Health and Safety Policy for UK Charities Explained | LegalDocuments.co.uk

What this document is

A health and safety policy is a written statement of how a charity manages risks to the people involved in its work. Under current legislation, any employer with five or more employees must have their policy in writing, but most charities choose to document it regardless of size, partly because trustees remain accountable for safety decisions, and partly because volunteers, funders and insurers expect to see one.

A typical policy has three parts. First, a statement of intent signed by the trustees or chief executive, committing the charity to managing health and safety properly. Second, a section on responsibilities, who owns what, from the board down to individual team leaders.

Third, the practical arrangements: risk assessments, accident reporting, training, first aid, fire safety, lone working, safeguarding overlaps, and anything specific to the charity's activities. A charity running a youth club will need different arrangements to one delivering meals to older people at home, and the policy should reflect that reality rather than reading like a generic template.

How to use this document

1. Work out what your charity actually does. Before drafting anything, map out the activities your charity runs, fundraising events, service delivery, office work, driving, home visits, working with children or vulnerable adults. The hazards sitting behind each activity are what the policy needs to address, so this mapping exercise shapes everything that follows and stops you writing a document that looks impressive but misses the real risks.
2. Draft a clear statement of intent. This short opening section is signed by trustees or senior leadership and sets the tone. It should commit the charity to protecting people, complying with relevant law, and reviewing arrangements regularly. Keep it genuine rather than boilerplate, inspectors, insurers and incident investigators all read these statements, and a vague one suggests the rest of the policy may be equally thin.
3. Allocate responsibilities clearly. Trustees hold ultimate accountability, but day-to-day duties usually sit with a chief executive, operations lead or appointed health and safety officer. Volunteers and staff also have personal duties to follow safe practices. Write down who reviews risk assessments, who signs off training, who investigates incidents, and who reports to the board, so nothing falls between the gaps when someone is on leave or moves on.
4. Build risk assessment into how you work. Risk assessments are the engine of a health and safety policy, not an annual box-tick. Identify hazards, think about who could be harmed and how, decide what controls are reasonable, and record your conclusions. Revisit them when activities change, after near misses, and at sensible intervals. For charities working with vulnerable beneficiaries, these assessments often overlap with safeguarding and need joined-up thinking.
5. Set up reporting, review and training arrangements. Decide how accidents and near misses are reported internally, which incidents need reporting to external regulators, how findings feed back into practice, and how often the policy itself is reviewed, annually is a common rhythm. Cover induction and refresher training for staff and volunteers, first aid provision, fire arrangements and any activity-specific training, so the policy connects to real behaviour on the ground.

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