Whether you’re the one doing the development or you simply own the land, you have a responsibility to ensure that your development site is safe for those working on and living around the ground. From health and safety measures to making sure you have the right insurance for the site, making sure that you have all of this in place can protect you and other members of the public in cases where accidents or damage could happen, or prevent them entirely. Here are our tips for keeping your development site safe:
Make Sure You’re Insured
Development Site Insurance is designed to protect you and your land, specifically land that is actively being developed or will be subject to construction work in the near future. Generally, these sites are usually set to become housing, flats and other properties and can therefore be hot zones for accidents and injury.
Development Site Insurance protects you against any third-party injury claims, offering financial protection in cases where members of the public come to harm on your land, or as a result of the work going on there. This can include illnesses from poor ventilation, slips, trips, falls, machinery accidents, etc. Having the right insurance policy alongside other health and safety measures will ensure you don’t run into financial hardship as a result.
Clear Signage Around The Site
Every construction site has dangers, whether it’s active or on pause and not just for the members of staff. Having signs around the site, whether they’re warning signs, no admittance signs or even signs warning people not to enter without PPE, can often be a cost-effective way of encouraging visitors to take more caution while on the site, and also provide you with extra security and support if a claim were to occur. Signs can help to reduce accidents related to trips, falling objects, machinery or large vehicles and gas or electricity presence, by ensuring that those untrained to deal with these issues are kept safely away.
Make PPE a Necessity
PPE is an essential part of health and safety and it’s therefore vital that you encourage, or even enforce the wearing of protective equipment while on site. Putting up barriers with signs declaring that PPE must be worn beyond a certain point and making sure to enforce these rules on the site, will ensure that all tradespeople and members of the public are protected throughout their visit or work on-site. Hi-Visibility vests and clothing should also be enforced alongside task-specific PPE, to ensure that all staff members are seen at all times.
Give All Tradespeople An Induction
Making sure that any and all staff working on the development site are properly inducted before they get started can go a long way to preventing accidents. Most employees of any business will have an induction, and construction should be no different. Taking time to take new staff through the unique hazards and operations of your site will help to ensure that no one is going into the area without any clue of what to expect. You should include everything they could need to know, from where things are and the rules and regulations around these areas, to what to do in the case of an emergency, any documentation that is needed or may be needed in certain situations and more.
Make Tidying A Priority
Every construction worker has wanted to down tools and just go home at the end of a work day, and it’s an understandable feeling after a long day of intense work. However, leaving the mess behind can increase the chances of an accident by a significant amount. HSE report that slips and trips account for 31% of major injuries on construction sites and so when things are left laying around, spillages aren’t cleared up or even debris is left on the ground, the chances of this occurring are far higher. Making sure that all work areas are cleared regularly after every task can reduce the risk of slips and trips and therefore keep people safe while working on your development site.
Keep Untrained People Away From Equipment
Even the smallest bit of equipment can cause serious injury when in the wrong hands, so it’s crucial to make sure that any staff using machinery or equipment to work are fully trained to use that equipment. Whether it’s hand tools, a forklift or bigger power machinery, these all need to be monitored to ensure that only trained staff are using them to complete jobs. Without this training, you could risk being blamed if something goes wrong or if someone, or even yourself, gets hurt. Checking credentials and ensuring that staff are trained and safe to be on site is a must.
Development sites can be dangerous places for you, your staff and members of the public, so it’s important to make sure that you’re following any and all health and safety guidance available to you. Hopefully, our guide has helped you get started – for more information about Development Site insurance and how it can protect you, get in touch with Ashburnham Insurance on 0800 1696137.