Are you and your team trained to do the job at hand?

Name: Cornish Mutual
Address: Cornish Mutual Assurance Co Ltd, Newham Rd, Truro, Cornwall, TR1 2SU, GB
Telephone: 01872 277151

You and everyone who works for you needs to know how to work safely and without putting themselves at risk. This includes contractors and the self-employed working on your farm. Adequate information and training are essential parts of an employers’ health & safety obligations and should be part of your farm health & safety policy.

Cornish Mutual Health & Safety Advisor Matt Hewer reminds us what is expected of employers when it comes to training staff.

As an employer, you must give those working for you:

clear instructions and information
adequate training and supervision

All training and information must be easy to understand. Everyone working for you should know what they are expected to do.

Instructions and information

Everyone must have the right level of information on:

hazards - things that could cause them harm
risks - the chances of that harm occurring
measures in place to deal with those hazards and risks
how to follow emergency procedures

Training and supervision

Health and safety training should take place during working hours and must be free of charge for employees. It can include a mixture of formal training and informal training. External trainers are required for certain specialist tasks, but other training can be done effectively in-house.

For example, telehandler training needs to be delivered by a qualified instructor resulting in a recognised qualification. Whereas, explaining how to operate a cattle crush safely can be done by a suitably competent and experienced member of your team.

Pay particular attention to those with increased or new training needs, such as:

new recruits
people changing jobs or taking on extra responsibilities
young employees, as they are especially vulnerable to accidents
health & safety representatives within the team

All staff will need extra training if you buy new equipment or your working practices change. Also ask those being trained if the training is relevant and effective.

Training records

Keep training records as evidence you have provided your workers with suitable and sufficient training to perform their tasks. They also help you establish if/when refresher training is required.

For further advice on any Health & Safety issues, please contact the Cornish Mutual Risk Management Team on 01872 277151.