Health and safety at work

Whether you are an employer or employee, find out how the council can help you improve your health and safety at work.

The council provides a Health and Safety service which carries out regular checks on offices, shops, warehouses, leisure centres, and other non-industrial premises.

The Health and Safety Executive works with factories and other industrial operations to ensure that safe and healthy working conditions exist for all employees, whether they be self-employed or members of the public visiting these premises.

Inspections

Inspections are carried out on a routine basis, without prior notification and high risk premises are visited more frequently to insure maximum safety.

During an inspection, Environmental Health Officers will need to be satisfied that any possible hazards to a worker’s health, safety and welfare, arising as a result of work has been identified and controlled.

The quality and performance of the structural and environmental conditions are regularly checked to ensure that the plant equipment is safe.

If work conditions do not meet required standards, every attempt will be made to resolve the matter informally. However, if the danger posed leads to serious personal injury, then the matter will resort to formal action.

This could involve either the service of a legal notice, prosecution, or in situations where serious personal injury could arise, a prohibition notice requiring immediate action.

Complaints

Complaints about working conditions are always looked into and confidentiality is assured. Matters are usually resolved by giving advice to the employer, but as with accident investigation, if formal action is needed then this will be taken.

Health and Safety Accident Investigation

The department also investigates dangerous occurrences and accidents at work. If a thorough breach of requirements is identified as the main reason for an accident, then formal action will be taken.

If, as a result of a work related accident, an employee wishes to pursue a compensation claim, their legal advisor may wish to obtain a factual statement from us.

Further information & contact us

Health and Safety can be contacted as follows:
E-mail: healthandsafety@towerhamlets.gov.uk
Phone: 020 7364 5008
Fax: 020 7364 6901

London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Health & Safety Team
Mulberry Place (AH)
PO Box 55739
5 Clove Cresent
London
E14 1BY

Pid No: 408, 411, 421