HSC consults again on work at height regulations

The Health and Safety Commission (HSC) has launched a six-week consultation on further changes to the draft Work at Height Regulations.

The additional regulation would require all employers to provide particular work equipment and fall protection measures (such as guardrails and platforms or personal suspension equipment) where work is undertaken at two metres or more above the ground. This provision is already part of the Construction Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations, which apply to the construction industry.

The Work at Height Regulations are intended to bring together all existing work at height regulation and to implement the European Temporary Work at Height Directive. The HSC says that the new consultation is the result of representations made by the construction industry, which wants to retain the two-metre rule in the new regulations.

For more information, visit www.hse.gov.uk/consult/letters/falls.htm The consultation ends on Friday 3 December.