Grounds maintenance health and safety policy

It’s easy to forget about grounds maintenance employees, but their work can be really hazardous. Our Grounds Maintenance Health and Safety Policy will help you to manage these activities.

How to use the policy

Obviously, not all grounds maintenance staff have exactly the same job description. Some could be working from ladders, spraying pesticides and using chainsaws, whilst others might only cut the grass. Our Grounds Maintenance Health and Safety Policy tries to cover all the possible activities, so you’ll need to tailor it to your own needs.

What’s included

The policy is split into nine sections. The first couple set out the general statement of policy and the legal requirements that apply. Section 3 describes all the hazards which might be encountered - we’ve tried to cover all the bases but if your staff do anything really unusual, you might need to add to the list. This section explains that risk assessments will be undertaken to minimise these risks. Section 4 covers work equipment. It focuses on the arrangements for maintenance of equipment but also describes pre-use checks and providing manufacturers’ safety information. Section 5 is the PPE section where you can set out the types of PPE which have been selected for use by grounds maintenance employees. We suggest that the detail about the way in which PPE is issued and controlled is documented in a separate PPE policy. Section 6 describes the first aid and welfare arrangements. Apart from the basics of providing first aid kits and trained first aiders we’ve included particular issues which could affect grounds maintenance staff such as insect bites, remote working and special first aid requirements for chainsaw users. We’ve also included details about the toilet, washing and rest facilities provided for these workers. Section 7 focuses on employee health issues including immunisations, pre-employment checks, ongoing health monitoring and so on. Section 8 identifies the particular training needs staff may need such as manual handling and work at height training. And finally, section 9 covers records and reporting, such as accident reporting arrangements and equipment maintenance log books.