North East Surrey Training

Useful Information

Health & Safety (First Aid Regulations) 1981

Employers Legal Duties

The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations require employers to provide adequate and appropriate equipment, facilities and personnel to enable first aid to be given to employees should they become injured or ill whilst at work. These regulations apply to all workplaces including those with five or fewer employees and to the self-employed.

Employers are required to carry out an assessment of first aid needs. This involves consideration of workplace hazards and risks, the size of the organisations, shift patterns, opening or working hours and other factors to determine what first aid equipment, facilities and personnel should be provided.

The Regulations do not place a legal obligation on employers to make first aid provision to non-employees. However, the HSE strongly recommend that these people are included in the assessment and that provision is made for them.

Changes to the Health and Safety First Aid at Work Regulations

On the 1 October 2009 the HSE updated and simplified the numbers of first aiders within the workplace by changing the category of risk into two: Low and High risk.

This will help companies in their risk assessment and decision making process as to which course they should send their staff on:

- Level 3 Award in First Aid at Work

- Level 2 Award in Emergency First Aid at Work

Be aware you may need to perform a new first aid risk assessment to ensure your company complies with this new legislation. The First Aid Requirements Calculator will help with this assessment.