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19. Comment on your intended approach to health & safety compliance for this mandate.
Health and Safety will be an essential part of how we fulfil this mandate. Our priority is always to ensure the safety of all the customers, clients, employees and visitors, as well as the compliance at the development. We achieve this through:
» An in-house team of Health and Safety experts, qualified and experienced compliance and engineering teams. They will conduct audits of the processes and activities
at the development, as well as the current records and the onsite team’s existing level of training and understanding. From there, they will create a bespoke report that details their recommendations for the scheme. They will then monitor implementation. Some examples and key issues are as follows:
– A regular programme of fire and general risk assessments undertaken at the scheme. These will be undertaken and tracked via our bespoke and in-house developed site survey package, known as ESIS.
– An internationally recognised Health and Safety Management System, BS OHSAS 18001, which is assessed and monitored by a reputable quality assurance company Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance (LRQA). This ensures that we meet (and where possible exceed) recognised standards in line with a continual improvement model.
» Our Primary Authority Partnership with Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service. The partnership provides assured and tailored advice on compliance with fire safety legislation and codes of practice across our our entire portfolio.
» Strong Health and Safety policies and procedures ranging from permit to work and lone working procedures to an inclement weather policy.
» Staff training on our health and safety communications strategy. The teams’ baseline understanding is created through initial training and is updated and refreshed with regular Toolbox Talks for property management teams. Teams’ familiarity with the policies and procedures is also regularly checked through our auditing systems.
» Further internal and external health and safety training for team members who require increased health and safety knowledge as part of their roles. This training is relevant to the working environment and role. For example, all Property/Estate Managers undertake IOSH accredited training courses as part of their initial induction.
» Regular Health and Safety Committee meetings with staff at all levels across the business. This enables us to combine health and safety legislation and specialist acumen with ground level, practical viewpoints so that site staff feel empowered to be fully engaged in the decision-
making process.
» Robust contractor management and compliance. All our approved contractors are SSIP accredited and commit to a range of stringent quality and health and safety criteria set through SLAs.
As well as monitoring new legislation, our Health and Safety team takes an active part in shaping best practice in the field. For instance, our Head of Health & Safety and Fire Safety sits on the ARMA Health and Safety & Fire Safety Committee, as well as the ARMA Fire Safety in High Rise Block committee. Mainstay also worked with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Hackitt review, in order to help define and codify best practice for the industry.
This industry leading expertise will inform how health and safety is managed at the Acanthus Project and will be reflected in all of the policies and processes we use to manage the site to the benefit of the client and their customers.
We see that you currently operate a mixed service strategy for the development’s leisure facilities. We are familiar with this approach, based on other schemes in our management. We propose to work with your consultants to build a robust set of policies and operations practices in line with H&S requirements for the site.
20. Confirm the levels and basis of cover you have in place for Professional Indemnity and Public Liability insurance and provide supporting certificates.
» Please see Appendix 2 - Public Liability and Professional Indemnity 2020-21
Mainstay: Response to Tender | Project Acanthus - Part One
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