Learning that saves lives
Success can sometimes be a problem. The better we become at preventing incidents, the harder it can be to see what is actually preventing them.
By Mike Robinson, chief executive, British Safety Council on 11 September 2026
Opinion
Migraine in work: a test of the Government’s plans to Keep Britain Working
Migraine can have a profound, and often avoidable, impact on people’s working lives and careers. The Government’s growing focus on workplace health offers an important opportunity to change this, but only if this common, often disabling and frequently invisible neurological condition is properly understood and addressed by Government, the NHS and employers.
By Rob Music, The Migraine Trust on 07 September 2026
Heat at work: why Britain needs stronger protections for a hotter future
With rising temperatures posing a growing health risk to UK workers, the TUC is calling for HSE guidance to be updated to require employers to take specific steps to protect workers' wellbeing when temperatures exceed pre-set trigger points.
By Huma Haq, TUC on 01 August 2026
Can a ‘Budget for working people’ finally ‘Get Britain Working’?
How many column inches were taken up in the build-up to the Budget wondering who exactly the Government meant by ‘working people’? And now that we know what was in it, does it really matter?
By Mike Robinson FCA, British Safety Council on 01 November 2024
Progression, pay and policy: the key to tackling gender inequalities in the workplace
Business in the Community (BITC) works to create a fairer world to live and work in. We believe gender shouldn’t act as an unfair help or hindrance to someone’s chances of professional or wider life success, but sadly this remains the case in workplaces up and down the country.
By Charlotte Woodworth, Business in the Community on 01 October 2024
Can Grenfell’s legacy be 1.5 million safe new homes?
The new UK Government faces major hurdles on a number of fronts – not least the £22 billion ‘black hole’, which leaves little headroom for the Chancellor in her forthcoming Budget.
By Mike Robinson FCA, British Safety Council on 01 October 2024
Reasonable adjustments – understanding the cost and benefits
Although employers may sometimes be worried about the cost and resource implications, reasonable adjustments to support disabled people to thrive at work are often inexpensive and easy to enact – and provide a major boost to staff productivity, engagement and loyalty.
By Faye Law, Acas on 01 October 2024
Supporting employee mental health: what do we need from the Government?
The newly-elected Labour administration is now more than three months into its tenure. And we know the to-do list of any incoming government is always vast. However, it is imperative within these priorities that there is a clear strategy to support employee mental health.
By Michael Hough, Mental Health Foundation on 01 October 2024
Regulating mental health and wellbeing: the current picture
Health and safety law contains detailed rules to regulate the safety of the workforce, across all workplaces, and for specific higher risk activities and industries. These are well enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which has been very successful in driving down the number of fatalities and injuries sustained at work in the UK. The same is not true when it comes to mental health and wellbeing.
By Katherine Metcalfe, Pinsent Masons on 01 October 2024
It’s time to ban artificial stone worktops over silicosis risk
If you are in the market for a new kitchen, you will come across engineered stone or ‘quartz’ worktops. Cheap, premium, luxury are words that will be thrown around photos and videos lingering on expanses of shiny, multicoloured stone. But not in Australia, where since July new engineered stone worktops have been banned (although some states allow a six-month transition period).
By Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle on 01 September 2024
Asbestos risk management: why the UK is falling short
Assessments of background asbestos levels in UK buildings may be providing employers with a false sense of reassurance. The UK also looks set to fall behind Europe in reducing the risks the substance poses to building occupants and workers.
By Colette Willoughby, Asbestos Compliance Limited on 01 September 2024
Will we be celebrating AI fifty years from now?
No doubt you have heard or seen the ads marking the 50th anniversary of that famous fast-food restaurant with the golden arches. Those of you who’ve been paying attention will also be aware that it’s the 50th year since the Health & Safety at Work Act was enacted in the UK. I am sure there is no significance in this. But when I started thinking about it, there are perhaps some parallels we can draw between the success of the aforementioned restaurant chain and the landmark 1974 Act.
By Mike Robinson FCA, British Safety Council on 01 September 2024
Silicosis – time to wake up
Clinicians at the Royal Brompton hospital in London have warned about the dangers of silica exposure in a recent study published in Thorax. They are currently treating the first identified cases of silicosis caused by working with engineered stone in the UK and have called for a ban on artificial stone to ward off the potential for an increase in silicosis cases.
By Jim Shannon MP on 01 September 2024
