Accident and Incident Reporting

and Investigation
Childrens and Adult Services

www.southwark.gov.uk
October 2012

Scope
This procedure describes the arrangements for reporting and investigating accidents and incidents
across childrens and adult services.
Employees at all levels need to promptly report all accidents that cause injury, ill health or damage, and
incidents causing damage to property and equipment. It is equally important to report verbal assaults
and incidents that do not cause any injury as research by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has
shown that there is a ratio between the number of non-injury incidents, minor injury accidents, major
injury accidents and fatalities an organisation suffers. Recording and investigating minor incidents will
show where systems are failing and what needs to be done to prevent a more serious accident. They
should be regarded as a learning opportunity.
Managers must familiarise themselves with the Reporting of Injuries, Disease and Dangerous
Occurrences Regulations 1995 (as amended) (RIDDOR) and the supporting Approved Code of Practice.
This can de downloaded free from the HSE website www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/l73.pdf
This procedure should be read in conjunction with Safety Directive 204 and Guidance Note 204.
What do employees have to do when an accident or incident happens?

Report it to your manager quickly. The Regulations require employers to report some accidents and
incidents to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and there is a time limit of 15 days.

If you are injured while on another employers premises, you should report it to the person in control
there, as well as to your line manager.

What do managers/headteachers have to do?

Take the necessary action to deal with immediate risks. If someone has been hurt, first-aid or
professional medical help for the injured person is of course the first priority. Inform the injured persons
next of kin if they are to be taken to hospital

Warn everyone in the area to keep away until you can be sure that no-one else is likely to be hurt

The HSE may want to investigate the accident and will require the accident site to be left
undisturbed. If this is a possibility, you must make sure that the area is kept just as it was at the time of
the accident. Do not remove anything. Lock the doors and put up notices prohibiting entry

If faulty equipment was involved, isolate it and make it safe. Do not let anyone else use it

Complete form HS1 and HS2 for all accidents/incidents involving staff, service users, visitors or
contractors. Complete form HS3 and HS2 for all accidents/incidents involving school pupils Contact
the health and safety team and forward the completed forms within 48 hours of the occurrence

Report all accident/incidents that have resulted in time loss as soon as possible to the health and
safety team. Reports to be made on the first day of absence via email or telephone.

Report any incident/accident that could have resulted in serious injury to the health and safety team
via email or telephone

Report any accident/incident that resulted in a third party being taken from the scene to hospital via
email or telephone

If the accident has happened to someone who is employed by someone else, such as a contractor
or an employee of one of our partner organisations, report it to their employer as well as to the
departmental health and safety manager so that they can report it to the HSE
Accidents/incidents that are not reportable to the HSE or where there was no resulting injury must be
reported within 48 hours

All accidents or incidents that either did or could have had serious consequences must be
investigated as soon as it happens. Any delay will make the investigation more difficult

Let the safety representative for the area know about the accident and involve them in any
subsequent investigation

Monitor/review accidents/incidents within their area of responsibility

Completing the accident form HS1/HS2 and HS3/HS2

The information it contains will help managers at all levels to make decisions on what needs to be
done to improve standards of health and safety, so it is important that the form is completed carefully
and in as much detail as possible.

Employees should complete and sign HS1 if they are able, otherwise it should be completed and
signed by the manager on their behalf.

Managers must ensure that all information required in Part 1 HS1 is properly completed and go on to
fill in HS2 the investigation section. This may involve checking records, talking to staff involved in
the accident and asking questions about the effectiveness of such things as personal protective
equipment, systems of work or supervision. It is important to ascertain whether there were any
actions that directly led to the event and to identify the immediate and underlying causes. Non
compliance with established procedures should be reported and investigated.

The member of the school supervising staff should complete pupil accident report HS3 and the
investigation HS2 should be completed by a member of the school management team.

Once the form has been completed, send it to the departmental health and safety manager within 48
hours of the accident or incident.

Managers/headteachers must retain copies of completed accident reports in a secure location for
monitoring and review.

The departmental health and safety manager will report all reportable accidents to the Health and
Safety Executive as soon as possible by F2508 .The deadline for these to be submitted to the HSE is

within 15 days of the accident/incident occurring. The health and safety manager will also report all
notifiable diseases/dangerous occurrences to the HSE as required.
What accidents/incidents are reportable to the HSE?

