People and Culture

Occupational Health and Safety

Audits

Introduction

The Occupational Health and Safety Section conducts an annual audit program to provide schools and departments with information on the level of compliance with health and safety standards. The audit program is designed to examine specific procedures and their application within departments and to identify non-compliances with reference to health and safety legislation; codes of practice; standards; and policies and procedures.

Audits of selected schools and departments are carried out by staff from the Occupational Health and Safety Section. An audit may include an interview with the Head of School or Department (or a person with delegated authority such as a laboratory manager) and verification of health and safety systems may be achieved by sighting internal procedures; sighting relevant documentation or by inspecting the workplace.

The Head of School or Department will be provided with a report as soon as practicable after the completion of the audit or inspection. The report will contain a summary of the findings along with recommendations for improvement where deficiencies have been identified. Depending on the findings of the audit, the non-compliances may be ranked according to the level of risk.

The Head of School or Department will be required to develop a plan to implement those recommendations along with times for completion and to forward a copy of the plan to the Occupational Health and Safety Section. It is recommended that the plan be developed in consultation with the relevant health and safety representatives. If the Head of School or Department disagrees with any findings or of the recommended corrective action, they may consult with the Occupational Health and Safety Section to review the matter.

It should be noted that an audit is different to a workplace inspection. An audit involves a review of work practices against established procedures, codes of practices, standards and regulations which may or may not involve an inspection of facilities, plant, machinery or equipment.

Audit Checklist

• Audit checklist based on the University’s Occupational Health and Safety Manual.