29/12/2010 - Web tool for shops to assess risks
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has developed a demonstration online risk assessment tool that can be used by employers in low-risk shops.
The tool will allow retailers to produce a tailored risk assessment by identifying the key hazards in their shops and thinking about how these can be controlled.
The web tool, developed in response to Lord Young's suggestion that low-risk workplaces are spared unnecessary paperwork and bureaucracy, helps "take the mystery out of risk assessments", the HSE said.
These assessments will be taken into account by local authority inspectors as proof that the retailers have dealt with the risks in their shops.
The HSE wants to ensure that it is a helpful, easy-to-use tool, and is seeking responses on the same until March 2011.
Judith Hackitt, Chair of HSE, said: "Shop managers are best placed to identify what happens in their premises and we want to enable them to have confidence to say that they have dealt with the risks that do exist.
"It will save time and effort and help to focus their efforts on any real issues which need to be addressed."
Copyright © Press Association 2010
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