Annual Report and Accounts - Hemscott IR

H E A L T H A N D S A F E T Y R E P O R T
“Stay Safe
is not about
numbers, it’s
always about
people”
Innovations in Stay Safe during the year
We have introduced a number of Stay Safe innovations
in 2012:
• Our group transport team has introduced a number of
initiatives to improve HGV vehicle safety including:
• The introduction of bag nipping vehicle grabs on our
delivery lorries which removes the need to work at
height;
• The trialling of CCTV in lorry cabs which we believe
will have a positive impact on driver behaviour;
• The trialling of proximity sensors on vehicles to help
detect cyclists and more visible ‘yellow’ lorry wing
mirrors;
• Our ‘Full Stop’ initiative where all Supply Chain sites
stopped work for an hour at 3 a.m. and 3 p.m. on the
same day in August whilst members of the senior team
walked around the site, discussing hazards;
• Our Consumer division has introduced incident
simulations to learn what can be done to prevent
certain types of incidents;
•
Branch managers
are being issued
with a Stay Safe
wall planner aimed
at reminding them
of the key practical
things they should
be doing to maintain
a safe branch.
Supplier safety initiative
During the summer of 2012 we held our annual groupsuppliers’
conference. This year it focused on our Stay
Safe strategy in order to engage our suppliers in playing
a proactive and collaborative role in our
safety programmes. By making safety
integral to our commercial relationship,
our message to suppliers is that ‘Safe
Suppliers are the Best Suppliers’. A simple
but effective leaflet has also been produced
for issue to all suppliers to help them make
safe deliveries to our premises.
Looking ahead to 2013
We are encouraged that in 2012, 87% of our branches
were free from any reported lost time injuries. In 2013
we will encourage and recognise all such branches by
creating a new Stay Safe ‘high standard’ performance
measure, namely that of the ‘safe branch’.
To be identified as a safe branch at the end of the
year, that location has to satisfy three key criteria:
• No lost time injuries have been reported;
• Near miss incidents are being reported using our
on-line reporting system;
• The Group’s audit team has given its region a ‘green’
(i.e. good) audit score specifically for its safety
performance.
In 2013 we will:
• Continue our drive to win the hearts and minds of
colleagues, managers and business leaders in support
of our Stay Safe agenda;
• Recognise safe behaviour wherever and whenever it
occurs;
• Simplify and improve our systems and procedures
and make clear the outcomes of non compliance.
We are embarking on further research that will
explore the links between our colleague engagement
survey data, safety metrics and business performance
measures. We hope the findings will increase the focus
of our business leaders and managers on the additional
changes we need to adopt to deliver the improvements
and consistency in safety performance we seek.
Culture change and local empowerment approach
Expert
review
Organisation
cultural
Predictors
of accidents
Safety
culture
change
Organisation
focus –
systems
Embedding
safe behaviour
by aligning
‘systems’
to support
change
journey at a
local level
Safety
culture
change
Divisional
focus –
systems,
values,
beliefs, style
and staff
Specific
change
management
journeys
using ‘cultural
predictors’ at a
local level
We need to keep focusing on those areas which show
a strong link between organisational culture and injury
rates and where possible action further improvements.
With those in place, the resulting changes in behaviour
and culture will mean that our employees and
customers go home safely at the end of every day.
The business impact we are seeking will:
• I ncrease employee engagement, morale and
performance, and not only in those areas linked to
safety;
• Increase our safety performance and enhance our
reputation as a safe place to work, to buy from and to
supply;
• Reduce our long-term-injuries so we have fewer lost
working days, which will improve customer service.
Andrew Simon
Chairman, Plc Board Health & Safety Committee
Toolstation
Northampton
52