Workplace Welfare Checklist
Businesses in the UK must provide a healthy and safe working environment with appropriate welfare facilities in place. This covers everything from having enough toilets and washbasins on your premises to good lighting and ventilation and maintaining a clean workplace. It’s your legal and moral responsibility to provide these things whatever the type and size of your organisation.
Our health and safety experts have created a professional workplace welfare checklist to help ensure your welfare facilities are appropriate and to inform any risk assessments. Review your current facilities against the questions in the checklist to identify any issues. Then you can create risk assessments if required from the results.
Try our risk assessment software with a free 15-day trial and create unlimited risk assessments online. Use the existing templates and adapt to meet your needs. Start with the professional workplace welfare checklist below to identify any areas that require a risk assessment.
Employee welfare checklist
Employee welfare is important for companies of any size, age, and industry. Happy workers will be more productive. You also have a legal obligation under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 to provide many welfare facilities. It’s therefore vital to undertake regular employee welfare checks – which may require a risk assessment.
Assess the below hazards in your workplace to improve employee welfare and inform any risk assessments. Employee welfare hazards have been grouped into sections to make reviewing your workplace quick and easy. Answer each question to work out whether you need to act and put in place any control measures.
Workplace health hazards
Are there factors that can affect health, such as:
- Does ventilation need improving to remove stale or humid air?
- Are any areas draughty (apart from areas open to the outside)?
- Does the heating system need improving to maintain the minimum 16°C working temperature?
- Do extra thermometers need to be installed to enable staff to check working temperatures ?
- Does hot water temperature require raising to remove legionella risk (60°C)?
- Do rest rooms require more stringent hygiene standards?
Staff safety hazards
Are there any hazards that can endanger safety such as:
- Does lighting need improving to reduce trips and collisions?
- Do access routes need clearing of goods, materials, or debris?
- Do swing doors require transparent panels fitting?
- Do windows require safety devices to prevent someone falling through the opening?
- Do sliding doors need devices to stop them falling off their tracks?
- Do powered doors require fitting with a device to prevent trapping or crushing?
- Do upward opening doors require counterbalances to keep them open?
- Do guardrails of at least 1,100mm need fitting to any area where it is possible to fall two or more metres?
- Does the stability of storage systems require improving?
- Does the emergency lighting system require improving?
- Do fire routes and escapes need clearing of obstructions?
- Do fire escapes require more visible signs?
Employee welfare issues
Do welfare provisions need improving, such as:
- Does toilet and hand basin cleanliness require improving?
- Do hand washing and drying facilities need improving?
- Is there a requirement to install extra fresh drinking water?
- Do rest areas need segregation for non-smokers?
- Are extra lockers for work clothing required?
- Do changing room provisions need improving?
General workplace cleanliness
- Do floors require more frequent cleaning?
- Do access routes require clearing of debris, waste bins, or equipment?
Any identified workplace welfare hazards should be evaluated using a risk assessment. Try a free trial of our health and safety software and start creating unlimited risk assessments online today to improve your workplace welfare.