully recognised qualification that remains valid for a period of five years. At the end of the five years a shorter SMSTS refresher course will need to be completed to remain qualified and up to date on the latest health and safety laws and techniques.
Related Courses
- Working at Height - Scaffold and Scaffold Towers
- Working at Height with Access Equipment
- Working at height courses
- Slips, trips and falls courses
- Confined spaces courses
- CDM courses
- NEBOSH Construction Certificate
- Level 1 Health and Safety in a Construction Environment (Leading to CSCS Green Card)
- Preparation for the CITB Health, Safety and Environment Test
- Contractor Management
- Construction NVQ
- Construction and engineering courses
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