Workplace Specific Rules

The main regulations are the Workplace (Health and Safety) Regulations 1992, often referred to as the Workplace Regulations. These set the minimum legal standards to protect the health and safety of everyone in the workplace from risks relating to the facilities, conditions and environment in the work premises, and to ensure that adequate welfare measures are taken for people at work.

Other specific rules relating to workplace health and safety include:

• the Fire Precautions Act 1971,
• the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987,
• the Building Act 1984,
• the Building Regulations 1991,
• the Fire Precautions (Factories, Offices, Shops and Railway Premises) Order 1989,
• the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997 as amended 1999,
• the Fire Certificates (Special Premises) Regulations 1976, and
• the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996;
• legislation on specific hazards which may be present at a workplace, such as radon and other ionising radiations, noise, electricity, lead and asbestos.

The Need for Good Management

To ensure that legal obligations are met for health and safety risks associated with the workplace it may be necessary to strengthen your systems and procedures for monitoring risks, risk controls and health and safety arrangements. This is because developments in science, technology and management are continually increasing the level of knowledge about hazards and the state of the art for controlling risks.