Health and Safety

The Parish of St Helen, Berrick Salome, Diocese of Oxford

Health and Safety Policy (including Lone Working)

Introduction

As a church, we understand that we owe a duty of care to ensure the safety of those who visit or use our church or churchyard. We are aware that we have to meet the requirements of health and safety law as described at www.hse.gov.uk. However, as a small church with no employees and a comparatively low-risk environment, we are not required to have a formal written policy. This document therefore provides an outline of how we manage health and safety and the safety checks that we make. It should be read in conjunction with our Safeguarding Policy, which addresses our approach to the broader aspects of maintaining a safe environment and culture within our church.

General Statement of Policy

Our policy is to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that our activities are carried out safely and do not pose a risk to the health of our volunteers, congregation, visitors and others who may use the church or churchyard. This will be in accordance with good practice and any relevant statutory provisions where they apply.

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) accepts its overall responsibility for this. We will ensure that adequate resources are made available to achieve this objective, and that any decisions we make will have due regard for it.

We will appoint a member of the PCC to have specific responsibility for this policy and its implementation. We will keep health and safety matters as a standing agenda item on our regular PCC meetings to enable us to monitor the effectiveness of the policy, amending it where we believe it is no longer valid.

It is the duty of each employee and volunteer to exercise personal responsibility for their own safety and that of others, including when they are working alone on our premises or on church business. This policy will be brought to their attention. We will endeavour to ensure that everyone involved with the church plays his or her part in its implementation.

Further detail about our organisation and arrangements for managing health and safety is set out in this document. A copy of it will be kept in the church porch and on the church website and made available to others on request. 

Please note

The Health and Safety Policy attached below is in draft format and is due to be reviewed and approved at our next PCC meeting.