Health and safety education and training
The facts
- In 2010-11, 171 people were killed at work and around
200,000 were seriously injured.
- In the last decade (2001-2011), 50 of those killed at work
were under 19 years old, 12,567 in this age group suffered
major injuries, and a further 39,173 were hurt.
- The Education
and Skills Act 2008 ensures that young people stay in education
or training until the age of 18 and provides new rights for adults
to receive skills training.
- The Act gives us a great chance to upskill young people, and
those already in work, with the know-how to thrive in society and
throughout their working lives.
- In her report
Review of the health of Britain's working age population,
Dame Carol Black, Director for Health and Work, says, "Healthy
workplaces need to become the expected norm," and that, Schools,
further education and higher education have a role in embedding
these expectations in the next generation."
Our position
We've found that there's a need to embed health and safety
in the education system and there's a challenge of creating a
'risk intelligent' society. We call for these in our Putting young
workers first (PDF 189 KB)and Get
the best campaigns and our 'manifesto' Creating a
healthier UK plc (PDF 107 KB).
Our education and training system should cover health and safety
in national, vocational and professional curricula. That's why
we've developed free on-line teaching resources and a website to
support the Health and Safety (Education and Training) Bill, 2008
and given evidence to Sir Alasdair Macdonald on statutory
Personal,
Social and Health Education (PSHE) in schools.
Young people should be able to take advantage of all the
positive opportunities that are offered to them and learn how to
deal sensibly with the new challenges of modern society. This is
why we believe that helping children to be risk aware - not risk
averse - is giving them a valuable skill. Tackling health and
safety education in schools supports Dame Carol Black's vision.
Business and management qualifications should include health and
safety as a core discipline in the same way that they currently
cover marketing, finance and human resource issues.
Relevant IOSH consultation responses: