February 2013 HS Committee Minutes

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Health and Safety Unit

LIVERPOOL JOHN MOORES UNIVERSITYHEALTH AND SAFETY COMMITTEE

Minutes of a meeting held at 2pm on Wednesday 6th February 2013, in the PilkingtonBoardroom, Egerton Court.

Present: Ms Alison M Wild Chair Mr Alastair Balchin UCU Health and Safety RepresentativeMs Dawn Fantin Health and Safety Coordinator, Commercial and

InternationalMr John Gillin Manager, Safety and Health Services

Mr Nigel Green Health and Safety Coordinator, FinanceMs Anne Hogarth Health and Safety Coordinator, Arts, Professional and

Social StudiesMr Sean Holdsworth Health and Safety AdviserMr Eric McEvoy Health and Safety Coordinator, Science; Technology

and EnvironmentMr Ed Naylor Health and Safety Coordinator, Student ExperienceMr Billy Roberts GMB Health and Safety RepresentativeMr Ian Thorold Buildings Manager, Liverpool Students UnionMr Ian Webster Health and Safety Coordinator, Estate Management

In attendance: Mrs Paula Quirk Secretary

HS 01/13 APOLOGIES

NOTED: That apologies were received from Colin Davies, Peter Hinton, Moira Helbert,Joy Bate, Carol Swaisland, Sharon Schofield, Lorraine Buchan, Track Dinningand Andy Evans.

HS 02/13 MINUTES OF LAST MEETING

NOTED: That the minutes of the last meeting, held on Tuesday 18 th September 2012,were accepted as a true record.

HS 03/13 MATTERS ARISING NOT SHOWN ELSEWHERE ON THE AGENDA

Smoking signage

NOTED: That Estate Management have ordered additional signage for buildingentrances and will install them upon delivery.

Item closed.

Smoking shelters

NOTED: That John Gillin presented a report to the Strategy Management Team (SMT).SMT agreed not to provide smoking shelters and for the impact additionalsignage has on smokers congregating around building entrances to bemonitored for twelve months. SMT also agreed that Estate Management

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would relocate the designated smoking area at the front of James ParsonsBuilding, Byrom Street.

AGREED: That there will be consultation with the Deans of Science and Technology andEnvironment about the relocation of the smoking area.

ACTION: Ian Webster (Estate Management)

Stress risk assessments

NOTED: That it has been proposed to remove the confidential surveys from the stressrisk assessment process, as an interim measure, in order to expediteprogress of the undertaking of the assessments.

That, if possible, the process would be completed by Graduation week 2013.

AGREED: That members of the Stress Risk Assessment Steering Group will meet

informally on 6th

March 2013 to agree the means by which this can be bestachieved. A full meeting of the Stress Risk Assessment Steering Group willthen be convened to consider recommendations.

ACTION: John Gillin (Health and Safety Unit), Alastair Balchin (UCU), MoiraHelbert (Unison), Billy Roberts (GMB).

After hours arrangements

NOTED: That John Gillin and Colin Davies developed a report template for completionby Health and Safety Coordinators. Completed report templates for tenbuildings were received by John Gillin.

That SCP11 Out of Hours Working is the relevant Code of Practice.

That, further to a review of the reports received, the following conclusionswere drawn:

- Work is commonplace before 9am- Work is commonplace after 5pm- There are examples of 24/7 working e.g. Planning and Information (JMU

Tower)- There may be requirements for contractors to attend 24/7- There are peak periods of activity requiring extended working hours e.g.

clearing, lead up to open days, enrolment, assessments, and financialyear end

- There are activities at the weekend e.g. Planning and Information,Accommodation Office (during Clearing and Move-in), Open Days e.g.those held in ADA, Redmonds and Byrom Street

- Lone working is generally avoided- Activities are inconsistently risk assessed- There is no guarantee that First Aiders will be available out of hours- There is no guarantee that Fire Wardens will be available and PEEPs

arrangements can fail in LRCs

That, as an example, timetabling out of hours lectures on ground floors ofbuildings has proved successful.

