Preparing for changes to the world of work and risk

In a fast changing world of work, keeping up with key changes is more important than ever and the free-to-attend Health & Safety Event, which is co-located alongside The Fire Safety Event, The Facilities Event and MACH 2018, promises to bring visitors right up-to-date.

Thanks to its constantly evolving educational programme including innovative features, industry-leading speakers and ample CPD opportunities as well as an exhibition featuring over 130 exhibitors, The Health & Safety Event has become an essential fixture in the health and safety community’s diary.

As Catalyst Housing's health and safety manager explains: “The Health & Safety Event provides a year’s worth of CPD in three days...outstanding seminars, better than ExCeL.”     

Talking about why he attends every year, Health & Safety Made Easy's health & safety advisor said: “I use this event to catch up with new suppliers and arrange to meet them there to view their products prior to purchase. I also make new contacts. The subject I wanted to research this year was lone working. I was able to check out four various approaches, the one I least expected came up top when visiting the stands.”

First time visitors are quickly converted to returning visitors, as the health and safety controller at Pecan Deluxe Candy (Europe) Ltd explains: “As a first time visitor in 2017 I found attending the event most worthwhile with an eclectic range of exhibitors exhibiting in a relaxed and easily navigated environment with ample refreshment facilities within the hall. I will definitely be returning next year.”

Educational programme

As well as covering essential legal and regulatory updates this year’s event explores some of the biggest questions currently facing the profession in the educational programme organised by the show’s Educational Partner, the British Safety Council, who is a trusted leader in health, safety and environmental management.

Focus on the future of work and risk

There is no doubt that we are living through fundamental and potentially disruptive change to how we live and work; with many tasks now being automated; modern communication technologies dissolving the work/home divide and new materials like nanotechnology presenting new risks. Health & safety managers are being increasingly called upon to help businesses to navigate these changes. 

While there is yet no roadmap to follow, the British Safety Council is leading the conversation about what the potential nature of these risks might look like and how health & safety managers can prepare, which will be covered in A Good Day at Work - the future of work and risk taking place on Thursday 12th April. 

The seminar follows the publication of a report commissioned by the BSC written by Robertson Cooper “Future risk: Impact of work on employee health, safety and wellbeing,” which has been designed to encourage conversation and action around the future of risk.

Louise Ward, policy, standards and communications director at the BSC, explains: “Practitioners are going to be at the centre of supporting businesses through a significant change in the way that work is conducted and the way that people interface with work. The principle of the report is to help practitioners understand some of the key areas of risk and benefits and to empower them to go and have some really effective conversations in their businesses about how they can prepare their workforce for the changing world of work.” 

Against the backdrop of the launch of the 'Future of risk' report and the associated seminar, preparing for change is a central theme for this year’s event and features strongly throughout the educational programme, highlights of which include: 

Legal update

As ever there will be an essential update on the latest case law from Chris Green, a partner at the law firm Weightmans, in Case Law Update on Tuesday 10th April. This session will review recent health and safety prosecutions and consider how these might affect key legal principles in application of regulations and definition of sentencing guidelines. This is an opportunity to find out more about important legal developments that could affect the approach to health and safety management in your business.

Preparing for ISO45001

Preparing for ISO45001 being delivered by Dave Parr, head of audit and technical, BSC on Tuesday 10th April will bring visitors up-to-date on the new ISO45001 standard. Published in March 2018, it has been designed to improve occupational health and safety management around the world. ISO45001 is intended for use by any organisation, regardless of its size or the nature of its work. It represents a step change in approach and those certified to OHSAS18001 have a limited time to transition if they want to maintain certification to the new standard. This session will explore the new standard highlighting the differences, focusing on new requirements and providing guidance. Attendees will be able to hear from an expert on ISO45001 and get an understanding of the key requirements and advice on how to approach transition in your business.

HSE update 

The Changing Face of Regulation, being delivered by David Snowball, director of regulation at the HSE on Wednesday 11th April will be another essential session for any visitors interested in how the health and safety landscape is changing and how regulation is keeping up. As the nature of work changes so does the nature of risk. This session will examine how regulation might need to change in the future in order to remain effective and proportionate whilst also maintaining world class health and safety performance. David Snowball is responsible for ensuring that HSE regulatory practice is modern, effective and relevant and he has been with the HSE since he joined the regulator as a factory inspector in 1984. Snowball has a reputation for delivering hard hitting seminars so this will no doubt be an insightful and popular session.  

