Inquiry focuses on safety help for SMEs
May 1st 2007

Inquiry focuses on

The Royal Society for the

Prevention of Accidents is holding

an inquiry to improve help for small

firms on health and safety.

During the 18-month project,

RoSPA's National Occupational

Safety and Health Committee will

look at the effectiveness of current

activities that promote and support

the management of health and safety

in small and medium-sized

enterprises (SMEs) in the UK. It will

also investigate opportunities for

future action.

The committee is calling for

evidence on the quality of health and

safety advice given to small firms,

how to avoid unnecessary

bureaucracy and the duplication of

effort, how to share good practice

and how to encourage greater

collaboration between key players.

Roger Bibbings, RoSPA

occupational safety adviser,

comments "SMEs are not simply

smaller versions of large companies,

and research has shown that they

face distinct challenges when

dealing with occupational safety and

health. It is therefore important that

any efforts to help raise health and

safety standards in small firms are

targeted at the very specific issues

they face."

More articles from RoSPA: