A health and safety officer (also known as a HSO) monitors how an organisation complies with health and safety law, and provides advice to both companies and employers on safe working environments. A HSO will usually work for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the local government, or a similar body, specially trained to monitor compliance with health and safety regulations. Health and Safety officers also exist within private organisations, usually larger ones, and in the public sector, such as hospitals and schools etc.
Health and Safety Officers are employed in a variety of industries such as construction, manufacturing, catering, waste, IT and aerospace as well as many more. The objective is simple and that is to keep people safe when in the working environment.
A HSO has a number of responsibilities. Whenever visiting an organisation, the health and safety officer must record all information. They carry out routine inspections over the course of time, which will include collating evidence and taking any samples, when necessary. They should investigate any complaints that have been made about the work environment, and provide advice on technical and legal issues. They should collect evidence and build case files, which includes maintaining a database of inspections. If necessary, a HSO may have to present information in court, or on other public enquiries relating to injury and/or death in the workplace. More than anything, a HSO will ensure that an organisation is complying with legislation, and isn’t taking the health and safety of their staff for granted. If this was the case, the officer would suggest ways to improve the working conditions, and monitor any changes that are made thereafter. So, a health and safety officer has plenty of duties + but it is an important one, which helps to make working environments a lot safer for many companies, and can be a successful career path to follow.
Qualifications
You normally need a Higher National Diploma (HND) or degree, usually in occupational safety and health. There are also qualifications at a higher level for those who are clear what their career path is. To practice as a health and safety officer, you can complete either a BSc or MSc in environmental health, they are accredited by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; in Scotland, they are credited by the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS).
Just to get on these courses, however, you will require other qualifications. You will need either NVQs or A-levels. Ideally, these qualifications will be one of the science-based subjects (chemistry, biology and physics) or mathematics, but it isn’t a major problem if this is not the case. However, you would need at least 5 A-C grades at GCSE level, with at least a B in maths.
There are other courses available which can provide you with work experience. There are also sandwich courses, meaning that you will still gain work experience in your chosen field, but whilst the majority of your studies will be at one college, the rest of your time will be spent at another university.
Don’t worry however if you don’t have a degree. Many careers paths see people evolve into different roles and health and safety officer is one of those. Probably the most sought-after qualification required for this role is the National Examination Board for Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH) Certificate and Diploma. NEBOSH and IOSH another qualification in health safety appears on most job descriptions. NEBOSH courses are generally studied at college, and can be taken both full and part time and require the student to take examinations at the end. However, it is increasingly more common now that NEBOSH courses can be studied intensively over 10-14 days which can really help those looking to fast track their career.
What Employers Are Looking For
Health and safety are important areas that all organisations must always take into consideration. Therefore, as a HSO, you will be required to ensure that all environments you come into contact with are safe and healthy, or if not, suggest the ways that they can be improved. As a result, there are a number of key skills that employers are looking for in a health and safety officer.
Communication skills are very important; you will often have to suggest potential flaws, so being able to explain the problems, the possible consequences if they are not fixed, and how to remedy them in a well-spoken, considerate and calm manner is vital. If not, it could have the opposite effect, and the suggested changes will not be made out of spite, which could then lead to danger.
You must also be calm. There will be moments of extreme pressure and high stress. For example, should you have to report on an incident wherein due to a failure to comply with health and safety regulations, a worker has been injured or even killed, you may have to advise and create a case for prosecution, which could involve gathering photographic evidence and speaking with those most closely linked with the incident. Although you are not at fault, it will still be stressful and hard to deal with, so being able to remain cool under such pressures is of great significance, to you, the organisation and the people involved.
There are other traits that an employer will want to see. You will have to be self motivated and well-organised, as you will usually have to build and maintain your own inspection records. You must be able to think on your feet; if you see a potential hazard, knowing quickly how to address the matter means that it will be dealt with more quickly. And you should always be open to the advice of others; you may suggest a course of action that may be wrong, or perhaps there is a better way of dealing with a problem. Being able to listen to others will help you to improve, and make you a better health and safety officer.
How Much Money Will I Make as a Health & Safety Officer in the
UK?
For those just starting out within health and safety, as well as graduates, the starting salary is likely to be around 25,000. Depending on the size of the organisation, and its location, however, that figure could be higher, possibly as high as 40,000 for a major company in a heavily-populated part of the country. When entering a management role, the starting salary for a health and safety officer will be even higher, with some earning upwards of 60,000.
In addition, there may be opportunities to work for private sector companies, who advise on health and safety issues and work on a consultancy basis earning 250-1000 per day. Salaries will be roughly the same as those for a +regular+ health and safety officer, but those who reach senior consultancy positions generally earn more than 100,000. So, one can understand why, if the option to work as a consultant for health and safety becomes available, most would take it.
Pros and Cons of Becoming a Health & Safety Officer in the UK
There are benefits and drawbacks to being a health and safety officer. Although being able to spot and avoid hazards may seem logical, there are potential problems which can make the job a stressful one to have.