Challenges in modern manufacturing

The manufacturing industry is going through a period of significant change with automation, nanotechnology and changing work patterns all playing a part. Pinsent Masons and the British Safety Council will be launching a new thought leadership paper featuring expert opinion on a number of the issues affecting the manufacturing sector now and in the future. This session will examine some of the key themes arising from the document.

This session on Wednesday 11th April is an opportunity to interact with experts to explore current and future issues and opportunities for the manufacturing sector and consider how these might affect people in your business.

Time to thrive?

On Tuesday 10th April visitors will also be able to explore the role of nutrition in workplace safety in Thriving!, delivered by Mark Davies of 7Futures. There is a body of evidence to show that poor nutrition and overuse of caffeine and sugar can affect attention and coordination sufficiently to impact on safety as well as long term health. Employers have started turning to the world of elite sport to learn how the principles of effective nutrition can be applied in the workplace for significant gain and visitors will be able to get some expert insight into a critical aspect of this important issue and pick up some tips that they might apply in their own organisation to help drive positive change.

Establishing an engagement culture

There has been much discussion about building a positive health and safety culture and adopting the principles of behavioural safety, but leading organisations are now moving towards an engagement culture. This session will review how this builds on work already done and the benefits that it can bring to an organisation.

On Wednesday 11th April visitors will be able to hear about this new concept directly from an expert. Build your knowledge and obtain some advice that you can take back to help drive positive change in your own organisation.

Tackling tough issues

Two very important sessions will take place on Thursday 12th April. Firstly Keith Scott, director of residents safety at Camden Council, will be delivering Residents Safety – Lessons from Grenfell Tower. Following the horrific fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017 Camden Council have decided to make a step change in their approach to the safety of residents. Their new director of residents safety will discuss the work that they are doing and how they are engaging with other local authorities and housing authorities to drive a national conversation about this important subject.

Get an update on findings of key reviews launched following the Grenfell fire and learn what you can do to help drive a national conversation about the safety of residents in multi-occupied buildings.

In the afternoon of Thursday 12th April, law firm Pinsent Masons will be examining When the Worst Happens – Managing a Fatal Accident and Dealing with an Inquest. Thankfully most organisations will never have to deal with a fatality or a major incident. However if the worst does happen then it’s really important to ensure that you have a process in place to manage the situation effectively. 

Attendees at this session will be able to get advice from specialist legal experts to help shape a plan that will allow you to manage a serious incident effectively should you ever need to do so.

Join the debate

Once again for 2018 visitors will be able to 'Join the Debate' and contribute directly to discussing the topic of the day in the Safety Dialogue Theatre. Visitors will be able to share experiences with their peers and network with a panel of recognised authorities on each topic. Panels of experts will take part in interactive question and answer sessions with the audience on a number of pertinent health and safety topics such as working at height, working in confined spaces and training and competence, amongst others. This initiative is actively supported and sponsored by 3M through their expertise in many areas of health and safety.

Safer logistics 

The Safer Logistics seminar and feature area returns for a fourth year and promises a wealth of education and advice tackling safety hot spots in warehousing and logistics. The Safer Logistics Seminar Programme will provide invaluable presentations from a line-up of industry-leading organisations including The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport (CILT), The Fork Lift Truck Association (FLTA), The Health & Safety Laboratory (HSL), and RTITB.

The campaign, which is sponsored by A-Safe and Toyota Material Handling UK, is led by HSM's sister publication Handling & Storing Solutions (HSS) Magazine and seeks to build awareness on safety issues, recognising that safety culture is the key consideration. The campaign highlights the risks, the dangers, best practice and above all promotes a can-do attitude to safety.

Brand new awards programme

The BSIF Awards 2018 will once again be judged live as part of the Health and Safety Event where visitors will be able to hear from the shortlisted BSIF Safety Awards nominees for the prestigious Product Innovation Awards in exciting Dragon’s Den style sessions. 

However new for 2018 the winners will be exclusively revealed at a gala dinner hosted by Rory Bremner at the prestigious VOX Conference Centre at the NEC Birmingham on 11 April 2018 as part of the brand new Safety & Health Excellence Awards 2018 which recognise outstanding achievements in health, safety, wellbeing, fire safety and security.

