do you need a health check?
In a recent case, two employees of one of our clients', a
housing association, allegedly sustained injuries at work after
coming into contact with syringes whilst clearing rooms that had
been occupied by tenants of our client. The employees instructed
solicitors to instigate civil proceedings for personal injuries.
The local authority was notified of the incidents (as is standard
procedure) and commenced its own investigation into breaches of
health and safety legislation (it was concerned that re-enforced
protective gloves were not available for use).
Our client received a letter from the local authority inviting
them to attend an interview under caution. We advised our client
not to attend as it was not in their best interest to do so. The
local authority interviewed some of our client's staff about what
had happened and we supported them through this by attending the
interviews. We made representations to the local authority,
pointing out the steps our client had taken to improve training of
staff, health and safety procedures and access to protective
equipment. We also drew the local authority's attention to a
favourable report prepared independently by the County Council. As
a consequence, there was no prosecution brought against our
client.
what this means for social landlords
This was a very successful outcome for our client and shows the
importance of taking legal advice both to protect your organisation
and as a way of reviewing your health and safety procedures.
