Storage South Harrow Health and Safety Policy
Storage South Harrow is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for all employees, customers, contractors and visitors. This Health and Safety Policy sets out our approach to managing risks associated with storage, handling, removals, transport, loading and unloading activities that take place on our premises or under our control.
Policy Statement and Objectives
Our objective is to prevent injury, ill health, damage to property and harm to the environment arising from our operations. We will take all reasonably practicable steps to:
Identify hazards and manage risks to an acceptable level.
Provide and maintain safe facilities, equipment and systems of work.
Ensure safe handling, lifting and storage of goods and materials.
Protect the health, safety and welfare of all people affected by our activities.
Comply with applicable health and safety legislation and recognised good practice.
Continually improve our health and safety performance.
Management Responsibilities
Senior management at Storage South Harrow holds overall responsibility for health and safety. Management will:
Implement and review this Health and Safety Policy on a regular basis.
Ensure that responsibilities for health and safety are clearly defined and communicated.
Provide adequate resources for the implementation of safe systems of work, staff training and maintenance of equipment.
Ensure that risk assessments are carried out, recorded, implemented and reviewed whenever there are significant changes to our operations.
Monitor performance and investigate any accidents, near misses or complaints relating to health and safety, taking corrective and preventive action as required.
Employee Responsibilities
All employees, including permanent, temporary and agency workers, share responsibility for maintaining a safe working environment. Employees must:
Take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions.
Follow all safety procedures, instructions and training provided by Storage South Harrow.
Use equipment, vehicles, tools and personal protective equipment correctly and only for their intended purpose.
Report hazards, unsafe conditions, defects, accidents and near misses to management without delay.
Cooperate with any investigations, audits or reviews relating to health and safety.
Customer and Visitor Safety
Storage South Harrow recognises its duty to safeguard customers and visitors who enter our premises or interact with our removal and storage services. We will:
Maintain clear access routes, loading areas and walkways, minimising slips, trips and falls.
Control vehicle movements and loading operations to reduce the risk of collisions or injury.
Provide clear signage and information on site rules and emergency procedures where appropriate.
Ensure that customers and visitors are not exposed to unnecessary risks during handling, loading or unloading of items.
Risk Assessment and Safe Systems of Work
We will carry out and maintain suitable and sufficient risk assessments for key activities, including but not limited to:
Manual handling of furniture, boxes and equipment.
Use of trolleys, lifting aids and other handling equipment.
Vehicle movements, parking, loading and unloading.
Working in storage areas, corridors and loading bays.
Handling of potentially hazardous items, where accepted under our terms of service.
On the basis of these assessments, we will implement safe systems of work, which may include specific procedures, supervision, equipment selection, route planning and limits on load sizes or stacking heights.
Manual Handling and Lifting
Manual handling is a significant part of storage and removal operations. To minimise the risk of injury, Storage South Harrow will:
Provide information and training on safe lifting techniques and team handling.
Encourage the use of handling aids such as trolleys, dollies and pallet equipment where appropriate.
Plan jobs to avoid unnecessary lifting, twisting, reaching or carrying over long distances.
Assess higher risk items and, where necessary, adjust job methods, manpower or equipment to reduce the risk.
Vehicles, Driving and Transport
Where our operations involve vehicles used for removals or transport of goods, we will:
Ensure that vehicles are suitable for their intended use and maintained in a safe condition.
Carry out pre use checks where required and address any defects before use.
Plan routes and parking or loading arrangements to reduce risks to drivers, staff, customers and the public.
Ensure that loads are secured safely and that access to vehicles for loading or unloading is carried out in a controlled manner.
Equipment, Maintenance and Housekeeping
All equipment used for storage and removals will be maintained to prevent danger. Storage South Harrow will:
Inspect and, where appropriate, test lifting equipment, trolleys and any other work equipment at suitable intervals.
Remove defective equipment from use until repaired or replaced.
Maintain good housekeeping standards, including the prompt removal of waste, debris and obstructions from working areas and walkways.
Keep floors, steps and access points in a condition that minimises risks from slips, trips or falls.
Information, Instruction, Training and Supervision
We will provide employees with information, instruction, training and supervision appropriate to their roles, including:
Induction training for all new starters, covering key health and safety procedures, emergency arrangements and site rules.
Task specific training for manual handling, use of equipment and safe operation of vehicles where relevant.
Refresher training when necessary or when operations, equipment or legislation change.
Ongoing supervision, particularly for new or inexperienced staff, to ensure that safe practices are followed.
Accidents, Incidents and Emergency Procedures
Storage South Harrow will maintain suitable arrangements for dealing with accidents, incidents and emergencies. These include:
Provision of trained first aid personnel and appropriate first aid supplies.
Reporting and recording of accidents, work related ill health and significant near misses.
Investigation of incidents to identify root causes and implement corrective actions.
Emergency procedures for fire, evacuation and other foreseeable events, communicated to staff and, where appropriate, customers and visitors.
Health, Welfare and Wellbeing
We recognise that good health and safety management extends beyond accident prevention. Storage South Harrow will:
Provide suitable welfare facilities such as toilets, washing facilities and rest breaks.
Address health risks associated with repetitive tasks, heavy work and stress where they arise.
Encourage staff to raise any wellbeing concerns that may affect their safety or performance.
Consultation and Continuous Improvement
Storage South Harrow is committed to consulting with employees on health and safety matters and encouraging feedback from staff and customers. We will:
Review this Health and Safety Policy at regular intervals and when significant changes occur in our operations.
Use accident data, inspection findings, staff feedback and customer comments to improve our safety standards.
Promote a positive safety culture where hazards are identified early and improvements are actively supported.
Policy Review
This Health and Safety Policy reflects the current operations of Storage South Harrow and the nature of our storage and removal services. It will be reviewed periodically and updated when necessary to ensure that it continues to meet legal requirements, industry standards and the needs of our staff and customers.
