Hierarchy of control – What are the essential steps?
Working at height is one of the leading causes of workplace fatalities and injuries every year, which is why you need to be sure that you have the proper control measures to protect people working at height. Following the hierarchy of control will help you identify how you can work at height safely.
When we carry out a site survey to identify fall from height risks on your rooftops or facilities, we assess potential hazards and provide recommendations based on the hierarchy of control. This helps you to provide a safe working environment and meet your legal duties.
HSE Hierarchy of control measures
The HSE outlines 5 critical stages in the hierarchy of control measures when working a height based around the steps of AVOID – PREVENT – MINIMISE.
1. AVOID work at height
Try to carry out as much work as possible from ground level.
If you can, move plant & equipment to ground level so maintenance engineers don’t need to go onto the roof, and use a telescopic pole for window cleaning to avoid using ladders.
2. Use existing safe place of work to PREVENT falls
If you can’t avoid work at height, the next step is to find an existing place that is already safe to carry out the work.
This should be where additional protective equipment isn’t needed, such as a roof area with a parapet.
3. Provide equipment to PREVENT a fall
This stage has two parts to it
- If you can’t avoid working at height or carry out tasks from an existing safe place, you must prevent a fall using collective equipment. Collective protection includes installing guardrails or edge protection on a roof or using a guarded MEWP or scaffold.
- The final stage in preventing falls is using personal protective equipment (PPE). This could be a lanyard attached to an anchor point to restrict the worker’s movement and prevent them from reaching a fall hazard.
4. MINIMISE the distance and/or consequence of a fall
The hierarchy of control moves from AVOID and PREVENT to MINIMISE. Stage 4 is about mitigation and also has 2 parts to it:
- Firstly, you need to minimise the possible consequences of a fall by using collective equipment. This could involve using safety nets or airbags just beneath the work level to minimise the distance a person could fall and the consequences of a fall.
- If collective protection isn’t possible, then you must use personal protection (PPE) to minimise the distance a person can fall. In these situations, personal protective equipment can include industrial rope access for someone working on a building’s façade or a fall arrest system. Only use PPE as a last resort and following training in the correct use of the system.
5. MINIMISE consequences with training & instruction
The final stage is to make sure that everyone who is working at height has the proper training and instruction. This must include equipment use, safe working practices and necessary rescue procedures.
Still not sure how to work at height safely?
The hierarchy of control measures outlined here will not completely remove the risk of a fall, but they will reduce the likelihood of one happening.
If you have any questions about safe working practices or need to identify and control safety hazards on your roofs, we’re here to help.