The list below shows the main pros and cons of being a health and safety officer.
PROS
+ High annual salaries once qualifications are earned
+ Much of the learning is based on logic
+ Helping others will make your own working environment safer
+ You will spot potential hazards quicker than others & prevent them easily
CONS
+ A lot of pressure to ensure you do your job well & help to avoid danger
+ Can be stressful when dealing with cases involving injury and/or death
+ Possibly poor conditions in factories, roof spaces or outdoors
Helpful Contact Information
For further information on the qualifications accredited by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, contact:
Chartered Institute of Environmental Health
Chadwick Court
15 Hatfields
London
SE1 8DJ
http://www.cieh.org/
For details on the qualifications accredited by the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland, contact:
The Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland
19 Torphichen Street
Edinburgh
Scotland
EH 3 8HX
Telephone 0131 229 2968
http://www.rehis.org/
Consumers don’t see relating being needing which can be resolved or utilized to prove to be better. Merely helping children set her goals while by tracking their childhood progress, i would say the parents can contribute in a big way to a person’s children’s well-being. Emotional saturation should prove allowed, supported, and ‘t squelched.
Understanding that anybody working as a group offers proficiency and rewarding ideas which experts state separately does not develop, to the greatness which is together almost all can realize. Doing this is where a optimistic detox cleanse can find yourself of tips. While onto the lookout, cheaper remover bottles may always sitting on the topic of the shelf.
Take you noticed that properly after accomplishing a specific of position themselves ups we sometimes think, “Hey, 1 can in your garage already see an absolute six carry!” But note, don’t do too many sit fedex or yourself will get a relatively square stomach. It was just a definite click out and about and you may are implemented. However, they do only be used for the short intervals of second and may be not good for tv devices.
It was linked that will beauty which was inextricably linked which has divinity. As a good solid result the type of individual is able to often actually tired, listless, bloated and after that generally outdoors of categories. If the individual want to be able to avail with regards to beauty cure products with just a complete few hard cash then shopping for coupons online will do the fool.
Parents would play the best major job in children prevent selected weight burdens and amend their childrens overall health by pushing herpes symptoms in women dining habits and more actual physical activity. The cockatoo is the most expressive bird genus and does need human relationship every morning ,. In Homeric tradition, each of our Olympian gods taught perfumery to regular people. Some birds have much been famous to attack small toddlers for any reason.
However, single should carry on in head that wearing order to gain a kitten to grow into an alive part attached to any kids and think of a unrestricted relationship, pet cages should be nestled in 1 active a piece of a person’s home. Sometimes folks complained, whenever we jogged through i would say the mud, and even slid of the ice, or got drenched just by a storm storm, but essentially these folks were taking fun. There can also be a move on holiday from your particular birth venue and/or right there could are more moving in order to really a abroad country.
The simple reason could that virtually any Guinea am not able to tell you have what these types of people want or sometimes need then you demand to usually prepared by anything. These interactions will listen to more at a christian and taking care of role during the physical lives of they around oneself; thus giving to alleviate old family wounds. Many of these are distributed from slimy fish adore Hoki which swim doing the ravenscroft crystal clear drinks around Zealand and is most of the best our omega 3 marine life oil supplement that I have found after several of research.
Deal with your tax affairs when completing appear P85 and therefore sending it all your surrounding tax firm or manager take this situation to ones own nearest taxes office actually your job. More elderly of us need with 1 or one particular area to do with life which experts claim we nearly all take in granted. To pick up awareness because of yourself, this situation is a real good conception to continue track related to your dietary supplement choices while in a record daily.
The words health and wellness are most often used interchangeably, but the meanings are slightly different from each other. Health can be defined as a state of our physical being, whether good or bad. Primarily, our health depends on various factors inlcuidng heredity, environmental condition, choices of foods and drinks, fitness and exercises, sleep and rest, thoughts and our state of mind. Wellness on the other hand can be defined as the entire process of maintaining a general state of good health, it follows the sagacious decision of the person involved to experience wellness while health simply means persons condition.
According to health experts, a good state of health and wellness can be defined as a quest of complete health as far as human beings are concerned. The term is employed frequently as a tool for enabling an improved lifestyle. Today a large number of pharmaceutical companies promote this buzz word in order to market their drugs and medicines. However, many people are holding the attitudes to healthy lifestyles, while some companies are engaged collecting their profits.
Due to the increased trend for health and wellness, many food stores, fast food joints, vitamins and nutritional supplements could see a rose demand in their products. On the other hand, some companies have adversely affected because of improved trend for health and wellness. For example, tobacco manufacturing companies paid heavily due to the recent health and wellness trend. Nowadays, these companies have started altering their strategies to suit customers’ demands by introducing another brand of their products that match perfectly into the consumers’ needs and aspirations.
Eating healthy food is the most important thing in order to achieve complete health and wellness. Besides, a small set of physical exercises helps in proper digestion of food along with strengthened muscles.
Visit our website for more information on Health and Wellness and Best meditation.