The Health and Safety Executive has recently released its annual report on health and safety statistics for 2015-16. While it’s good to see that some numbers are dropping, it is also sobering to see that a number of statistics around health and safety have plateaued. It seems that while positive changes are still being made in some areas, there is still a lot to be done, and new approaches are needed.

Key health and safety statistics:

1.3 million workers suffering from a work-related illness, and 25.9 million working days lost.

144 worker fatalities from injury.

13,000 deaths per year linked to past workplace exposure to chemicals or dust.

621,000 injuries to workers.

Half a million workers suffering from musculoskeletal disorders.

Half a million cases of work-related stress, depression or anxiety – with 11.7 million days off.

£14.1 billion cost to economy of work-related illness and injury (excluding long-latency illness such as cancer).

They’re some pretty big numbers aren’t they? The question now is – what do we all do to improve them? We believe that customised approaches to H&S are needed for more organisations, and that having a ‘one size fits all’ standardised approach, as used by many managers who are un-trained in health and safety, just isn’t good enough. If we want to see fatality and injury rates drop further, and see an improvement in the rates of employees’ musculoskeletal problems, mental health and related absences, then companies need to invest in specialised health and safety consultants, who can provide bespoke safety management systems, and help them to focus on ergonomics and better employee wellbeing.

Taking a pro-active approach doesn’t just improve outcomes for individual employees. It also improves staff productivity, satisfaction and retention, improves business reputation, and saves money. We can help you to make changes that will provide real improvements for your organisation.

If you’d like more information on our approach to consultancy, contact us at info@amalgamate-safety.com or call 0141 244 0181.