Construction firms have been warned that they must demonstrate safety measures to the new Building Safety Regulator (BSR) watchdog if they want to remain compliant in 18 months’ time.
The new measures are aimed at preventing future tragedies
The move comes amidst clamor for greater clarity over the health and safety practices that the construction industry is using. The Chief inspector of buildings, Peter Barker recently interviewed by Construction News, stated that the industry should move away from:
“an over-reliance on the building control body being the final check and arbiter of safety”: Peter Barker.
The new measures are yet to be released in any great detail but they will likely put a greater emphasis on health and safety within construction projects.
The new regulator intends to put greater emphasis on health and safety within the construction industry, ranging across all sorts of different projects. Tragedies like Grenfell have led to a series of reforms with the new regulator stipulating that new procedures and measures are likely to come into force within 18 months.
New regulations are always possible within health and safety and they are a prime example of why you cannot ‘rest on your laurels when it comes to introducing and improving health and safety practices. The new regulations may provide a similar change to the industry that followed the wake of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations in 2015.
Prior preparation is being advised for firms
Construction firms are going to have to not only follow the new regulations but also demonstrate to the HSE Executive that they are following them. This is why organisations are being encouraged to prepare for the process in advance to allow for the smoothest transition.
Construction firms will also have to follow previous legislation and rules in addition to the new procedures. This means a focus is needed now to plan out how all relevant health and safety legislation can be followed in the future.
If you want to find out more about previous health and safety legislation and how it affects your working practices, HSE Network provides a series of great resources on the matter.
Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions or would like us to cover any health and safety news-related stories.
