Corporate

Working at Height: Standard Operating Procedure

Document Control Summary

New
Status:
v1.0 Date: January 2016
Version:
Author/Title: Nick Hulme - Health, Safety and Security Advisor
Owner/Title: Liz Lockett - Associate Director or Quality and Risk
Policy and Procedures Committee Date: 21/01/2016
Approved by:
Policy and Procedures Committee Date: 21/01/2016
Ratified:
Risk Management Strategy
Related Trust Strategy
and/or Strategic Aims
January 2016
Implementation Date:
January 2019
Review Date:
Working; Height; Risk; Assessment; Hazard; Fall
Key Words:
Health and Safety Policy
Associated Policy or
Standard Operating
Procedures

Contents

1. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 2
2. Purpose ..................................................................................................................... 2
3. Scope ........................................................................................................................ 2
4. Process for the Safe Working at Height.................................................................. 3
5. Process For Monitoring Compliance And Effectiveness ....................................... 5
6. References ................................................................................................................ 5

Appendix 1 - HSE Guidance on Risk Assessment for Working at Height ....................... 6

 Working at Height SOP/February 2016

Change Control – Amendment History

Version Dates Amendments

1. Introduction

The Trust has in place a Health and Safety Policy which sets out the Trust’s overall
approach to health and safety, details the organisational arrangements, responsibilities,
sets out the arrangements including providing information and guidance on compliance
with legal requirements through the use of policies, procedures, standard operating
procedures and other media and for consulting with staff through the health and safety
committee.
The purpose of this SOP is to highlight the health and safety issues around Working at
Height. The topic covered by this SOP requires the non-trivial risks to be assessed and
control measures implemented as per the non-clinical risk assessment and management
SOP. When risks are identified, appropriate changes will be made to manage and where
possible improve the situation. Records of risk assessments will be kept in each
department, communicated to staff in a useable and understandable manner and readily
accessible to staff for them to view.

This SOP should be read in conjunction with the Health and Safety Policy

2. Purpose

All work at height is hazardous and therefore any work which necessitates working at
height it should be properly risk assessed and a safe method of working identified and
implemented. This Standard Operating Procedure has been developed to ensure robust
processes when working at height.

3. Scope

This Standard Operating Procedure applies to all staff within South Staffordshire and
Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.
The majority of the work within the Trust which constitutes ‘working at height’ is at a low
level and is low to medium risk e.g. access to shelves but it is still a risk. It is a
frequently occurring activity across the organisation. The majority of such work can
usually be managed by simple measures e.g. kick-step (elephants foot) or small step
ladders. (NOT by climbing on chairs etc.).

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 Working at Height SOP/February 2016

The normal use of ladders or step ladders does not provide measures which either
prevent falls or minimise the consequences. Therefore it must be shown that it was not
reasonable to select alternative equipment because the task is low risk and short
duration. Ladders are generally limited to simple short duration work, usually of a one-off
nature.

The HSE (Health and Safety Executive) regulations do not prevent use of ladders but
they must be appropriate to the task AND the time duration to complete the task.
Certain tasks by their nature and/or duration can never be safely conducted or be
suitable for ladder use e.g. where heavy, awkward to handle objects are involved or two
handed carrying / work is involved and must be done by other means of access.

HSE's Key Message: Ladders should only be used for low-risk, short-duration
work. Always check your ladder before you use it and know how to use it. All
access equipment should be used by a competent person in its
erection/use/dismantling or operation.

4. Process for the Safe Working at Height

This information should be used to identify when people are working at height and the
issues to consider:

4.1 What is Work at Height?

Work at height means work in any place where, if precautions were not taken, a person
could fall down and injure themselves. If they:

 work above ground level

 could fall from an edge, through an opening or fragile surface, or
 could fall from ground level into an opening in a floor or hole in the ground

Working at height – the person may fall from one level to another.

Examples of work at height include:

 using working platforms such as scaffolds, tower scaffolds, cherry pickers, scissor
lifts and podium steps;
 work on a roof, piece of plant or equipment;
 using ladders or stepladders.

4.2 What Precautions Need to be Taken?

Work at height may be a one off, or routine. The assessor will need to make sure they
identify all tasks, which require work at height, so they can make sure they are carried
out safely. The key to preventing injury from work at height is to carry out a risk

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 Working at Height SOP/February 2016

assessment, so the right precautions can be implemented. This is a simple process,

answering the following questions will help do this:

Can Need to Work at Height be Avoided in the First Place?

Long-handled tools or other equipment can sometimes be used to safely carry out a
task from ground level, e.g. a long-handled brush or roller for painting and water-fed
poles with brushes for window cleaning. Think about whether it is possible to design out
the need to work at height, e.g. could new or replacement services, such as pipes or
cables, be put at ground level?

