Civil Engineering Project Management (4th Edition)

10
Health and safety regulations
10.1 Legal framework
The law relating to health and safety has evolved on two fronts: by statute and
through the common law. Until the Health and Safety at Work Etc. Act 1974 was
enacted, there was no real framework to the law on health and safety in the UK.
Previous legislation consisted of prescriptive rules which employers were
required to follow. Lord Robens was instrumental in the development of health
and safety law and his report of 1972 formed the basis for the Act. The Robens
approach was to establish ‘goals’ rather than rules within a legal framework
that required employers, for instance, to ensure the health, safety and welfare of
their employees at work. Subordinate legislation which followed the 1974 Act
was designed on similar principles, however not all modern legislation is written
in this way and some sets absolute standards to be followed, for example,
use of explosives in demolition.
The 1974 Act is the principal UK legislation concerning health and safety
and it is under this Act that the majority of health and safety regulations are
empowered.
10.2 The Construction (Design and Management)
Regulations 1994
The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 1994 (SI 1994/3140) –
known generally as ‘the CDM Regulations’ – came into full effect on 1 January
1996. They implement EC Directive 92/57/EEC which set out minimum
safety and health requirements at temporary or mobile construction sites. The
regulations brought major changes to construction health and safety, explicitly
bringing clients and designers into the process for the first time. The aim is to