Personal protective equipment policy

Depending on how much PPE is used in your business, it may be worth introducing a policy that sets out how you choose and allocate it to individual employees. Ours covers the key areas.

PPE policy

As it isn’t always possible to introduce control measures that reduce risks to a sufficiently low level, you may need to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to your staff. If so and depending on your scale of use, you may find it useful to have a Personal Protective Equipment Policy in place. Its aim is to set out your legal obligations to staff and to describe how you choose and allocate PPE.

Policy content

Section one is the general statement, which states that where PPE is necessary, it’s chosen after consultation with staff. This is important because if employees are uncomfortable or it isn’t suitable, then they won’t wear it as required. The legal position is covered in the second section, whilst the third moves onto the procedures that you’ve introduced. For example, if you allocate PPE from a central store rather than personally to individual employees, then you can detail the procedure to be followed by employees in obtaining it. The fourth section covers employee duties, e.g. to wear PPE in designated areas, and the fifth briefly mentions training.