If the need to work at height can’t be avoided, the risk of a fall should be prevented.

Can a Fall be Prevented?

This can be done by:

 using an existing place of work. This is a place that is already safe, e.g. a roof with
permanent guard rails or a parapet around the edges; or a piece of plant or
equipment that has fixed, permanent guard rails around it

 using work equipment. If an existing place of work cannot be used, consider the use
of work equipment to prevent people falling. Tower scaffolds, podium steps, cherry
pickers and scissor lifts are some common examples of work equipment, which will
do this because the working platforms have guard rails. If regular access is
required, e.g. to an air conditioning unit on a roof, it may be reasonable for the
client/building owner to create a safe place of work by installing permanent guard
rails to and around the work area.

If measures cannot be put in place to prevent a fall, the risk should be limited by
minimising the distance and/or consequences of a fall.

4.3 Minimising the Consequences of a Fall

Aim to avoid and then prevent a fall before using measures that will only minimise or
limit the consequences. Airbags and safety nets are examples of such measures,
because they should minimise the risk of injury if someone falls. Fall arrest equipment
will also minimise injury if someone falls, providing the equipment is set up correctly,
users know how to look after it and they understand its limitations.

4.4 Other Additional Measures to Reduce the Risk of a Fall

When using any equipment for work at height, it is important to ensure:

 the people using it are trained to use it safely

 it is regularly inspected and well maintained, and
 the work is supervised to check people are working safely

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 Working at Height SOP/February 2016

4.5 Identification of Any Fragile Surfaces

It is important to be particularly aware of fragile materials when working at height as

their presence in, or near the working area, increases the risk. A fragile surface is one,
which would be liable to break if a person worked on it or fell onto it. Common examples
include, fibre and asbestos cement roof sheets and many skylights, but could also
include materials which have deteriorated over time including weather damage e.g.
brittle or water damaged. It is important to:

 avoid the need to work on or near or pass across them by, e.g. repairing a skylight
from underneath using a tower scaffold or from above using a cherry picker;
 prevent a fall by using fixed walkways with guard rails to get across a fragile
asbestos cement roof or use suitable working platforms with guard rails during work
on or near a fragile surface;
 minimise the consequences of a fall by using nets, airbags or fall arrest.

5. Process for Monitoring Compliance and Effectiveness

Monitoring of the implementation of this SOP will be through monitoring of and
responding to regular environmental assessments and audits and monitoring of incidents
and near misses.

6. References
Health and Safety Executive – Working at Height - http://www.hse.gov.uk/work-at-
height/the-law.htm

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Can you Avoid working at
height in the first place?
If ‘No’, go to ‘Prevent’
Do as much work as
possible from the ground.
Some practical examples
include:
 using extendable
tools from ground
level to remove the
need to climb a ladder
 installing cables at
ground level
 lowering a lighting
mast to ground level
 ground level
assembly of edge
protection
HSE Guidance on Risk Assessment for Working at Height
Can you Prevent a fall from
occurring?
If ‘No’, go to ‘Minimise’
You can do this by:
 using an existing place of work that is
already safe, e.g. a non-fragile roof
with a permanent perimeter guard rail
or, if not
 using work equipment to prevent
people from falling
Some practical examples of collective
protection when using an existing place of
work:
 a concrete flat roof with existing edge
protection, or guarded mezzanine floor,
or plant or machinery with fixed guard
rails around it
Some practical examples of collective
protection using work equipment to
prevent a fall:
 mobile elevating work platforms
(MEWPs) such as scissor lifts
 scaffolds/tower scaffolds
An example of personal protection using
work equipment to prevent a fall:
 using a work restraint (travel
restriction) system that prevents a
worker getting into a fall position
Can you Minimise the
distance and/or
consequences of a fall?
If the risk of a person falling
remains, you must take sufficient
measures to minimize the distance
and/or consequences of a fall.
Practical examples of a collective
protection using work equipment to
minimize the distance and
consequences of a fall:
 Safety nets and soft landing
systems, e.g. air bags, installed
close to the level of work
An example of personal protection
used to minimize the distance and
consequences of a fall:
 Industrial rope access e.g.
working on a building façade
 Fall-arrest system using a high
anchor point
Appendix 1
Using ladders and
stepladders
For tasks of low risk and short
duration, ladders and stepladders can
be a sensible and practical option.
If your risk assessment determines it
is correct to use a ladder, you should
MINIMISE the risk by making sure
workers:
 Use the right type of ladder for the
job
 Are competent (you can provide
adequate training and/or
supervision to help)
 Use the equipment provided safely
and follow a safe system of work
 Are fully aware of the risks and
measures to help control them.
Follow HSE Guidance on safe use of
ladders and step ladders at
http://www.hse.gov.uk/work-at-height/