I work in the food recycling sector and notice that our local council (in England) has introduced new food waste collections; what do I need to consider from a health and safety point of view?

The introduction of mandatory weekly food waste collections introduces some additional risks, although these are perhaps already well understood and managed through your existing controls. Separate food waste streams can increase exposure to bacteria, moulds, bioaerosols and pests which in turn increase the potential for zoonotic disease transmission and creating additional hygiene challenges at waste storage locations.

However, appropriate hygiene arrangements, container management, pest control, worker training and suitable PPE, can help to effectively control these risks. 

Waste and resource management will continue to evolve due to regulatory expectations and the growth of circular economy practices that focus on reuse, recycling and resource recovery. As organisations handle new materials and technologies – see also lithium-ion batteries or electronic waste – they face emerging risks including fire, hazardous substances, process safety and human-machine interaction. 

The key challenge is to ensure that environmental and commercial benefits are achieved without compromising the safety of your workers, contractors or the general public.

We have had a couple of near misses at work recently and I want to revamp our health and safety training. What is the best way to go about this? Where do I start? 

There are plenty of excellent training programmes and providers available. But there is no ‘one size fits all’ view of employee training. Rather, organisations should consider what the real safety needs of their workforce are, not just what the previous policy looks like.

Near misses can be viewed as an opportunity to revisit your company’s safety culture. Workers look to leaders not just for basic training, signage and direction, but for signals: what’s tolerated, what’s encouraged, and what’s rewarded

Winning hearts and minds – and, ultimately, improving your safety culture – requires authenticity through actions and words. Bear in mind that recent near misses may have had an impact on employee morales, so I would encourage you to also address how psychologically safe your team feels: do your people feel safe to speak up, report risks and suggest improvements?

By implementing these principles, you can create a positive safety culture where employees are actively involved in maintaining a safe and healthy work environment. 

I am worried about the air quality in our warehouse. How can I get my senior management team to take this issue seriously? 

It’s hard to give a full answer to your query without knowing a bit more about the warehouse you mention and the work you do. But your senior managers would do well to prioritise this issue.

The biggest and most overlooked workplace health risks are hidden, but their impact is not. Hidden workplace hazards, such as the poor air quality you are concerned about, can have life-changing consequences for your workers. 

For example, silica exposure is one of the most significant, yet least understood, occupational health risks facing workers today. Thousands of workers are exposed to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) dust every day while carrying out routine work.

Similarly, asbestos was widely used in UK construction until its use was banned in 1999 yet remains the leading cause of work-related deaths in the UK. It may still be present in buildings that were constructed or refurbished before 2000 and routine maintenance, repair, or renovation work can potentially release harmful fibres into the air. Exposure to these fibres can cause mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer that is almost exclusively linked to asbestos exposure and for which symptoms often do not appear until many years after exposure. 

You should remain cautious about air quality at work, emphasise early intervention, effective risk management, and practical action, and do all you can to prevent harm before it occurs