Uxbridge College joined forces with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to support its Shattered Lives campaign which aims to reduce slips, trips and falls in the workplace by showing how simple steps learnt in training can make a big difference.
Slips, trips and falls caused 92 major injuries to employees in Hillingdon last year. These latest statistics also show that 305 people in the area had to take more than three days off work due to an injury caused by these incidents.
Students from Uxbridge College demonstrated the small steps they take to ensure that slips, trips and falls are prevented, when HSE Inspector Bill Hazleton visited the Hayes Community Campus.
The students on the NVQ in Catering and Hospitality courses at Levels 1, 2 and 3 are responsible for running the training kitchen which is open to the public for lunches and gourmet evenings. Training in health and safety is a key part of their course. Each day they mop up spills, move food deliveries out of the path of workers, keep floors and corridors clear, lift items safely, ensure equipment and machinery is used and stored in the right way, and tell others if they spot anything out of place. They also ensure members of the public being served food are safe.
Bill Hazleton, HSE Principal Inspector for London, said: "These figures highlight the very real and serious nature of preventable slip, trip and fall incidents in the workplace. Slips, trips and falls might sound funny but they shatter the lives of thousands of British workers every year.
"These students have shown that making improvements don't need to cost the earth and we are encouraging people to visit the Shattered Lives site, where they will be able to get simple and cost effective solutions to help manage slips, trips and falls hazards in their workplace."
James Orford, Section Manager in Catering and Hospitality at Uxbridge College said: "Excellent health and safety standards are critical in the running of any successful business and particularly in the catering sector. We are delighted that Uxbridge College is being recognised by the HSE as teaching its students health and safety best practice to take forward in their careers."
* For practical advice and guidance on avoiding slips, trips and falls see www.hse.gov.uk/shatteredlives.