2021 Health and Safety Update
Become a Health and Safety Representative
If your school/college does not currently have a Health and Safety Representative, why not consider becoming one?
Being a Health and Safety Representative in a school/college is a very rewarding position.
You will assist members and your Senior Leadership Team (SLT) to identify and resolve issues before they lead to accidents, as well as investigate accidents and conduct inspections.
The vast majority of senior leaders and employers welcome the input of Health and Safety Representatives, as it gives them another set of eyes and free expertise.
They also know that workplaces with a Health and Safety Representative are healthier, safer and more productive. Evidence shows that in workplaces with a Health and Safety Representative, there are 24% fewer injuries.
The HSE/HSENI also support the vital contribution Health and Safety Representatives and trade unions make to maintaining and improving health and safety in the workplace.
There is no additional responsibility on Health and Safety Representatives - any deficiencies remain the responsibility of the employer, not the Health and Safety Representative. The responsibilities on Health and Safety Representatives are the same as any other employee - to take reasonably practicable care of yourself and others.
Where the NASUWT is recognised, which is in the vast majority of workplaces, Health and Safety Representatives are entitled to paid time off to undertake their duties and to access training, which the NASUWT provides free of charge to members.
The NASUWT also holds an annual Health and Safety Seminar for all members, and an alternating annual seminar for members in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
For more information, please contact the NASUWT.
Temperature and ventilation
As the summer approaches and temperatures begin to rise, the issue of excessive temperatures in schools will return.
Excessive classroom temperatures are not only uncomfortable, but they are also a health and safety hazard, as excessive heat can aggravate existing medical conditions.
Excessive heat in classrooms has also been shown in many studies to impact on pupils’ learning, with a 1°C increase in temperatures linked to a 2% decline in learning.
The effects of extreme temperatures are even more striking when considering that each additional school day with a temperature in the 30s (°C) reduces pupil achievement by one sixth of a percent of a year’s worth of learning.
Disadvantaged pupils also suffer up to three times the impact of excessive temperatures than other pupils.
Adequate ventilation is also a key legal requirement and all rooms must be adequately ventilated. A simple way of doing this is through the use of a carbon dioxide detector, which can be purchased cheaply from a range of suppliers.
The NASUWT has produced detailed guidance on temperature and ventilation.
Post-pandemic health and safety considerations
The Covid-19 pandemic shone a light on the poor state of health and safety in many schools and colleges, particularly with regard to risk assessment.
Some of the lessons that have been learned through the pandemic will continue to be relevant in the weeks, months and years ahead.
Even before the pandemic hit, many schools routinely experienced outbreaks of pathogens such as norovirus and ‘bugs’ often went through schools rapidly, impacting not only on health, but also on learning.
Some of the methods employed to combat coronavirus can help to prevent other pathogens spreading and/or lead to generally healthier workplaces. These include enhanced ventilation, monitoring of the workplace, enhanced cleaning and disinfection routines and regular hand sanitisation.
These should all continue post-pandemic.
The value of appropriate isolation has also been demonstrated and schools should continue to insist on isolation for specific pathogens, such as norovirus, where people should stay at home for 48 hours after the last symptoms have stopped.
As we hopefully move out of the pandemic period, the focus on health and safety and risk assessment should remain.
Every school and college has a legal duty to do everything reasonably practicable to ensure the health, safety and welfare of staff and pupils and all foreseeable risks must be assessed.
The knowledge and experience that has been developed through the pandemic should leave schools and colleges in a strong position.
The NASUWT has produced guidance on risk assessments across a range of subjects, and these can be found on the NASUWT website.
Educational visits (England)
The Department for Education (DfE) has stated that, subject to mitigations such as the bubbling of pupils, educational visits can resume.
Since 17 May, schools have also been able to undertake domestic residential visits and the DfE has produced specific guidance on this, available on the DfE’s Covid-19 Operational Guidance Annex C: domestic residential educational visits.
International visits remain prohibited.
