CHAS assessments and the role of your Health and Safety consultant
There is a noticeable increase in occasions when health and safety consultants working for contractors or consultancies applying to us have judged it necessary to become directly involved with the assessment and our assessors. This may be with the best of intent but too often we find they have contacted the assessor or my staff to complain. In our experience these complaints often leads to unhelpful, time-consuming, resource intensive and unnecessary exchanges between the consultant and the assessor.
Our assessors have many years experience in undertaking assessments of company health and safety policy compliance and safety management. We are clear that our role requires us to ensure, on behalf of our clients, that your company is compliant with basic health and safety law and you have demonstrated sound safety management. If we are to achieve this it is important you make the application and not a third party on your behalf. We need to judge your compliance and how you manage health and safety in your company, what you do and how you do it.
Of course there is nothing to stop you employing or using your consultant to make the application on your behalf. However, if we have any questions arising from your application or assessment it is right and proper that we write to you about them and where necessary discuss the issues with you, not your consultant. If you choose to pass our comments or questions on to your consultant and get their advice that is your prerogative. However please note we expect you or one of your employees (not your consultant) to respond to us.
Remember, our objective here is to determine senior management in your company have a real and demonstrable commitment to health and safety. We want to establish your knowledge and understanding of your safety management system.
Following completion of your assessment, should you disagree with the outcome, we have an appeal process that can be instigated by you. However, the assessment must be completed before that appeal can be lodged.
We understand these pre-qualification assessments can be time-consuming for you and understand the temptation to pay someone else to do it for you. But, if you do that, then please understand our assessors will not become directly involved with your consultant.