How to report a health and safety concern in a workplace

Health and safety enforcement is split between local authorities ie Salford City Council and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Depending on the work activity, determines who the enforcing body is.

Premises dealt with by Salford City Council

The following types of premises are enforced by Salford City Council, this list is not exhaustive:

• offices (except government offices)
• shops
• hotels
• restaurants
• leisure premises
• nurseries and playgroups
• pubs and clubs
• museums (privately owned)
• places of worship
• sheltered accommodation and care homes

Premises dealt with by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

You should contact the HSE if your query relates to the following types of workplaces:

• factories
• farms
• building sites
• mines
• schools and colleges
• fairgrounds
• gas, electricity and water systems
• hospitals and nursing homes
• central and local government premises
• offshore installations

Example complaints

Part of our work involves investigating complaints from both employees and members of the public.

These might include complaints about:

• Safety (eg dangerous machinery, equipment, electrics, workplace hazards) that may cause accidents and injury
• Health (eg using hazardous chemicals, lifting and carrying, loud noise) that may cause ill health such as back problems or diseases
• Welfare (eg lack of toilets, washing facilities, temperature of workplaces)

What should I do if I observe a health and safety concern?

If you see something in a workplace, in Salford, that you think is breaking health and safety law and is likely to cause serious harm, you can report it. There are a number of people you should initially raise this with, you could:

• Speak to your manager or the person in charge of the workplace and explain the problem;
• Speak to your health and safety representative or union representative if you have one; and
• Speak to the Employers Medical Advisory Service (part of the Health and Safety Executive who can provide advice and information on health issues)

The HSE also provides a lot of health and safety information on their website covering the following subject areas:

• Asbestos
• Electrical Safety
• Falls from height
• Gas safety
• Legionella
• Manual handling
• Musculoskeletal (back pain)
• Noise at work
• Slips and trips
• Transport safety
• Violence at work

We recommend that you look at the HSE web pages to confirm that the matter you wish to report is an issue that requires our attention.

If you have done all of the above and have still not been able to address the health and safety matter, you can report the concern to Environmental Health, by completing the following form. All the information you provide is held in the strictest confidence. It will not be passed onto the employer or duty holder without your permission.

Report a health and safety concern

Once you have completed the form, the officer may wish to contact you to obtain further details.