More than 350 industry professionals will be present at the awards evening, which will feature a VIP drinks reception, three-course meal, magicians, charity casino, live band and a comedy set from host Rory Bremner. Tickets are now on sale and cost £199+VAT per person - see www.she-awards.co.uk for more. 

Extensive exhibition space

The Health & Safety Event also features an extensive exhibition space where visitors can learn about new technologies and services and meet technical experts from leading manufacturers and organisations in the health and safety industry including 3M, MSA Safety, IOSH, NEBSOH, NQA and many more.     

Lone worker conference

The Lone Worker Theatre, which has been developed in association with and will be hosted by the organisers of the Lone Worker Safety Expo, will complement The Health & Safety Event 2018’s key theme of preparing for the future of risk. Addressing some of the most pertinent issues affecting the management of lone workers in today’s fast changing world of work, the programme will provide valuable information for anyone involved in lone working including managers, safety professionals and lone workers themselves.

Nicole Vazquez, the organiser of the Lone Worker Theatre education programme, commented: "We want to ensure that we offer an educational programme that reflects the variety of risks associated with lone working and that many organisations have to manage. All our speakers bring a depth of knowledge of their subject that is second-to-none. We are excited to be able to bring focus to this important issue for the first time at The Health and Safety Event”.

Throughout the three days of the event there will be interactive sessions and panel debates, starting on the first day with experts from organisations such as the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, SoloProtect and Blackline Safety discussing how to integrate technology with existing practices to achieve practical and effective solutions. Organisations often struggle with assimilating technology into existing protocols and yet this is a vital step to help keep staff safe. There will also be several key lone worker specialists exhibiting at the show including Skyguard, Alertcom, First2HelpYou, Blackline Safety, Lone Worker Solutions, Lone Alert and SoloProtect.

Height safety expertise

The Access Industry Forum (AIF) – the forum representing the leading trade associations and federations involved in work at height – will also be exhibiting at The Health & Safety Event for 2018. Each member organisation represents a different work at height specialisation ranging from ladders, towers and scaffolding to MEWPs, fall arrest safety nets and PPE and includes: ATLAS, BSIF, EPF, FASET, IPAF, IRATA, Ladder Association, NASC, PASMA, SAEMA, WAHSA. All eleven organisations will be offering advice and information on the latest national and international work at height standards, best practice guidance, height safety techniques, training and technology. The latest AIF PocketCard will also be available free to visitors. 

Co-locations

The Health & Safety Event shares its location with three other exhibitions – MACH 2018, The Facilities Event and The Fire Safety Event –  all of which represent related industries which enable visitors to maximise the value of their visit to the NEC. 

MACH 2018 is the showcase for advanced engineering and manufacturing; and The Facilities Event delivers a powerful combination of senior decision makers and purchase influencers from across the UK's industrial, commercial and public sector.

The Fire Safety Event is an independent event dedicated to supporting the UK’s fire and safety industry which features education, networking and business support designed to help organisations maintain the very highest standards of fire safety management. The fire safety exhibition boasts 40 leading manufacturers including Advanced, Klaxon, C-Tec, Checkmate Fire, BT Redcare, Kingspan, Bosch, Patol, Apollo, EMS, FireClass, Fike and many more.

The event is being backed by a number of key associations in the fire sector including the Institution of Fire Engineers, Rail Industry Fire Association, Association for Specialist Fire Protection, British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association, Institute of Fire Safety Managers, Association of Insurance Surveyors and the National Association of Healthcare Fire Officers, Independent Fire Engineering and Distributors Association, BAFE and SSIAB who have agreed to exhibit and speak at the event.

Tim Else, event director at Western Business Exhibitions, which organises the series of shows, said: “The Health & Safety Event is a vital source of information and networking for those people trying to navigate the health & safety challenges of an evolving workplace. This is why we are welcoming an ever growing number of visitors through our doors and the show is becoming a must-attend event for anyone responsible for running a safe, healthy and efficient workplace. In 2018 we look forward to welcoming back our regular visitors and if you have never been to the show before we encourage you to come along. Our superb team of exhibitors and hosts will make you feel very welcome and endeavour to ensure that it is an extremely valuable use of your time.”   

The event is free to enter and registration is now open at https://www.healthandsafetyevents.co.uk