unit 27 p2

UNIT 27 P2

Describe the requirements for a healthy and safe workplace, as applied to the physical environment and equipment used, in a selected business

JCoSS must ensure their workplace is safe and secure to have staff working in it and students learning in it. In order to do this they have to follow a load of regulations to ensure the workplace is hazard free. Within the science department, there are around 8 teachers with the head of the facility being Mr Salbastein, and he is is in charge of looking after his department and dealing with any enquiries or problems they have. However, Mr Salbastein has to report to the health and safety team with any enquiries to the staffs health or safety within the science department.

Physical Environment 
Falling objects- No heavy equipment or equipment that can cause an injury is kept anywhere that it could potentially fall from this is too ensure that it doesn't hit anyone or cause an accident. The science department ensure any of the equipment that is kept above ground level, that is hazardous, are kept away in drawers or shelves which are secure and protected with glass doors however they are not high enough to fall and hurt anyone. The science department keep all the heavier pieces of equipment nearer to the ground to prevent falling objects. When the teachers or students place the equipment back in their places, they need to make sure they use careful consideration when stacking or moving them to prevent them from breaking or falling. Another way the science department secure equipment is by stacking them up against a wall in the classroom.

Hand tools- Equipment such as tweezers, are kept away in drawers in each classroom to ensure they are not in the way of anyone or just lying around waiting to cause an injury to anyone. When used, teachers in the science department supervise the students to ensure they are handling them correctly and safely and not harming themselves or others. When using hand tools, the science department teachers and students wear protective clothing to protect themselves as they can potentially cause severe damage.

Moving objects- The technicians use trolleys to transfer substances and chemicals between classrooms and the office, these can be a hazard because people can trip over them and fall and have an accident. The science department ensure they are kept at the front of the classroom away from where anyone needs to walk to avoid an accident. Another way in which the science department deal with moving objects is by filling out a risk assessment to consider all areas of the workplace where anyone can get hit. By doing this it helps to identify the risks that could happen and eliminate them before anyone gets harmed.

Sharp edges- These are a massive hazard in the science department because anyone could walk into them and get an injury. The science department ensure that every corner of every desk is not close enough to a wall in order for their to be enough room for someone to walk past without touching the edge of the desk. Also, JCoSS buy desks which have rounder edges on them rather than really pointy edges of the desks which are a huge danger, this means that they are less likely to injure someone however, there is no need for anyone to have to come into contact with a sharp edge because the science classrooms have been designed to make sure there is enough room to walk through without touching the edge of the table.

Trailing leads- These can cause students and teachers injuries because anyone could trip up them and cause a serious of injuries such as tripping over a lead then spilling a harmful liquid and this going in someones eye which can cause 3 serious and ever fatal accidents. The science department understand how important it is to keep long leads away from the floor to avoid people tripping over them. They also ensure they are tied up once used and kept located in a box at the front of the classroom where they should be returned to as soon as somebody uses them to ensure they are not being a risk to anyone. JCoSS make sure their students tie the leads up and keep them all tightly together at their place of work (their desks) before walking across the classroom to place them back in the box to not potentially cause a hazard whilst walking.

Damaged items- The science department provide specific bins for damaged pieces of equipment such as beakers or test tubes however, if a piece of equipment breaks or is damaged such as a bunsen burner or a plug socket, then this has to be immediately reported to the teacher and they have to fill out a risk assessment for the piece of equipment to record what broke to keep a record of it for health and safety and to replace the item. The science department make sure nobody walks near a damaged item or the area it is in to ensure no-one is harmed by it to prevent a person being harmed. The teacher will call a technician to come and clean up the damaged or broken item and remove it from the workplace to prevent an accident to someone.

Evacuation assembly areas- The science department ensure every student and teacher know exactly where to go in case of an emergency or a fire to prevent anyone getting hurt if one occurs. The teachers at JCoSS who teach in the science department are trained effectively in the event of an emergency and know the procedures such as using the emergency alarm glass and where to go to if the alarm goes off. JCoSS provide practice evacuations in order to get everyone prepared for a real one in case it happens and the teachers have to act professional and act as if it was the real thing in order to test how long it would take everyone to get out of the building and see if any hazards occur on the way out to eliminate them in time for the real one. In the science department their are various evacuation exit points to go out of, and in each classroom their is atlas two doors in which leads out to the outside of the school which leads you to the schools evacuation assembly point. They are also trained in how to deal with disabled students in case of an emergency and how to get them to evacuate.

