Health & Safety

The Police Federation is recognised as having the same status as a trade union for the purpose of the Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) and any Regulation made under the Act.

All appointed Safety Reps have received training to at least Institute of Occupation Safety and Health (IOSH) standard. Under the health and safety banner our safety reps work closely with management to identify and eradicate risks to the health and well being of our members.

Safety reps have the power to conduct investigations of accidents and dangerous occurrences. In normal circumstances such investigations will be carried out jointly with a member of management, as the purpose of the investigation is to identify the problem and to put it right for the future.

Safety reps have a power to carry out workplace inspections and these inspections take place on a planned basis all round the force. We have reached an agreement that UNISON will lead on these inspections due to the fact that the majority of their members work within building owned by the force.

This agreement allows Federation safety reps to concentrate on operational issues, which are significantly more risky for our members than when working within a building.

We would also ask that you ensure that you comply with the force's accident and near miss reporting procedure if you have an accident or even a 'near miss'. If you do not report the accident it cannot be investigated and appropriate action to rectify it or stop a further occurrence cannot be taken. We would also ask that where appropriate you tick the box to state on your form that a copy may be disclosed to the Federation.