Over the past year, CHP’s health and safety team have delivered some fantastic projects across the portfolio, including improvements to Fire Risk Assessments (FRA), compliance and making audits easier for CHP staff and tenants.
First, the introduction of a new safety management system (SMS) has streamlined our reporting process and provided digitisation. This has enabled staff to undertake reports, added as modules, through the provision of iPads which allows offline electronic completion of any necessary information that automatically uploads to the system on re-entry to a wi-fi enabled space. This welcome addition has made a huge difference to our reporting and speed of delivery, and we hope there is more to come.
Another advantage of this SMS is that it is a ‘RealTime’ data system. Teams therefore receive the most current data at any point in the month rather than waiting for a collation at month end. To support good governance of the subjects, we have also built in weekly alerts to nominated line managers to remind them to finalise a report. The alert also includes the Health and Safety team to oversee and approve the report for archive providing clear and auditable oversight.
The team are constantly looking to understand whether there are further applications for the SMS and to assure value for money and reduce impacts on time for tenants and CHP colleagues. We are currently working to understand how to make the system a ‘One Stop Shop’.
Continuing development of our fire risk assessments
As part of the legal requirements for ourselves and tenants, the team continue to deliver Fire Risk Assessments for the LIFT estate of 308 properties through Regional Health and Fire Safety Advisors (HFSA). There are multiple Responsible Persons (RP’s) under the Regulatory (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the HFSA assign actions arising from the FRA Report to the designated RPs. The team have worked tirelessly to support CHP assigned actions and provide clarity. They have also developed 32 safety guidance documents and ensured 99% compliance across the estate, an outstanding result.
Their dedication to developing and updating CHP’s suite of safety guidance documents has been second-to-none. These documents allow CHP’s property teams to provide direction for tenants and complete health and safety work in a more efficient way. Many documents were created from feedback from tenants demonstrating their collaborative approach to finding solutions. They have been tailored to specific requirements from electrical safety, bomb and suspect package threats and, more recently, they are working on the implications for the application across the primary healthcare estate of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act known as Martyn’s Law. The Health and Safety team have developed new policy in this area and undertaken risk assessments whilst working alongside partner organisations in Hull and Manchester which tenants will start to hear about soon.
In line with their drive for efficiency and effectiveness for tenants, they have designed and introduced an electronic FRA Actions app. The app provides weekly alerts and updates to line managers and the health and safety team for sign off so that actions are progressed quickly and do not get missed. This is an innovation for 2025 and will allow a more efficient and auditable framework for FRA, giving you, our tenants, a better service and confidence that we are always working to keep your buildings as safe as possible.
Drop-in sessions with the team
The Health and Safety Team have commenced delivery of safety drop-in sessions in regional sites across the portfolio; these have been well received by tenants with good feedback and ideas. Information gathered from the sessions will help CHP continually develop our health and safety strategy moving forward.
You can also give feedback whenever we are on site, do come and say hello and pass any thoughts on if you see a CHP blue polo shirt in your building!
CHP Tenant Hub
The hub covers information for CHP tenants on health and safety, sustainability, facilities management including HardFM, and SoftFM, leases, charges and billing.
In addition there is information on bookable rooms and filming at our premises.
