Annual action plan (health and safety)
- Keep up with your health and safety checks
- Pre-filled to make it easy
- Customisable to your needs
This annual action plan (health and safety) helps you plan your health and safety actions for the year.
It sets out the most common health and safety checks you are likely to need to complete (on a daily, weekly, monthly, six monthly, annually, and five yearly basis) and allows you to efficiently record your comments. You can also add your own actions specific to your business.
In addition to this annual action plan (health and safety) you must complete regular risk assessments. You can find these templates at General risk assessment for a shop or other business open to customers, General risk assessment for an office, General risk assessment for remote workers, and Fire safety risk assessment.
Q&A
When should I use this document?
You can start using this annual action plan at any time. You should keep this annual action plan easily accessible and update it on a regular basis (depending on how often each health and safety check is required).
You can also distribute copies of this action plan to other members of your business who have health and safety duties.
What does this document cover?
This annual action plan covers the most common health and safety checks that low-risk businesses require. For example:
- Daily checks (such as checking floors are free from hazards, fire escapes are clear, lighting is adequate, facilities are well stocked);
- Weekly checks (eg checking fire alarms and electrical equipment and stocking first aid kits);
- Monthly checks (eg checking fire extinguishers and emergency generators are working);
- Six monthly checks (eg completing professional inspections and fire safety risk assessments, fixing maintenance issues);
- Annual checks (eg review your health and safety policy, check your insurance, some PAT testing);
- Five yearly checks (eg certain PAT testing).
Why do I need this document?
You need this annual action plan to help you organise your health and safety checks more efficiently and make sure you cover all the most common checks.
It’s important to make good health and safety practice part of the day to day running of your business, rather than simply ‘ticking boxes’ on a risk assessment once a year.
This document will also support your regular risk assessments. In the event of a health and safety incident you can point to this action plan, along with the rest of your health and safety documentation, to show that you take your health and safety obligations seriously.
Where can I find out more?
As well as an annual action plan, you will also likely need to complete regular health and safety risk assessments. If you employ anyone, you are legally required to complete risk assessments.
You can find guidance on how to complete risk assessments at Health and safety risk assessments.Depending on the nature of your business, you can use:
- General risk assessment for remote workers
- General risk assessment for a shop or other business open to customers; or
- General risk assessment for an office.
To comply fully with the law you will also need to complete a Fire safety risk assessment.
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