7 Important Steps to an Effective Health and Safety Audit by SafetyWallet

A SafetyWallet Health and Safety Compliance Audit may not be a legal obligation, but it is highly recommended that each company despite their industry, sector, size or nature of business conduct health and safety audits frequently and always keep the 7 steps to have an effective health and safety audit in mind. 

What is a Health and Safety Audit? Whereas a lot of businesses rely on internal audits to check their compliance, and others use various external auditors, there are numerous businesses who have begun to rely on the services and solutions that SafetyWallet offers to ensure that they are fully compliant.

The OHS Audit conducted by SafetyWallet involves an in-depth process where the subscribers Health and Safety programme is thoroughly examined. There is also a lot of focus on identifying and effectively managing occupational health and safety in the workplace.

SafetyWallet offers the subscriber with a structure path that they can follow towards continuous improvement in achieving and maintaining Health and Safety Compliance.

During the SafetyWallet Health and Safety Audit, the appointed auditor will review all elements contained in the Health and Safety Programme of the subscriber. It will be weighed against the requirements of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, Regulations, and other applicable legislation, National Standards, by-laws, and SafetyWallet audit protocol.

To ensure the effectiveness where the implementation of such arrangements is concerned, the SafetyWallet auditor will inspect the premises and proceed to sample operational activities.

Employers can also expect that the SafetyWallet auditor will interview key personnel. During these interviews, the aspects of occupational health and safety which is relevant to their roles and responsibilities will be discussed in confidentiality.

When the audit is done, the SafetyWallet auditor will present the health and safety audit report to the employers’ management team. In the report, the strengths as well as areas for improvement will be highlighted in the health and safety programme of the organisation.

Employers can also expect that that there will be observations and recommendations included in the report along with action planning, for consideration.

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Why it is important to use a SafetyWallet auditor to conduct your audit

To ensure that the Health and Safety Audit is conducted effectively, it is imperative to ensure that a trained and experienced auditor is appointed. SafetyWallet provides its subscribers with qualified and professional auditors to conduct Health and Safety audits.

In addition, it is also imperative to ensure that the audit conducted is done effectively. Not only must areas for improvement be identified, but there must be control measures identified and implemented. This is to ensure that there is actual improvement, and that this can be monitored and measured for effectiveness.

It is also necessary to ensure that the audit process, from start to finish, runs smoothly and that steps are followed accordingly.

The steps which are contained in an effective health and safety audit include:

1. Audit planning – which involves the selection of an audit team, the audit scope, and the identification of target areas for the audit.
2. Audit execution – which involves conducting the audit as planned both in reviewing documentation and interviewing people as well as inspecting the workplace.
3. Compiling the audit report – which must consist of audit findings, areas of compliance, areas where there are deviations, and recommended actions.
4. Setting corrective actions and process improvements in motion – which involves applying any control measures which were identified and monitoring their effectiveness.
5. Communication of results – to ensure that consistent improvement is ensured, and that compliance can be achieved, it is necessary to ensure that the entire workforce have a transparent understanding of the audit, results, and the status of safety.

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7 Steps involved in conducting an effective Health and Safety Audit through SafetyWallet

1.   Subscribe to SafetyWallet and become a subscriber

This can be done by visiting the SafetyWallet  website and signing up from the homepage.

Once this is done, the subscriber can select their SafetyWallet subscription according to the size of the organisation. These include:

• EssentialsPlan - 1 to 10 employees.
• StandardGuard – 11 to 20 employees.
• ProShield – 21 to 50 employees,
• EliteSafe – 51 to 100 employees,
• EnterpriseSecure –  300 or more employees. and
• ExpertGuidance - any number of employees

2.   Calculate your Audit Fee

Once the subscriber has signed up, they can proceed to calculate their audit fee by making use of the Compliance Audit Cost Calculator (this can be done before subscribing too).

subscribers should bear in mind that, in joining SafetyWallet, there is an array of rewards and discounts they will qualify for from the moment that their subscription begins.

Subscription reward status is based on several factors. subscribers obtain a SafetyWallet reward, discount reward on their annual audit of 80%, where the subscriber merely pays the 20%. There are also further rewards based on the annual Health and Safety Compliance audit conducted by SafetyWallet.

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3.   Book your Health and Safety Audit Online

Once the subscriber has calculated their audit fees and they have viewed their subscription monthly fees and rewards, the subscriber can proceed to book their Health and Safety Audit online through the SafetyWallet subscription online shopping basket.

4.   Set up your SafetyWallet Health and Safety Audit

With the audit booked, the subscriber can rest assured that SafetyWallet offers the audit team which will help to navigate OHS risk management principles.

The audit team will work to identify strengths, pinpoint weaknesses, and highlight any opportunities where everyday health and safety risk management can be improved.

5.   Conduct a detailed Health and Safety Compliance audit

Through the help of SafetyWallet and the provision of a qualified and professional audit team, the audit can be conducted effectively and efficiently.

Here, the in-depth examination into the member’s health and safety programme will highlight areas of improvement, identify areas where there is adequate compliance, and help the member understand their level of compliance.

6.   Finalise the Health and Safety Compliance Audit

Once the audit is done, the subscriber will be presented with the SafetyWallet auditor’s findings as well as recommendations, possible control measures which can be implemented, and a detailed action plan with solution.

7.   Provide detailed feedback on the current compliance of the OHS programme

The subscriber will have a clear understanding of their compliance and what they need to do to improve it efficiently. In addition, the subscriber will have all the health and safety tools necessary to ensure that their compliance can be enhanced and improved.

Subscriber can also use the feedback to communicate it through the entire organisation to ensure that all employees know the status of their health and safety, what they can do to improve, and how.

In addition, once the Health and Sfety Audit has been concluded, and when found compliant, the subscriber is provided with a Compliance Certificate which is valid for one year.