Work Activity:

General Office Duties

Directorate

Economy & Place

Section:

Port of Sunderland

Date of Assessment:

05/07/21

Date to be Reviewed:

05/07/22

What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

General Movement around the office.

Employees and visitors to the office.

Slips, trips and falls.

Report any defective floor coverings, carpet trims and stair nosing to your immediate supervisor/manager.

Office to be kept clean and tidy at all times with walkways kept clear of

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All liquid spillage to be identified with high visibility signage and cleaned up immediately.

Appropriate sensible shoes to be worn at all times.

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

electrical cables.

Desks cabinets etc. to be positioned appropriately to allow easy movement around the office areas.

Ensure lighting levels are sufficient to identify any potential tripping hazards.

External pathways to be gritted in icy conditions.

Use of typical office machinery and equipment.

Employees and visitors

Mechanical hazards: Contact with moving parts or hot surfaces.

Equipment must be maintained by a competent person as per

manufacturer’s recommendations.

Pre use visual inspections should be carried out and defective equipment taken out of use immediately and reported any defects to a supervisor or manger to arrange repair or replacement.

The use of guillotines to be restricted to competent staff.

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Ensure loose clothing is kept well away from the moving parts of machinery.

All new staff to be trained on induction in the safe operation and safety devices on machinery and equipment.

Where possible use guillotines with integral finger protection blade guards.

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Employees and visitors

Electrical hazards: electric shock burns and fire.

Electrical appliances to be PAT tested by a competent person.

The fixed electrical installation must be tested at 5 yearly intervals by a competent electrical engineer.

Pre use visual inspections should be carried out and defective equipment taken out of use immediately and any defects reported to a supervisor or manager to arrange repair or replacement.

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Equipment must only be used for its intended design use and be CE marked.

Electrical sockets must not be overloaded.

Electrical extension leads must be fully unwound when in use.

No daisy chaining of electrical extension leads.

Staff must not bring in their own electrical equipment.

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

Electrical equipment should be switched off when not in use.

Combustible materials should be kept a safe distance from electrical appliances.

Use, handling and storage of typical office chemicals.

E.g. photocopier toner, screen cleaner etc.

Employees.

Contact with the skin, Inhalation of air borne particles and fumes.

COSHH assessment available for advice on safe use of chemicals.

COSHH Codes of Practice available on the Council Hub website.

Low hazardous chemicals and substance purchased.

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Use of Display Screen Equipment (DSE).

Employees

Eye strain and headaches.

Work related upper limb disorders.

Display Screen Equipment Codes of Practice available on the Council Hub website.

Vision screening tests should be arranged by contacting the Occupational Health Unit. Eyesight tests should be repeated every 2 years or as advised by their optician.

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Employees must complete the online DSE assessment available on the Council Learning Lounge website.

Employees should report early symptoms of aches or pains associated with using their workstation.

Referral to Occupation Health is available for issues not resolved following completion of the DSE assessment.

Staff should take regular breaks from the workstation.

Staff working from home should consider completing a DSE assessment of their personal workstation.

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

Staff should avoid long periods of staring at the display screen and regularly focus on objects at different distances away, to exercise the eye muscles.

Lifting and handling of bulky stationary and other loads.

Employees

Muscular skeletal injuries: back injury, sprains and strains.

The Manual Handling Codes of Practice is available on the Council Hub website.

Manager must identify any staff that are required to undertake manual handling activities and ensure they receive adequate training in safe lifting and handling techniques.

Manual handling activities must have a specific manual handling risk assessment.

2 person lift employed for heavy or awkwardly shaped items.

Staff must ensure they make use of equipment provided for use during lifting and carrying.

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Wherever possible loads should be broken down into small lighter weight sizes.

Use mechanical aids, such as trollies or sack barrows.

Improve the workplace layout and consider appropriate storage for loads to avoid un- necessary bending, twisting movements when handling loads.

When carrying loads use passenger/goods lifts rather than using the stairs.

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Access to storage at heights.

Employees

Falls from height of person and materials.

Muscular skeletal injuries: back injury, sprains and strains.

The Working at Heights Codes of Practice is available on the Council Hub website.

Only employees who have been trained in the use of stepladders are allowed to use the equipment.

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Avoid working at heights by ensuring frequently used items are stored at an easily accessible height to avoid working at heights.

Avoid the use of stepladders and use a hop up stool (elephant’s foot) wherever possible.

Ensure items are neatly and securely stacked

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

Step ladders are available and guidance for usage is available in the above Codes of Practice. Monthly visual step ladder inspection should be undertaken and recorded.

to avoid items falling.

