Directors' and Managers' Responsibilities
Both the Health and Safety Commission's recent guidance
on the
responsibility
of directors and the guidance on
internal control issued following the
Turnbull Report affirm the importance of risk
management.
Best practice relating to the management and control of
companies in the private sector was developed with the
introduction of the London Stock Exchange's
Combined Code of requirements for listed companies
and the publication of the Turnbull Report. Whilst the
report is published by the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in England and Wales the principles are now
generally applied across the UK in both public and private
sectors.
Directors and management boards are generally
responsible for identifying risks to their core assets or
business operations and taking appropriate steps to manage
the risk.
The principal risks to business from a serious fire can
be categorised as follows:
Operational
- Loss or damage to buildings, plant and
equipment.
- Denial of access to unsafe sites.
- Loss or degradation of critical data,
communications or IT facilities.
- The secondary impact these risks affecting your key
suppliers or service providers.
Reputational
- Publicity associated with injuries to staff,
contractors or members of the public.
- Perceived or actual failure to comply with health
and safety regulation.
- Perceived or actual failure to safeguard public or
commercial assets.
Financial
- Direct costs of fire damage.
- Consequential costs.
Accountable directors and senior managers are urged to
make the best use of the remaining time available to check
their organisation's preparedness and to review their
contingency arrangements. Existing risk registers and risk
assessments may be useful to identify and prioritise
action.
Directors' Checklist
- Have the risks from fire been properly assessed and
prioritised? Do these address risks to assets and
business as well as risks to safety?
- Is there an Incident Control Team to manage any
emergency situation and limit damage?
- Is there a Business Recovery Plan in place and is
it up to date?
- Are key records, emergency plans and contact
details duplicated off site?
- Have all existing fire precautions been
specifically checked to ensure readiness?
- Is there a detailed emergency fire procedure in
place? Is this up to date and has this been brought to
the attention of all staff?
- Are all key staff aware of their duties and have
they been properly trained?
- Is there adequate monitoring by security patrols or
management inspections to deter fire raising and
improve housekeeping?
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