Site building works- JCoSS occasionally have building work occurring on site and this could potentially be a risk to students and teachers. Although, JCoSS and the science department individually have ways in which they prevent hazards from happening. One is by completing risk assessments each time their is building work happening on site to spot all the risks and make sure they don't happen and to know how to deal with them if they do happen by any reason out of our reach. Hazards are also prevented by workers wearing protective clothing to protect themselves and staff and students. Gates and signs will be put up near to block off the specific area in which the building work is happening to protect people from entering a unsafe area. Risk assessments plus fixed assessments for building sites need to be completed to view what hazards could potentially happen and to think of ways in order to stop them from happening.

Off-site work- This is when staff work off side and they aren't working in the science department. When this happens, risk assessments need to be taken to assess any risks that could potentially happen before going to work off-site. The science department deal with any problems that could occur before going to work off-site to make it a safe environment to work in.

Organic infestation- Examples of organic infestations are things such as damage materials, contamination of food, infection hazards etc. The science department ensure organic pests such as foxes, ants, wasps, bees, cockroaches, houseflies and more don't cause harm to anyone in the science department by making sure all windows and doors are shut at the beginning and end of each lesson to ensure no pests can get in. If there were pests within the science department, it would show a lack of poor hygiene and health and safety procedures and this would look bad when ousted visit as they are not following health and safety regulations and keeping the school clean and a safe environment. The science teachers ensure safety regarding organic pests in their classrooms, because they have a duty to manage these organic pests and if they see any in the science department they are to report them immediately to a technician and they will deal with them as they could be poisonous and dangerous. Another way they deal with these pests are by covering any chemicals and substances that get brought into the classrooms so that they cannot get into them. Any spillages that occur in the science department and classrooms are to cleaned up efficiently to avoid any pests gathering round. These pests won't come into JCoSS, especially not the science department because they keep it clean and cover up any leaks and water damages to avoid pests. The science department put in traps for pests in the classrooms but they are kept away from reach so nobody can touch it,

Vermin infestation- These pests are known as fleas, mice, rats etc. If these pests got into the science department they could cause serious damage to people or if they touch substances and chemicals, this is a serious issue. The science department prevent these pests coming in by keeping a clean and hygienic environment by cleaning the classroom throughly, including the sinks cleaned every morning and afternoon and hoovering the rooms. They also avoid having these pests in the department by locking the doors and windows frequently to avoid them escaping in. These pests should be avoided at all costs because they can cause a lot of damage, not just to people but to equipment, electrical supplies, water supplies etc.  However, if any of these vermin pests do come into contact with the science department and any classroom, the teacher has to report it so that the health and safety team can then get infestation specialists in to deal with it efficiently.

Dampness and mould- This is prevented in the science department by cleaning the classrooms and offices every day using special cleaning products and hoovering to keep it clean. Also, by cleaning out the bins frequently help to reduce the risk of getting mould in the science department. The science department do not keep a messy and wet equipment such as paper towels in the sink to create dampness because this is unhygienic therefore JCoSS avoid dampness and mould in the science department. Another way the science department ensure dampness and mould doesn't occur is by having good ventilation as windows and doors get opened so mould doesn't encounter in a stuffy room because air gets into the room often. If there is dampness and mould, this will affect people because it can cause allergies and heighten peoples asthma as well as cold like flu symptoms and respiratory problems.

Chemicals- These are a big part of the science department because they use a lot of hazardous chemicals and substances in their lessons therefore this could cause a lot of issues but JCoSS's science department makes sure no dangerous occurrences happen. They do this by the storing the chemicals suitably in the technicians room, out of reach from any student or staff so they cannot play around with it as they do not know the dangers of each chemical. They also ensure staff know how to take delivery of harmful substances and know how to separate the different chemicals from one another. JCoSS have trained their staff to be able to prevent leakages with a set of regulations when handling substances however, if a spillage does occur they know how to handle it and what protective clothing to wear in order to protect themselves such as a face mask, gloves, boots etc. The staff know how to dispose of the substances correctly which is another way they ensure a healthy workplace in the science department. All the flammable materials in the science department are kept away from the heat such as the radiator and bunsen burners to prevent them from catching on fire.

Hygiene facilities- JCoSS's science department ensure they have a hygienic and exceptionally clean workplace for everyone otherwise complications will happen such as people getting diseases etc. In the science department they keep sinks located in every classroom at the front of every desk and along the side of the classrooms with soap and sanitisers next to them, which are easy to access, there are toilets located very close to the science department with soap in them. They have both cold and hot water to suit both needs with hand towels and hand driers to ensure it is a hygienic department and nobody gets ill. They cater for women and men along with disabled people as there are separate toilets for them which includes stuff like handles and within all the toilets they have individual cubicle locks for privacy which is compulsory.

Noise and atmospheric pollution-

Temperature and ventilation-

Equipment
Safety guards-

Warning signs and sound signals-

Maintenance frequency-

Protective clothing-

Accessible emergency exits-

Fire extinguishers and sprinkler systems-