Shropshire farm firms get help to meet health and safety laws
Farmers across Shropshire are being urged to take advantage of a dedicated new service aimed at helping them meet stringent health and safety rules and regulations.
Building Trust in Safety Ltd, a health and safety consultancy based just outside Shrewsbury, has launched a Farmers Safety Pack tailored to meet the specific needs of agricultural businesses across the county. The pack includes all relevant policies, documents, and templates required by farm owners to comply with their health and safety responsibilities.
“Based on the number of accidents per worker, farming is the most dangerous industry in the country,” Ruth Ross, Managing Director of Building Trust in Safety, revealed. “More than 450 people in the sector have died in accidents during the past ten years, with a further 1,700 seriously injured. Agricultural businesses have to deal with a wide variety of health and safety issues every day, from the unpredictability of working with animals and the use of dangerous machinery, to handling hazardous substances and the extremely long hours and heavy workload the job entails.”
The Farmers Safety Pack on offer from Building Trust in Safety Ltd is bespoke to meet the requirements of the individual farm organisation involved – arable farms have a completely different set of health and safety issues to deal with than livestock farms.
In addition to receiving all the relevant policies, templates, and legal documents needed to meet their requirements, farmers also have the opportunity to arrange a more in-depth consultation, where an expert from Building Trust in Safety Ltd will undertake a site visit, offer advice and suggest any suitable training that might be necessary. They will also be able to carry out a full risk assessment – a legal requirement for farm owners under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 – and outline practical solutions to any problems raised.
“Many of the alternatives currently available to the agricultural industry are ‘off the shelf, one size fits all’ solutions that don’t specifically take into account the needs of the particular business, so farmers often end up paying for elements they don’t actually require. As our packs are completely tailored to the individual needs of the farm, owners can be rest-assured their requirements will be met at a cost-effective price.
“Safe working is good business practice and evidence of a professional, modern industry. We know from the farm owners we currently work with that they are extremely committed to delivering on health and safety, and with the launch of our dedicated new service, we hope to spread this message throughout Shropshire,” Ruth concluded.
For further information about the Farmers Safety Pack, please call a member of the dedicated team on 01939 200 221, email ruth@btsltd.co.uk or visit www.btsltd.co.uk.
