Jade Training and Development Ltd
How Many First Aiders Does Your Business Need?
It's difficult, as a business owner, to know how many First Aid Trained staff you need in your workplace, but a great place to start would be to carry out a First Aid Needs Assessment.
The Health and Safety Executive, the UK government body responsible for the monitoring and enforcement of Health and Safety in the workplace, says:
"There are no hard and fast rules on how many trained first aiders you should have. It depends on the nature of your work and its location."
Which, on the face of it, does not seem too helpful in determining our needs.
However, they later go on to state:
"HSE cannot tell you what provision you should make for first aid. You, as an employer, are best placed to understand the exact nature of your workplace and decide what you need to provide.
First aid provision must be 'adequate and appropriate in the circumstances'. This means that you must provide sufficient first aid equipment (first aid kit), facilities and personnel at all times.
In order to decide what provision you need to make you should undertake a first-aid needs assessment. This assessment should consider the circumstances of your workplace, workforce and the hazards and risks that may be present. The findings will help you decide what first-aid arrangements you need to put in place."
Under the Health and Safety Regulations (First Aid) 1981, they also state:
"Where the first-aid assessment identifies a need for people to be available for rendering first aid, the employer should ensure that they are provided in sufficient numbers and at appropriate locations to enable first aid to be administered without delay should the occasion arise. Where 25 or more people are employed, even in low-hazard environments, at least one such person should be provided."
So, with the last paragraph in mind, Jade would suggest at least one First Aider per 25 staff members on duty. You must also take into account sickness and leave requirements. If you only have one First Aid Trained staff member, and they are off ill, or on holiday, you would be left without a First Aider on duty.
The HSE have published a handy guidance PDF, which is available to download HERE. This includes a handy printable First Aid Needs Assessment sheet to help you work out what it is that you need to do.
Once you have completed your First Aid Needs Assessment, you'll need to provide training for your staff. That's where we come in. Click the button bellow to book one of our available open courses, or alternatively click the Contact button to arrange for one of our excellent First Aid Instructors to come to your business to carry out in house training for your convenience. We hope that this article was helpful and we look forward to hearing from you.