Work at height

The Work at Height Regulations came into force on 6th April 2005. This was accompanied by the revocation of Regulations 6 to 8 and the associated Schedules of the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996, all of which deal with safe working at height.

This new legislation, which will apply to all industrial sectors, places duties on employers to;

• as far as possible avoid the need to work at height by doing jobs in other ways
• where such work cannot be avoided, select the most appropriate work equipment for the work
• ensure that work at height is properly planned and adequately supervised and carried out in a safe manner
• take appropriate measures to prevent falls when work must be carried out at height
• reduce the distance of and potential consequences of any fall that does occur
• ensure that the work is risk assessment based, and, that it is carried out safely
• ensure that people who have to work at height are competent to do so.

The height at which guard-rails and toe-boards are fitted to working platforms is now to be decided solely on the findings of a risk assessment. The previous ‘2 metre rule’ has not been brought forward into the new legislation.

There has been speculation in some sectors of the construction industry that the use of ladders is to be banned. This is not so but it is true that many falls from height are directly associated with the use of ladders.

Under the new regulations, where a ladder is selected as a means of access or place of work, a risk assessment must show that, given all of the circumstances, it is reasonable not to use other, safer equipment.