Next stop Scotland

The 2013 Health & Safety regional events continue with Health & Safety
Scotland, which will offer Scottish industries direct access to the highest
quality of independent safety information right on their doorstep

Health & Safety Scotland takes
place at the SECC, Glasgow on
the 17-18 April 2013. The
second in this year’s series of regional
events, it provides visitors with a free
conference programme, organised in
conjunction with the British Safety
Council, live panel debates, an
exhibition with many of the best known
companies in the sector participating,
and a host of networking opportunities.

The conference programme covers a wide
range of the most relevant topics affecting
Scottish industries today and is delivered
by some of the most respected experts.

Opening the conference is Neal Stone,
director of policy and communications at
the British Safety Council, who will
address the topic of ‘The Löfstedt Reforms
of Health and Safety: So Far so Good?’. As
the reforms to implement the Löfstedt
report’s findings gather pace, concerns
have been voiced about the capacity of
organisations to stay abreast of the mass
of changes which will require a
fundamental review of company health
and safety policies, strategies and systems.

Neal Stone will give an overview of the
changes implemented to date and survey
what’s up and coming following the
Löfstedt report.

“We’ve been listening to our members
and what we hear is that in order for
employers to play their part in the
planned reforms, time and space is
needed to make the changes to their own
health and safety strategies, policies and
systems,” Stone said. “People responsible
for managing health and safety need to get
their heads around the reforms and be
able to understand what they need to do
or what is expected of them in order to
implement these changes.”
Another focus which will be highlighted
in the presentation will be the HSE Fee for
Intervention Scheme (FFI) and looking at
how it’s being implemented since its
launch on the 1st October last year. “The
first invoices for the scheme were due in
the second week of January, so it will be of
great value to speak to the visitors at the
Health & Safety Scotland event and see
how this major change has impacted on
them,” Stone added.

Summary of legal updates Looking at the latest legal updates will be
Laura Cameron, partner and head of the
regulatory group at Pinsent Masons. Her
seminar is aimed at all health and safety
professionals including senior managers
and directors, and will look at the legal
developments which have affected the
health and safety industry in Scotland
over the past 12 months. The presentation
will focus on topics such as corporate
manslaughter, and what we have learned
from the recent cases; the HSE Fee for
Intervention Scheme and finally, the
prosecution of individuals for health and
safety offences.

Insight into offshore
challenges Discussing the offshore sector and how
the lifestyle of an individual can have an
impact on their safety performance will be
Susan Elston, vice president operations
excellence, global offshore & marine, at
Sodexo Remote Services. This
presentation is aimed at all health and
safety and HR professionals and will give
an overview of how an offshore worker’s
lifestyle (at home and at work) can impact
their safety performance and what can be
done to address and overcome these key
challenges.

The seminar will also discuss the
problems that living and working in a
remote location can cause and how
employers can make significant
improvements by recognising the
challenges and initiating actions. Elston
said: “Quality of life plays an important
role in the progress of individuals and the
performance of organisations. For
example, offshore workers spend a lot of
time away from home, this can sometimes
put a strain on them, and as well as this,
their level of activity and diet also changes
which can have an impact on their
performance. So with this seminar I’m
hoping to provide some suggestions on
different ways a worker can overcome
these challenges and how best to deal with
them.”

Health & safety in electricity Doug Wilson, UK director of general
services and health and safety at Scottish
Power, will focus on the electricity sector’s
health and safety strategy, in his
presentation ‘Powering Improvement’.

Aimed at business leaders, industry
leaders, senior managers and directors,
the talk will explain the electricity
industry’s approach to developing its
health and safety strategy and how it has
worked with the HSE, unions and
employees to make this happen.

“I’m looking to outline the advantages
of the electricity sector’s strategy, as well as
to focus on the themes picked out, why we
and also to distinguish what we have
achieved with the strategy so far,” Wilson
said. “Considering that this is a five year
plan it will be interesting to explore how it
has been adopted and see the results it has
achieved and what we will look to achieve
in the remaining time period.”

Practical learning & live panels As well as the British Safety Council
conference programme there are other,
more practical, seminars taking place
across the two days. Visitors will be able
to see vendors and event partners such as
3M host practical seminars. 3M has two
seminars, the first focuses on ‘PPE
Compatibility’ and the challenges faced
when multiple items of PPE are worn.

The second addresses ‘The Science of Fit’:
evaluating the interaction between people
and PPE products and ways to improve
design, fit, comfort and productivity.

Something new and exciting for this
year’s Health & Safety Scotland is the
“Safety Dialogue’ live panel which will be
held on both days of the event. The panel
offers visitors the opportunity to engage
with live debates surrounding the most
significant issues of the day, and this year
the panel of experts will focus on the
issues surrounding Respiratory Protective
Equipment (RPE) and specifically, face fit
testing for masks.

At the event there will also be a
substantial exhibition where the leading
product and service providers in the
health and safety sector are exhibiting and
will be available to offer advice on the
latest technology and business practices.

Health & Safety Scotland is supported
by the British Safety Council and Safety
Groups UK. 3M Safety Solutions is the
lead sponsor for Health & Safety Scotland
in 2013, and the event is also officially
endorsed by the International Institute of
Risk & Safety Management (IIRSM).

Health & Safety Scotland is free to enter,
but it is strongly recommended that
visitors register in advance to facilitate
speed of entry and for guaranteed seminar
places as these are extremely popular.

To register online visit:
www.healthandsafetyevents.co.uk or call
the event hotline on the telephone
number below.