Background
Health and safety in schools is governed by health and safety legislation and associated regulations that are enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This article aims to identify the key issues associated with health and safety in schools, providing links to further, more detailed, articles and resources.

Responsibilities
In community schools, community special schools and voluntary-controlled schools statutory health and safety responsibilities fall on the local authority (as the employer) and on the headteacher and staff (as employees). The governing body, as the management body, should ensure that school staff and premises comply with the local authority's (LA's) health and safety policy and practices. The governing body, having control of the premises, must take reasonable steps to make sure that the buildings, equipment and materials are safe and do not put the health of persons at risk while they are on the premises.

In foundation schools, foundation special schools and voluntary-aided schools, statutory health and safety responsibilities fall on the governing body (as the employer) and on the headteacher and staff (as employees).

In practice the employer may delegate specific health and safety tasks to others at the school.  However the employer retains the ultimate responsibility no matter who carries out the task.

Employees have a responsibility to make sure that they carry out their duties safely without risking themselves, the pupils or visitors. They must also cooperate with others who have duties for health and safety by carrying out instructions and reporting unsafe practices. The headteacher, who has delegated responsibility for the day-to-day management of the school, has a particular role in seeing that the governing body's health and safety policies and procedures are carried out.

Roles and actions
Whether they are the employer or not, the governing body plays an important part in ensuring the overall health and safety of staff, pupils and visitors at the school. This is a broad remit and governing bodies should give consideration to a range of topics relating to heath and safety including (but not necessarily limited to):

• Accidents and incidents
  • Under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR), 1995, some accidents must be reported to the HSE and a record of any reportable injury, disease or dangerous occurrence must be kept. In addition, injuries caused by physical violence against a person at work must be reported to HSE.
  • Under the Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1979 there is a requirement for employers with 10 or more employees to keep readily accessible accident records.
  • It is important that schools have arrangements for recording and reporting to the police and LA incidents of crime and loss where appropriate.
    
• Asbestos
  Specific legislation applies to control of asbestos at work. See link to the legislation in 'Further reading' below.
  
• Child protection
  The governing body is required to have child-protection procedures. See the GovernorNet article on child protection for more details.
  
• Educational visits
  Governors will need to be aware of DCSF's good-practice guidance on educational visits and the Adventure Activities Licensing Regulations 1996. See the GovernorNet article on educational visits for more details.
  
• First aid
  The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981 set out the requirements for first-aid provision. The level of provision will depend on the assessment of need undertaken at the school.
  
• Health and safety policy
  The employer has a duty under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 to institute a health and safety policy and advise employees of it. In addition, the Department recommends that governing bodies that are not the employer work with staff to make sure there are procedures for carrying out the LA's policy and may wish to draw up a policy which identifies additional features specific to the school.
  
• Pupil health
  This may include a range of issues such as support for children with medical needs, policies on water consumption by children, eczema and others. See the GovernorNet article on pupil health for more information.
  
• Risk assessments
  The employer has a duty under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 to assess the risks of all activities, both in school and off-site and to introduce measures to manage those risks and tell employees about the measures.
  
• School coaches and mini-buses
  Certain special regulations and considerations relate to the use of school coaches and mini-buses.
  
• School meals and nutritional standards
  Where a school has a budgetary element for school meals delegated to them, the duty lies with the governing body to ensure that any lunches provided meet with the minimum requirements set out in the Education Nutritional Standards for School Lunches (England) Regulations 2000 (SI 2000/1777).
  
• School security
  Governing bodies have a statutory requirement to include school security in their annual report. The LA should have an overall policy for security but the governing body is likely to need to draw up its own more detailed policy.
  
• Training
  The employer has a duty under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 to ensure that staff are trained in their health and safety responsibilities.
  
• Trespassers and access without permission
  Under the Occupiers Liability Act 1984, a school has a duty to trespassers (and to anyone entering the premises without permission but with lawful authority) to take reasonable precautions to make sure they are not injured by some danger which the school knows about.
  
• Use of force to control or restrain pupils
  See guidance below.

Guidance
Summary guidance on health, safety and welfare can be found in Chapter 15 of the Guide to the law for school governors (see 'Background reading' below). Detailed guidance is available on child protection, educational visits, fire safety, first aid, school meals and nutritional standards, school security and use of force to control or restrain pupils by following the links to the GovernorNet articles on these topics in the 'Background reading' section below. Guidance on the following topics is available from the 'Web links' section below:

• Accidents and incidents
  HSE provide specific guidance to schools on reporting accidents. See link to HSE RIDDOR guidance below.
  
• ICT
  The Becta website contains advice on internet safety, as well as guidance on developing a whole-school internet safety policies.
  
• Risk assessment
  The HSE provides general guidance on risk assessment via their risk assessment publications page – see link to HSE guidance on risk assessment below. Specific guidance to schools on risk assessment in school laboratories is also available from HSE – see the link to HSE laboratory guide below. 
  
• School coaches and mini-buses  

Good practice
Examples of good practice, where available, can be found in the GovernorNet articles on individual topics – see 'Background reading' below.

The law
A range of legislation applies that can be accessed via the 'Further reading' section below:

• Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002 (SI2002/2675)
• Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
• Reporting of Injuries, Disease and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995
• Adventure Activities Licensing Regulations 1996, (SI 1996/772)
• Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981