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AGREED: That SCP11 Out of Hours Working will be reviewed and revised, asnecessary, to ensure that it is sufficiently robust to incorporate the above risksand issues.

ACTION: John Gillin (Health and Safety Unit)

Risk assessment audits

NOTED: That Sean Holdsworth has completed the risk assessment audits, but forother operational reasons has not yet completed all the draft reports.

AGREED: The remainder of the draft reports will be issued to Health and SafetyCoordinators by close of business on 15 th February 2013 prior to the issue offinal reports, which will also be received by SMT members.

ACTION: Sean Holdsworth (Health and Safety Unit)

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) audits

NOTED: That, due to several areas not having completed audit forms, LorraineBuchan has been unable to conclude the audits.

AGREED: That the audit has coincided with a particularly busy time for the Faculty. Theoutstanding completed audit forms from the Faculty of Science will beprovided by the 30th April 2013.

ACTION: Eric McEvoy, Faculty of Science

That future audits will be planned, as far as possible, to take place outside of

semesters.

Item closed.

Emergency Plans

NOTED: That there has been good progress in the completion of Emergency Plans forLJMU buildings. A small number of Emergency Plans (four) remainoutstanding. These have been in buildings where there have been no FireEvacuation Coordinators or they have only been appointed recently. LorraineBuchan is providing advice and assistance to complete the remainingEmergency Plans.

AGREED: That the outstanding Emergency Plans will be completed before the nextmeeting of the Health and Safety Committee.

ACTION: Lorraine Buchan, Health and Safety Unit

SCP1 Fire Precautions (teaching room capacities)

NOTED: That Estate Management are in the process of consulting with Timetabling togather data on room capacities.

That room capacities are not currently displayed outside all teaching rooms.

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AGREED: That Estate Management will display the room capacities upon conclusion oftheir consultation with Timetabling.

ACTION: Colin Davies (Estate Management)

That the process to ensure that class sizes allocated to teaching rooms doesnot exceed the room capacities will be reviewed, where necessary.

ACTION: John Gillin, Health and Safety Unit and Alastair Balchin, UCU.

Fire Crier, Byrom Street

NOTED: That the speakers have been restored on the Fire Crier system at ByromStreet and it is working effectively.

Item closed.

HS 04.13 APPROVAL OF CODES OF PRACTICE PREVIOUSLY CONSULTEDUPON

Approval of SCP19 Permits for Contractors

NOTED: That the contents of the Code of Practice have been rearranged for greaterclarity. Consultation has taken place with Estate Management.

That new Permits to Work are likely to be developed and added to theAppendices in the future.

That consultation has commenced with Estate Management on Access

Permits.

AGREED: That the Committee approved SCP19 Permits for Contractors.

Item closed.

Approval of SCP25 Lone Working

NOTED: That the Code of Practice has been separated into staff and studentssections. Additional text has been included in regard to the process forreferring staff to the Occupational Health Unit via the use of a functionalquestionnaire. The new Appendix consists of the functional questionnaire,

referral letter and consent form.

AGREED: That the Committee approved SCP25 Lone Working.

Item closed.

In respect of all active items (see Action Point Control Register) there will bea concerted effort to close off the items reported today as near to completion.

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HS 05.13 DISCUSSION ITEMS

Responsibility for provision of staff and budget to print off assignmentsif requested under SCP20 Display Screen Equipment

NOTED: That confirmation may be required of SCP20 Display Screen Equipment,when this is consistent with the Code, to assure academic staff that theirrequests to print off assignments will be met.

AGREED: That Schools will be reminded that they are responsible for ensuring thatresources are available for printing off assignments, where necessary.

ACTION: Health and Safety Coordinators (Faculties)

HS 06.13 INFORMATION ITEMS

Reportable accident: Outdoor Education

NOTED: That there was an accident involving two students on 5 th November 2012during a climbing skills day for Level 5 students in Castle Naze, Chapel-en-le-Frith.

That, whilst standing close to the edge of the crag, a student pulled on his firstplaced anchor which unexpectedly and suddenly came out of the crack in therock where it had been placed. He overbalanced and fell onto his belaypartner 20ft below. One student received a back injury and the other facialinjuries.

That an immediate emergency response was delivered by the supervising

Lecturer. Buxton Mountain Rescue and an RAF helicopter were involved inthe subsequent rescue operation. Both students were hospitalised.

That the accident was reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Inaddition to the investigation undertaken by John Gillin, the Health and SafetyExecutive carried out their own enquiries.

That there were positive findings in regard to the following aspects of JohnGillins investigation:

- Level of difficulty commensurate with experience- Appropriate personal protective equipment

- Competent and appropriate supervision- Sufficient information and instruction- Adequate documented arrangements for the storage, inspection and

maintenance of equipment- Plans for effective emergency response- Effective subsequent welfare arrangements for students and staff affected

That HSE confirmed that they will not take any action against the University.They found no weaknesses in the management of the activity andcommended the Health and Safety Unit for the thoroughness of theinvestigation and resultant detailed report;

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AGREED: That confirmation that the above are equally effective, in other programmes,will be sought within the Faculties.

ACTION: Health and Safety Coordinators (Faculties)

Asbestos Management Plan update

NOTED: That Estate Management secured contingency funding to act on theremaining removal/encapsulation recommendations. This work wascompleted on 6th November 2012.

That further removals/encapsulation recommendations have since beenidentified by AEC following subsequent surveys of the Engineering Workshop(following water damage) and lift doors in Tithebarn Street. EstateManagement will obtain costings for these. Further removals will be promptedby refurbishment programmes, in line with existing policy.

That surveys to monitor ACMs left in position took place in December 2012 inthe following buildings:

- 4-6 Rodney Street- Aquinas- Haigh Building- John Foster Building- 68 Hope Street- Dean Walters- Industrial Chemical Laboratory- Tithebarn Street- Barkhill and Mossley

That discussions will take place with AEC in order to plan re-inspections ofByrom Street andJMU Tower.That AEC were appointed to project manage and provide analytical servicesfor all removals. This will ensure the Asbestos Register on the Asure systemis updated by AEC. Training of the Asure building record compliance systemwas complemented with follow up training by the Health and Safety Unit on aone to one basis with Estate Management staff.

That Sean Holdsworth contacted AEC in January 2013 to agree the contentand structure of asbestos awareness training for Estate Management staff.

That Estate Management will write to contractors requesting confirmation thattheir staff have received asbestos awareness training.

That, as part of the re-inspections, AEC have started to label ACMs. A safeworking procedure is being developed for maintenance on fire doors.

That Ian Webster thanked the Health and Safety Unit, and in particular SeanHoldsworth, for the assistance provided in regard to asbestos management.

Item closed.

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Statutory health surveillance

NOTED: That, at the previous meeting of the Health and Safety Committee, Health andSafety Coordinators were asked to begin preparing lists of workers at risk forthe following workplace hazards: vibration, noise, asthmagens and latex(powdered gloves) for purposes of health surveillance. The lists shouldinclude full name and staff or student number as their unique identifiers (incompliance with the Data Protection Act).

AGREED: That brief guidance will be provided to Health and Safety Coordinators.

ACTION: John Gillin, Health and Safety Unit

That the lists will be provided to John Gillin, by the end of the February 2013,so that they can be passed to the Occupational Health Unit to commencehealth surveillance in March 2013.

ACTION: Health and Safety Coordinators

Functional health questionnaires (with reference to SCP14 Fieldwork,Visits, Expeditions and Adventurous Activities off University Premises)

NOTED: That Dr Wilson met with Health and Safety Coordinators and otherrepresentatives from Faculties and Services in November 2012. In thatmeeting he explained the use of functional questionnaires, referrals andconsent.

