RoSPA Press Office : Press Release

January 25, 2008
HEALTH AND SAFETY IS WINNER IN LOCAL GROUPS’ SUCCESS

Local groups that play a vital part in securing safe and healthy working in businesses throughout the UK have been honoured at a national awards ceremony.

Occupational health and safety groups from Swansea & West Wales, Birmingham, Northern Ireland, Suffolk & North Essex and Lea & Ouse Valleys went to the House of Lords to collect the top prizes for their valuable work.

Around 80 groups represented by Safety Groups UK provide a series of forums for communicating health and safety information nationwide and offer help to employers, particularly small businesses. They are a long established part of the country’s health and safety system.

The Alan Butler Memorial Awards for Excellence, sponsored for the last 12 years by BT, aim to recognise and highlight best practice among leading groups.

Judith Hackitt, Chair of the Health and Safety Commission, presented winners with their certificates at the House of Lords yesterday (Thursday, January 24).

Award winners were: best overall programme - Swansea & West Wales, with Isle of Wight highly commended; best support for HSE priority topics – Birmingham, with Swansea & West Wales and SHEF (Scotland) highly commended; best seminar/workshop - Northern Ireland and Suffolk & North Essex (joint winners), with Birmingham, Bradford and South Cumbria highly commended; and best communication - Lea & Ouse Valleys, with Bradford highly commended. The winning prize for each category was £300.

Roger Bibbings, RoSPA Occupational Safety Adviser and Secretary of Safety Groups UK, said: “The award winners really do show what can be achieved by local groups.

“Group members are volunteers, most of whom have busy day jobs, but they are really committed to reaching out in their communities to raise awareness of the need for safe and healthy working. They help to demystify what otherwise can appear a very confusing and bureaucratic subject. They deserve our thanks and greater recognition.”

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents supports Safety Groups UK, provides its secretariat and hosts its website www.safetygroupsuk.org.uk . Local contacts can be found on the website.