5 Things You Must Do For Safe Business Premises

If you’re starting a physical business, something you’re going to need to take very seriously is the safety of your business premises. Keeping your business premises safe is essential if you want to keep your business going (and reputation in tact), as well as protect yourself and your employees. It is not something that should be taken lightly. Below, you’ll find 5 things you must do to help with this:

1. Know Your Legal Obligations 

The Health and Safety at Work Act specifies that you as an employer, ‘as far as is reasonably practical’, must ensure the welfare of your employees. You need to do this through things like:

• Ensuring the maintenance and safe usage of equipment
• Having a sufficient health and safety policy in place
• Providing adequate staff training
• Ensuring safe usage of chemicals and other hazardous substances

This may depend on what sort of business you have, but you must know your legal obligations like the back of your hand. 

1. Getting Public Liability Insurance

Employer’s liability insurance and sufficient health and safety provisions are legal requirements, but public liability insurance is not. However, you should really see this as compulsory if you’re going to be dealing with the members of the public on your premises at all. If you don’t have it and something happens, the financial risks to your business will be too great! 

If you don’t get this kind of insurance, and say, a member of the public slips over on your mopped floor, your business alone is directly responsible for any legal, medical, and compensation costs from the action they choose to take. This could even be the end of your business, so getting this in place early on is crucial. 

1. Health and Safety Requirements

Making sure you stay in keeping with health and safety requirements is also essential. These requirements state that your business premises must be well-maintained, minimise air-borne contamination, provide enough work space per person, protect against dirt, and more. 

Taking regular risk assessments will ensure you’re always compliant with health and safety requirements. Something as simple as installing walkway canopy systems could not only make your business premises look better aesthetically, but help to keep it maintained too. Investing more at the start will help you later on down the line. 

1. Gas Safe Safety Certificate from Gas Safe Engineer

Having a gas safe certificate from somebody who is a gas safe engineer is imperative. There are different guidelines depending on what sort of business you run, but equipment may need to be tested yearly to ensure it is safe. 

1. Get Human Resources In Place 

A happy workforce is crucial if you’re going to create a solid business and an atmosphere that makes a difference. Your processes will run smoothly when you get human resources in place, as you’ll have policies that cover every aspect, such as maternity matters and sick pay. You need to know exactly what your business will do should any situation arise. When you have these fair practices in place, your staff will have peace of mind.