Prioritising health and safety: A path to business success

When you think about your business priorities, health and safety probably isn’t at the top of the list – but it should be. Often dismissed as a necessary evil, health and safety is actually a critical driver of productivity, employee wellbeing, and long-term success. Ignoring it can result in costly mistakes, legal risks, and a disengaged workforce.

The business benefits of a safe workplace

Imagine a workplace where employees not only feel safe and supported but are also valued. The benefits of prioritising workplace safety extend far beyond compliance; they can drive exponential growth and a strong company culture.

With 20 years of experience in improving health and safety management systems for businesses, we have seen the transformative power of getting this right. Done well, it becomes a strategic asset that fuels resilience and innovation.

6 common health and safety mistakes businesses make (and how to fix them)

In this guide, we uncover the most common errors companies make when managing health and safety-and how to overcome them. Whether you're just starting or refining your strategy, avoiding these pitfalls will set your business on a path to a safer, more productive future.

1.   Separating health & safety from the core business objectives 

A frequent mistake we see is treating health and safety management as something separate from the day-to-day business.  This approach can lead to disengagement from employees, as they don’t perceive it as a priority for senior management.

Solution: Fully integrate health and safety into your business strategy. Make it part of leadership discussions and performance metrics to build a company-wide safety culture.

2.   Assigning responsibility to one person 

If health and safety responsibilities are assigned to a single individual, challenges are inevitable, with inconsistent practices and a lack of ownership across the business. Effective health and safety practices depend upon commitment from all levels of the organisation.

Solution: Share responsibility by assigning health and safety roles to team leaders and employees. Include it in job descriptions and encourage a collective commitment to maintaining a safe work environment.

3.   Having static safe systems of work 

This is quite simple - Nothing stays the same. Change is constant in any business environment. As they evolve, so do the risks. Therefore, your documentation and safety procedures must evolve alongside both business and industry changes.

If your risk assessments and procedures are only reviewed every few years, they will become outdated and ineffective at keeping workers safe. Documentation should serve as a fundamental guide to keep staff safe and healthy at work.

Solution: Regularly review and update safety documentation to reflect changes in operations, regulations, and best practices.

4.   Underreporting near misses 

Near misses are the gold dust in understanding health and safety performance, and failing to report and analyse them results in missed opportunities to prevent future accidents.

Solution: Encourage workers to report near misses and treat them as valuable insights. Use the data to spot trends and implement control measures to prevent future accidents effectively.

5.   Neglecting refresher training for employees 

Over time, employees may lose their skills, and their knowledge can fade, putting your workforce at risk.

Solution: Implement regular refresher training programmes for all staff that align with their roles and responsibilities. This should extend to employees taking on infrequent “stand-in” roles, ensuring everyone is updated on new procedures, equipment, legislative changes, and best practices.

6.   Failure to secure staff buy-in 

Successful health and safety management hinges on commitment from staff at all levels of the organisation. Without it, even the best safety systems fall flat. A lack of engagement can create resistance and lower compliance.

Companies with successful health and safety management systems prioritise building a positive health and safety culture first. This commitment, however, can be one of the most challenging hurdles for a business to overcome. You can read more about this here

Solution: Start by building a positive safety culture where staff feel involved and responsible. Once that culture is in place, implementing systems becomes much easier and more effective.

Where does your business stand?

How many of these health and safety mistakes are present in your business? If the answer is "more than one", don’t worry; you’re not alone. We help companies like yours every day to overcome these challenges and build systems that truly work.

The first step is understanding where you are now and where you want to go.

Ready to take the next step?

Our core values align safety in business by turning complex compliance into simple, actionable strategy. With 20 years of experience in creating simple and effective health and safety management systems across various industries, let us make safety simple, yet meaningful, for your business too.

To see if we're the right fit for you, find out more about us here

Schedule a free consultation, and let’s start your journey to a safer workplace together.

FAQs

Q: What is the importance of health and safety in the workplace?

Employers have a legal obligation to ensure the health and safety of their workers, which starts with risk mitigation - the legal requirement. Your employees put trust in you to be able to perform their work without fear of becoming ill, seriously injured, or worse - the moral requirement. It helps to reduce accidents, and it's good for your bottom line - the financial requirement.

Q: How often should businesses review their safety policies?

At least annually or whenever there are changes in operations, legislation, or best practice, which can be much more frequent.

Q: What is a near miss in health and safety?

A near miss is an event that did not cause harm, but had the potential to cause injury or ill health.