Do You Need a Health and Safety Policy? (UK)

If you employ five or more people, UK law requires you to have a written health and safety policy. If you employ fewer, you still need a policy but it does not have to be written down, though putting it in writing is sensible and most clients expect it. This guide explains who needs one, what it must contain, and how to produce it quickly.

What the law says

The duty comes from section 2(3) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Any employer with five or more employees must prepare, and keep up to date, a written statement of their general policy on health and safety, along with the organisation and arrangements for carrying it out, and bring it to the attention of their employees. Below five employees the duty still exists but the written requirement does not, so a short written policy is still the practical choice.

The three parts every policy needs

1. Statement of intent. A short signed statement of your commitment to managing health and safety, with your general aims. It is normally signed and dated by the most senior person in the business.
2. Responsibilities. Who is responsible for what, named by role: the director or owner with overall responsibility, managers and supervisors, and the duties of employees themselves.
3. Arrangements. The practical detail of how you control risk day to day: risk assessment, training and induction, first aid, accident reporting, safe use of equipment, and the specific hazards of your trade.

How to write one that holds up

Keep it specific to your business. A policy that names your trade, your real hazards and your actual people beats a long generic document that could belong to anyone. Review it when the business changes and at least once a year, and make sure staff have seen it, as the law requires you to bring it to their attention. Your policy also sits alongside your risk assessments, which are where the hazards it refers to are assessed in detail.

Start from a proper template

Our health and safety policy template gives you all three parts laid out, a statement of intent ready to sign, a responsibilities section and an arrangements section you adapt to your trade, plus an employee acknowledgement sheet.