Follow any instructions on packaging regarding maximum storage height numbers.

Ensure storage at height is not directly above work stations.

Safe Working Loads of any proprietary racking / shelving systems should not be exceeded.

Visual inspections of racking / shelving units should be carried out to identify any defects / overloading.

See control measure identified in the manual handling section above.

Disposal of sharp objects.

Employees

The correct disposal of sharp objects is described in the Health and Safety Codes of practice available on the Council Hub website.

Broken glass, crockery, plates or knifes should be wrapped and sealed in cardboard to ensure no one emptying the bins is liable to be cut. Cleaning staff should be made aware that bin contains sharp material even if it is wrapped.

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Dealing with difficult situations

Employees

The Violence at Work Codes of Practice is available on the Council

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Should staff have to meet with a known potentially aggressive person, the meeting

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

involving members of the public.

Physical injuries Psychological effects

Hub website.

If there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of a situation occurring (e.g. a known offender) physical security measures should be taken in the office accommodation.

Interview and meeting areas should be designed to minimise safety risks.

If cash is handled on site a specific risk assessment should be developed in consultation with the relevant health and safety advisor.

The incident report form IR1 should be completed whenever an employee feels threatened, intimidated or suffer physical assault.

Managers should discuss with employees any incident and consider referral to Occupation Health following the incident.

should be carried out in pairs.

If staff are meeting visitors in an area other than their usual office, they must inform another member of staff and let them know an approximate time they expect the meeting to take. This may be by using an office signing in and out board.

Use of filing cabinets and storage racking.

Employees

Cuts, bruising, fracture caused by being struck be unstable cabinets.

The Health and Safety in Offices Codes of Practice describes the safe use of Filing cabinets.

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Filing cabinets have an intrinsic device that prevents more than one door being opened at once.

As filing cabinets can become top heavy, always fill the bottom drawers first.

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

Cabinets with open doors should not be left unattended. Staff should close drawers immediately after use.

Staff should employ correct manual handling techniques when placing or removing items from the cabinets, especially when working at the lower level drawers.

Secure cabinets to each other or an adjacent wall if there is a potential they may become unbalanced.

Risk from fire.

Employees and visitors to the office.

Death, burns and respiratory issues.

The Fire Safety Codes of Practice is available on the Council Hub website.

The Health and Safety in Offices Codes of Practice describes fire safety in offices.

A full Fire Risk for the premises has been undertaken by the Health and Safety Team.

Annual Periodic reviews of the fire risk assessment must be carried out by the responsible person named in the fire risk assessment.

Fire Action Notices displayed at each call point

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Ensure portable appliances are Pat tested.

Ensure Fixed electrical installation is tested every 5 years.

Ensure the fire alarm system and emergency lighting are tested at the recommended periods identified in the fire log book.

Keep means of escape clear at all times. Ensure fire doors are not wedged open.

Ensure sufficient numbers of staff are trained as fire wardens to assist with the evacuation of the building in an emergency.

Ensure combustible materials are kept a safe distance from any potential source of ignition.

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

Ensure good housekeeping practices are maintained and rubbish bins regularly emptied.

Staff must be provided with instructions on the procedure to be taken in the event of a fire condition.

Regular Fire Drills should be carried out to familiarise staff with the evacuation procedures.

Staff should complete fire awareness e- learning training at periods not exceeding 3 yearly. This is available through the Hub

Fire extinguishers must be serviced annually. No smoking allowed.

Preparation of hot food and beverages.

Employees and visitors to the office.

Scalds

Slips, trips and falls and food poisoning.

Staff to exercise caution when using water boilers.

Use trays for carrying multiple beverages.

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Ensure all spillages are cleaned up immediately.

Kitchen / cooking facilities must be kept clean and tidy, ensure good hygiene practices.

Staff are not allowed to bring in their own electrical appliances.

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Mobile Phones

Employees and visitors to the office

Make and receive calls and text messages only in designated safe areas such as welfare facilities, or in a safe place away from live traffic and work activities.

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What are the hazards?

Who might be harmed and how?

What precautions or existing control measures are presently taken.

Likelihood

Severity

Risk Rating

L x S

If High or Medium Risk, what addition precautions or control measures need to be taken to reduce risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Likelihood

Severity

Residual Risk

L x S

Home working office activities.

Employees

Any or all of the hazards identified above could be applicable to your home working environment.

The Home Working Codes of Practice is available on the Council Hub website.

Risk rating variable depending on the hazard.

Staff should refer to the control measure identified for each specific hazard above, which relate to hazards applicable to their home working environment.

Please consider each hazard and control measure identified to assess if they are applicable to you home working environment.