Safewise consultant Kaye Byrne explains audits and reviews, and why they are important for your business.

As a health and safety professional, I have done my fair share of assessments and audits of health and safety systems. For the majority, I was the main auditor, but I also assisted several of our clients who were being audited by another company.

What makes a difference?

A review is a more casual overview of the organisation’s health and safety system. Internal reviews are often conducted to reassure upper management about the organisation’s performance. The criteria will change depending on what the auditor is looking for. A few examples would be the number of safety meetings held, the number of people in attendance, the number of site inspections completed, the number of non-conformances brought to attention, and the number of accidents, incidents and near misses that were recorded.

A review is organised to a particular standard. It is, by and large, conducted by an experienced and trained auditor, which provides a higher level of assurance. The auditor will only assess the processes relevant to that audit or standard. This may be a full framework or reflections of it. The auditor will ordinarily evaluate the work in progress and have a conversation with workers about having a much wider understanding of the organisation. Both can give critical information about what has happened and how the organisation has reacted or responded. They should be utilised as a learning tool, encouraging the organisation to progress and develop its health and safety culture.

Regular reviews or audits should commence to support and guide management’s insight into health and safety.

Audits are completed for many reasons. They:

• provide information to management
• evaluate compliance standards
• allow organisations to benchmark themselves against other similar organisations
• assure clients the organisation is up to standard regarding health and safety.

Regardless, all health and safety management systems or frameworks should be audited consistently and regularly throughout the year. Knowing how well your system works and functions can only benefit the wider organisation.