A new course designed by IOSH to make workplace health and safety training fun is proving a big success with employees across the UK.
The course — launched at London Zoo in November — is already meeting its aims, with workers particularly enjoying its animated visuals and hazard spotting board games. Paul Luker, safety manager — operations for Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd has used the course: “Delegates thoroughly enjoyed the games, which set them at ease, prompted engagement and injected some humour. It’s something health and safety can always use, and it enhanced the learning environment.”
Steve Ogden, of Cotswold Safety Training Limited, said: “The various exercises help to create interest in the subject matter and have made it much easier for me to stress to employees the importance of working safely as a matter of routine. Giving statistics on how many people die from work related activities is also thought-provoking for delegates.”
Tony Cheesman, of West Anglia Training Association, said: “The course level was just right for beginners”” while Fiona Bissmire, of Aberdeen Skills and Enterprise Training, said: “The interactive activities had sparked real debate among delegates.”
The course, which has been commended to employers by the TUC, provides tips and advice for employees in shops, offices and factories as well as for people who work outdoors. It meets the government’s guidelines for introductory health and safety training, as well as fulfilling the requirements of the Health and Safety Executive’s national ‘passport’ syllabus.
The ‘Working safely’ course demystifies risk assessment and covers all the danger areas such as work traffic, fire, chemicals, electricity, physical and verbal abuse, bullying, stress, noise, slips and trips, falls and manual handling.
Tracey Wright of IOSH, who helped design the one-day course, said: “By removing the legal and technical jargon and putting the fun into learning we have come up with a course which will make people more aware of the risks and thereby reduce the number of workplace accidents. I am delighted ‘Working safely’ has been so well received by employees, employers and trainers.”
Click www.iosh.co.uk/enjoylearning to try out ‘Working safely’ for yourself or call the training team on 0116 257 3165 to talk through your training needs.