That the Occupational Health Unit continues to receive enquiries about theuse of the functional questionnaires from a small number of academics. For

purposes of clarification, the process may be summarised as follows:

- a risk assessment should be undertaken for the fieldwork or similaractivity

- if the risk assessment indicates that it is high risk, a functionalquestionnaire, included with the Code of Practice, is to be distributed tothose taking part

- if a person indicates on the questionnaire that he/she has any problemswith the ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities, or has anyimpairment or condition which causes sudden loss of consciousness, orany impairment or condition which causes sudden loss of balance, or anyimpairment with which additional help my be needed during fieldwork a

referral to the Occupational Health Unit is required- a referral letter and consent form are also included with the Code of

Practice

AGREED: That a flowchart will be included in SCP14 Fieldwork, Visits, Expeditions andAdventurous Activities off University Premises in order to simplify the processof risk assessment, functional declaration and Occupational Health referral.

That coaching and support will continue to be provided to staff who require it.

ACTION: Emily Moncrief (Occupational Health Unit)

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Report from Manager, Safety and Health Services

NOTED: That the Codes of Practice, approved at the previous meeting of the Healthand Safety Committee, were uploaded onto the Health and Safety Unitwebsite along with several other Codes of Practice with minor amendments.

That MCP1 Organisation for the Implementation of the Health and SafetyPolicy was reviewed and revised and will be taken to SMT for approval. Afurther revision of MCP5 Incident Management was circulated to the IncidentManagement Team for consultation.

That SMT agreed that portable appliance testing with the exception ofspecialist laboratory equipment will become the responsibility of EstateManagement.

That procedures were developed in response to the changes made byMerseyside Fire and Rescue Service in regard to their response to automatic

fire alarm activations. Additional responsibilities that may be required to meetthe changes are currently being evaluated by Human Resources.

That problems were experienced with the online adverse event reportingsystem. At present accidents can be reported on a Word version of the reportform until the problem is remedied or an alternative solution found.

That investigations into accidents that occurred at the Tithebarn/Avril RobartsLRC entrance barriers and an investigation into the leak from chemicalstorage cabinet at Byrom Street were concluded.

That the Consultant Occupational Physician, Dr Nigel Wilson, will be leaving

LJMU on 31st March. Arrangements for interim and longer term provision areprogressing well. Dr Wilsons significant contribution to the improvements inthe service provided by the Occupational Health Unit is acknowledged,particularly in the area of clinical governance.

Item closed.

Reports from Health and Safety Coordinators

Arts, Professional and Social Studies

NOTED: That Ian Webster is aware that access to the assembly area requires

improvement and this will be fed into the costings for works associated withthe fire risk assessment for the building.

Item closed.

Education, Community and Leisure

NOTED: That a written report was received.

Item closed.

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Health and Applied Social Sciences


Item closed.

Science, Technology and Environment

NOTED: That staff in the James Parsons Building have been issued with keys toenable them to open more fully the windows to be used in the event of anincident similar to the chemical spillage incident which happened on the 27 th

November 2012.

Item closed.

Finance

NOTED: That the Kingsway House Fire Assembly point has been moved for reasonsof pedestrian safety and improving communication with the evacuation team.

Item closed.

Estate Management


Item closed.

Planning and Information


Item closed.

Academic Enhancement, Research and Regional Engagement


Item closed.

Student Experience


Item closed.

University Secretary and Deputy Chief Executive; Office of the Vice-Chancellor


Item closed.

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Marketing, Commercial and International


Item closed.

HS 07/13 ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Confirmation of Health and Safety Committee terms of reference

NOTED: That the Committee agreed that its terms of reference and membershiparrangements are fit for purpose and meet the requirements of health andsafety consultation legislation.

AGREED: That MCP3 Health and Safety Committee will be reviewed, again, forapproval at the September 2013 meeting of the Committee, to accommodateany changes of terminology or responsibility arising from the new minimal

committee structure.

HS 08/13 DATE OF NEXT MEETING

NOTED: That the next meeting will be held on Wednesday 24 th April 2013 at 2pm inthe Pilkington Boardroom, Egerton Court.

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Documents

February 2013 HS Committee Minutes