A major injury .This includes fractures (other than to fingers, thumbs or toes), amputation, dislocation
of the shoulder, hip, knee or spine, loss of sight, chemical or hot metal burn or penetrating injury to
the eye, injury leading to unconsciousness or which results in the person being detained in hospital
for more than twenty-four hours, acute illness requiring medical treatment arising from exposure to
biological agent of other substance

If an employee is unfit for normal duties for more than seven consecutive days as a result of an
accident at work. From 6 April 2012, RIDDORs over three day injury reporting requirement changes.
From this date the trigger point increases from over three days to over seven days incapacitation
(not counting the day on which the accident happened).Incapacitation means that the worker is
absent or is unable to do work that they would reasonably be expected to do as part of their normal
work.

Reportable Death: All deaths arising out of or in connection with work.

An accident in connection with work that happens to a third party, i.e., someone who is not an
employee, such as a pupil, service user, agency staff or a contractor, that results in them being taken
to hospital directly from the scene. For further guidance on the types of accidents/incidents in the
education sector that are reportable to the HSE is available from www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/edis1.pdf

Reportable Dangerous Occurrence. Events which do not necessarily result in a reportable injury but
have the potential to cause significant harm. They are listed in Schedule 2 of RIDDOR and include
serious incidents such as a collapse of a building, scaffold or lifting equipment, explosion and failures
of pressurised systems.

Diseases that are contracted through a specified type of work are also reportable. These are listed in
the Approved Code of Practice that supports the regulations. Check with the departmental health
and safety manager if you are unsure whether a health condition is reportable.

Investigating accidents and incidents

Accident/Incident investigations are to be carried out by competent persons. The departmental health
and safety manager will assist managers/headteachers with accident investigations where required.
How long and how detailed the investigation needs to be will depend on how serious the result of the
accident is, or could have been. Sometimes a few minutes discussion will be enough but in other cases
a more detailed investigation will be needed to find out exactly what happened, what conditions led to
the accident and what needs to be done to prevent it happening again.
The purpose of the investigation is to establish whether the system failed, someone just made a mistake
or important safety rules were broken and, if so, why.
Step by step investigation

Inspect the scene of the accident/incident and record the conditions. Make a sketch of the
accident site, take photographs (if applicable) and record details of the event.

Workplace defects, such as poor lighting, holes in floors or uneven surfaces should be recorded.

Look for the immediate and underlying cause of the accident/incident. Draw up a list of facts that
must be established. These would normally include the following.

Record the weather conditions at the time.

Review whether any personal protective equipment was being worn and, if so, its condition, fit
and comfort for the wearer.

The condition and maintenance of any equipment involved.

Whether a safe system of work or procedures were being followed.

The type and level of training the person had been given.

The level of supervision the person had at the time of the accident.

Interview all those involved, beginning with anyone who was injured and including anyone who
witnessed the accident

Review the risk assessment for the activity and establish whether all the controls identified in the
assessment were in place.

Complete the investigation section of the accident report form fully and send it to the departmental safety
manager.
Investigations following a fatality, major injury or dangerous occurrence must be undertaken by a panel
appointed by the Strategic Director to investigate the basic and immediate causes of the accident and to
produce recommendations to prevent recurrences.
Responsibilities
Business managers/ managers/headteachers will

Ensure that all managers and employees within their area of responsibility are aware of the
requirements for accident/incident reporting and investigation and are trained in the use of the
appropriate forms

Ensure that all accidents/incidents are reported /investigated in their area of responsibility in
accordance with departmental/corporate requirements

Implement actions arising from accident/incident reporting and investigation to prevent recurrences

Review risk assessments/adequacy of control measures following accident/incidents

Establish monitoring regimes for implementation of actions arising from accident reports and
investigations

Regularly review accident/incident reports

Analyse accident/incident statistics to identify trends. Record and monitor sickness absence as result
of accidents/incidents

Ensure that managers/ supervisors receive training in accident/incident investigation and in use of
accident report formsHS1, HS2 and HS3

Departmental health and safety manager will

Evaluate the quality and accuracy of information included in accident/incident reports and will request
clarification/further information as required

Maintain accident data using a coding and classification system to assist in the analysis of data

Produce quarterly reports of accident/incident statistics for review by divisional management teams
and the departmental health and safety committee. These reports will include an analysis of trends
and days lost as a result of accidents/incidents. Accident/Incident data will be reported on a
workplace/business unit basis and will include accident/incident and ill health trends.

Include information obtained from the accident/incident data in the annual review of health and safety
performance and use this information to develop the health and safety plan.

Assist managers/headteachers with accident investigations where required, advise on control

measures and share lessons learned to improve health and safety management across childrens
and adult services

Employees

Report promptly all accidents/ incidents and near misses

Co operate with managers/supervisors conducting investigation