Schools must ensure that, in addition to the usual risk assessment process, any visits must also be fully risk assessed to account for Covid-19, including items such as ensuring adequate bubbling, social distancing, and arrangements if a pupil or staff member becomes symptomatic whilst on the visit.
Adverse weather
As winter approaches, it is likely that there will be episodes of severe/adverse weather. Indeed, many areas have already been affected by flooding. We have extensive guidance on dealing with adverse weather, including flooding, available on our Adverse Weather page. In addition, the Scottish Government has produced a Fair Work Charter for Adverse Weather (pdf).
The STUC has also produced guidance on winning severe weather protections at work. Although primarily of use for representatives in Scotland, it may also be of use in other jurisdictions to demonstrate a fair approach to dealing with adverse weather.
Air filtration
In addition to adverse weather, as the temperature drops, ventilation is often reduced in classrooms, making it far easier for viruses and other pathogens to be transmitted between people in the room.
There is clear evidence that air filtration units not only reduce the transmission of pathogens, which in turn improves attendance, but improving general air quality also increases pupil performance.
We have produced a flyer, available on our Air Filtration in Schools and Colleges page, which highlights this research. NASUWT Representatives should share this with schools and employers in order to persuade them to fit air filtration units.
More detailed guidance on air filtration can be found on our Air Filtration in Schools and Colleges page.
Car idling pollution
Cars running whilst parked are a frequent occurrence on roads near schools and can be a significant cause of poor air quality in the vicinity of the school.
The Highway Code states
“You MUST NOT leave a parked vehicle unattended with the engine running or leave a vehicle engine running unnecessarily while that vehicle is stationary on a public road. Generally, if the vehicle is stationary and is likely to remain so for more than a couple of minutes, you should apply the parking brake and switch off the engine to reduce emissions and noise pollution. However it is permissible to leave the engine running if the vehicle is stationary in traffic or for diagnosing faults.”
This stems from the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 and the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999, therefore it has been illegal to leave a stationary vehicle running for nearly 40 years in Great Britain (25 years in Northern Ireland).
NASUWT understands that enforcement action under these regulations rests with local authorities, yet they are seldom, if ever, enforced, despite the clear link to poor air quality and pollution in schools. In Northern Ireland, enforcement is via the Department for Infrastructure.
NASUWT Representatives should, where applicable, raise this through local authority forums to request that enforcement action is undertaken in the vicinity of schools. NASUWT Representatives should also request that employers/schools issue a reminder to parents that allowing car engines to idle is illegal and contributes to poor air quality in schools.
TUC racist violence guidance
Following the events of the summer, which saw widespread far-right racist violence, the TUC has produced guidance on protecting workers from the risks of violence and racism. This gives guidance for representatives to use when raising this issue with schools and employers. All representatives are encouraged to raise this with schools/employers to ensure they have sufficient safeguards and procedures in place to deal with any racist violence incidents.
It should also be remembered that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) defines violence as
“Any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work.”
It is important to bear in mind that this can include:
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verbal abuse or threats, including face to face, online and via telephone; and
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physical attacks
Please note, although the guidance mentions representatives contacting the HSE directly to raise issues, NASUWT Representatives should discuss this with their Local Association Secretary and/or National Executive Member before contacting the HSE.
HSE asbestos inspections
The HSE has continued to carry out a programme of school inspections looking at compliance with the Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR). This follows an earlier programme which found that around a third of schools inspected had some material breach of the CAR.
We have recently learned that during an inspection, the inspector requested to see the management plans and surveys going back several years. It was then discovered that the number of asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) listed suddenly dropped between surveys without any removal work being carried out. It was later established that the asbestos surveyors had missed a number of previously referenced ACMs. Fortunately, no building work had occurred at the school in the intervening period and no asbestos exposure occurred as a result, but this could have been very serious.
NASUWT Representatives should alert schools/employers to this case to ensure that there are no discrepancies in the asbestos documentation over time and all located ACMs continue to be monitored unless removed.
In addition, another employer has informed NASUWT that the HSE inspector stated that, in relation to Duty to Manage training, this should be repeated at least every two years. NASUWT Representatives should also ensure schools/employers are aware of this requirement.
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