Keeping building users safe – the role of Nviro’s Safety Manager
20 June 2024 Category: Colleges and Universities Independent Schools Local Authority & Housing Nviro News Schools, Academies and Trusts
At Nviro, health and safety is at the heart of everything we do. With 1,300 cleaners working across London and the South of England, our Safety Manager, Dean Savage, plays an important role in creating a safety culture. Dean works closely with our clients and managers to make sure that everyone on site is safe.
We sat down with Dean to take a closer look at a typical day in his life as a Safety Manager, understanding his challenges and how his role helps keep colleagues, clients and building users safe.
What does a typical day look like as a Safety Manager?
- Creating and reviewing safety plans – “My day typically begins with reviewing safety audits. We carry out audits regularly to check the safety and welfare of our cleaners. These audits help highlight the areas on our sites where we can improve. Working closely with the Service team really helps, as we can agree on actions and the timelines for resolving any safety issues. This approach ensures that safety is not just a box-ticking exercise but a way of continuously improving our processes so building users and colleagues are safe.”
- Preventing health and safety hazards – “Another part of my morning involves reviewing hazard surveys completed with the client by Service Managers. Once approved, they can be displayed in cleaning cupboards to make sure that colleagues have all the information they need in the event of an emergency.”
- Following up on near misses and accidents – “We have a great safety culture at Nviro, which has helped to decrease the number of near misses and accidents. But you can never eliminate all of them, especially when you have over 1,000 sites. So, another part of my day includes following up on the latest near miss reports with our Service team so everyone fully understands what has happened and how we can prevent future accidents. In the event of an accident, I assist Service Managers in investigating how and why an accident happened to find the root cause. We can then put actions in place to prevent a reoccurrence. Sometimes it’s as easy as providing head torches for cleaners to access site bins in the dark, but sometimes it leads to a discussion with a client about how we keep all building users safe.”
- Writing safety procedures – “Producing risk assessments and method statements for new processes are a key part of my role. These are important as they make sure that any new cleaning procedures are safe and effective and reassure clients that we are keeping all their building users safe.”
- Checking for chemical updates – “Our COSHH management system (Sypol) keeps us up to date with any changes to our chemicals that could impact the safety of anyone on site. This means that we are managing our use of chemicals in the safest way possible.”
As a Safety Manager, how do you support clients and their building users?
- Delivering peace of mind through accredited safety standards – “We have nationally and internationally recognised accreditations with CHAS and ISO45001, which means our Health and Safety management system is effective and compliant. We take our responsibilities seriously. At Nviro, we maintain high health and safety standards and are compliant with legal regulations which helps give our clients that peace of mind that we have everything covered.”
- Keeping sites safe through regular inspections – “I regularly visit our client sites to make sure our cleaners know what they’re doing, and that our clients know that tasks are being completed safely.”
- Improving client safety and reputation through internal audits – “I support clients with internal audits by providing evidence of our safety protocols that demonstrate compliance with safety regulations and best practices. I also help them to identify potential hazards and suggest actions to mitigate them. This approach protects colleagues and building users and also improves our client’s reputation for safety.”
How do you support Nviro colleagues as a Safety Manager?
- Providing regular health and safety training – “I make sure our people are trained and have the knowledge and confidence to know what they are doing when it comes to health and safety. This means that our team can deliver high standards to our clients, minimising any risks on their sites.”
- Making sure colleague working environments are safe – “I track and report any unsafe conditions on sites to prevent accidents, which means we can continue to keep our colleagues, clients and their building users safe.”
- Looking after colleague wellbeing – “If something goes wrong, I’ll investigate and find out how we can prevent it from happening again by putting measures in place, keeping colleagues safe and making sure that their physical wellbeing is looked after.”
What challenges do you face in your role?
“As a business with 1,300 people spread out across London and the South of England, working at different times of the day – it’s impossible for one person to continually monitor everyone for safe working. By having a robust H&S Management System in place and by promoting a safety culture within our teams, everyone can take responsibility for safety.”
What is the importance of your role at Nviro?
“To ultimately ensure Nviro colleague and building users’ wellbeing and safety by identifying and mitigating risks; reducing accidents and illnesses; continuously improving safety procedures and policies; providing education and training; and empowering a safety culture within Nviro.”
What word would you use to describe Nviro?
“Supportive”
Read our blog ‘Health and Safety with Nviro: why it matters for us, and what it means for you” to find out more about how Nviro goes above and beyond standards to look after the safety of colleagues and building users.
