Workplace winter precautions

All employers are under a duty to keep their premises safe for the people that use them, whether their own staff or customers and visitors. The winter months can bring heavy rain, ice or snow that could, if not managed properly, result in hazardous conditions that may lead to trips, slips and falls.

Managing the risks

To help you to identify the hazards associated with the management of business premises during the winter and the appropriate ways of controlling them, use our example Risk Assessment - Workplace Winter Precautions. It covers the generic hazards associated with winter weather and suggests control measures to reduce risks to an acceptable level. You should ensure that your document only addresses “significant” hazards, i.e. any that could, and more importantly are likely to, cause an accident or injury.

Make your instructions clear

Don’t include activities in your document that simply don’t need to be there. Work to the principle that if there is any chance of an accident occurring because of the weather conditions then you will need to make it clear in your document. Finally, always ensure that any control measures you identify and follow are decided upon the principle of “so far as is reasonably practicable”.

Note. The list of potential hazards is not exhaustive. However, for your risk assessment to be considered suitable and sufficient in the eyes of the law it must accurately reflect the “significant” hazards in your workplace during the winter months.

Note. This risk assessment deals with the generic risks associated with winter weather. The hazards are not exhaustive and your assessment should refer to the situation in your work environment.