Premises Safety

Anyone who intends to plan and organise works to be carried out by contractors on campus must contact E&FM at the earliest opportunity (i.e. design stage), to obtain any relevant preconstruction health and safety information in order to comply with their duties under the CDM Regulations 2015.

This will enable all the relevant health and safety information, such as the location of any known asbestos containing materials/permit procedures, etc. to be provided to the contractors, ensuring the safe and successful completion of works.

Buildings on Singleton Campus were constructed when asbestos was in frequent use.  However, the University has a robust asbestos management plan to minimise the risks.  For more information, including details of emergency procedures, contact the University Fire and Premises Manager. 

Telephone: 01792 (29)5240 or email the Health and Safety team.

Supporting Documents

Please refer to the E&FM Services Code of Safety Practice for Contractors guide for further information. All contractors on site must adhere to the University health and safety standards, procedures and environmental procedures.

Find out more about Asbestos on the HSE website.

If you carry out or instruct contractors to carry out ‘construction work’ you have duties within the Construction Design & Management regulations 2015.

‘Construction work’ includes building, fitting out, running electrical or data cables, running events, putting up marquees, and some maintenance work.

It is important to remember that if you procure or carry out any work such as this that you will be a duty holder and are required to have knowledge and understanding of the CDM Regulations 2015 and the supporting HSE L153 Document prior to commencing any project.

If you need to clarify whether a certain type of work that you do is construction, or arrange CDM training, contact your Health & Safety Lead or Health & Safety Team.

Call: 01792 (29)5240 or email the Health and Safety team.

Whatever your role in construction, you MUST:

• sensibly plan the work so the risks involved are managed from start to finish;
• ensure that people procured to carry out work have the knowledge, skill and experience to do so;
• have the right people for the right job at the right time;
• cooperate and coordinate your work with others;
• have the right information about the risks and how they are being managed;
• communicate this information effectively to those who need to know;
• consult and engage with workers about the risks and how they are being managed.

Supporting Documents

If you require further advice and support in relation to any construction work contact the Estates and Campus Services helpdesk: 01792 (29)5240

Find out more about CDM.

Three of the worst type of electrical hazards are: faulty or worn out equipment, exposure of live electrical parts to water and careless or unskilled workmanship.  None of these hazards need arise.

Staff and students should never attempt to interfere or repair electrical equipment, unless it is part of your job role and you are trained to safely carry out the repair.  Any plant/ equipment found not to be working or in a dangerous condition should be reported immediately to arrange for a repair or replacement by suitably qualified technical staff.  The plant/ equipment should be taken out of use until it is assessed.

Do not attempt to modify equipment which is not completely disconnected from the main.  If in doubt contact your College H&S Lead or Estates & Facilities Management (E&FM) for advice.  All electrical equipment is to be serviced by qualified technical staff, or by E&FM appointed contractors.

E&FM Helpdesk: 01792 (29)5240

E&FM arrange annual testing to all portable electrical and electronic equipment across the University.  If you decommission a piece of equipment or purchase something new, please ensure that E&FM are informed in order to update the equipment register in preparation for testing. 

Staff or students requiring the use of high voltage equipment as part of their project or research, must inform their College/ PSU H&S Lead and a risk assessment is to be completed prior to the start of any work.  

Familiarise yourself with the emergency stop switches for the equipment in your work area and ensure you know where the main switches are.

For all emergencies call Security on 333 or your SafeZone app.

It is your responsibility to evacuate yourself from a building in the event of a fire alarm activation.  Should you have a disability which you would require assistance to evacuate safely from a building, please refer to advice below on Perosnal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs).

You should familiarise yourself with the emergency evacuation routes, exits and fire assembly points for the building you are occupying at the University.  Directional signage is provided to assist you in identifying the escape routes and exits in an emergency situation.

If you have any concerns in relation to fire safety within your buildings you should report this initially to your Faculty/ PSU H&S Advisor or direct to the University's Premises Safety and Compliance Manager, Andrew Hillier.

In the event of a fire alarm activation:

All staff and students will be required to immediately evacuate their buidling should the fire alarm sound.  If you see smoke, flames or smell buring and the fire alarm has not yet been activated then:

• Raise the alarm immediately by breaking the glass of the nearest emergency alarm call point (red box).
• Immediately call 999 when you have exited the building and give the location of the fire, state which campus and building. Then contact the University Security and Campus Response Team on 333 or 01792 513333 to inform them of the situation.

On evacuating the building due to the fire alarm being sounded then:

• Close your workplace doors and windows (if safe to do so) when leaving the building.
• When clear of the building, proceed to the fire Assembly Point for the building and await further instruction from the Incident Controller (Security Supervisor).
• If you have any information relating to persons still remaining in the building then notify the Incident Controller (Security Supervisor) as soon as you can.
• Portable firefighting equipment (fire extinguishers)are located in all buildings to aid safe evacuation.

Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs):

If you have a condition that affects your ability to evacuate the building a personal plan can be developed to support you to evacuate a building safety.  The plan will be tailored to your specific requirements and developed in liaison with you. For advice and support in developing your PEEP contact the Wellbeing and Disability Service.  Alternatively, email the Health Safety and Resilience Team. 

Fire prevention is part of your responsibility:

• Only use electrical extension leads if permission is obtained from Estates and Campus Services (E&CS) - fully extend coiled extension leads prior to use.  Extension leads are not be 'daisy changed' together.
• Check electrical appliances for damage before use.  Report if equipment is damaged or does not have a portable appliance (PAT) test sticker on it.
• Smoking is not permitted within 5 metres of a building and only allowed on campus in designated zones.
• Make sure cigarettes and matches are fully extinguished and placed in the bins provided.
• Ensure all waste is disposed of safely in line with the University Waste Management Plan.  Do not accumulate large amounts of waste.
• Take good care to maintain a general clean and safe work environment by keeping areas tidy and removing hazards, such as cables (trip hazard) and paper piles (fire hazard).
• Never ignore a potential hazard, even if it is not in your work area.
• Do not wedge open fire doors.
• Do not cover smoke detector heads.
• Do not use toasters/ microwaves or portable grills in offices/ redidential rooms.  These must be located in designated kitchen areas.
• Do not use portable electric heaters without authorisation from E&CS.

 Many gases are highly flammable and if you smell gas you must:

• Notify everyone in the area and evacuate the vicinity. Inform Security – ring 333 or use the SafeZone app.
• Do not sound the fire alarm or switch on/ off any electrical devices.
• If it is safe to do so, turn off the source of gas if you can identify it.

Supporting Documents

Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) Guidance Note

Fire Assembly Points - Singleton Campus

Fire Assembly Points - Bay Campus

Legionella pneumophila (and related bacteria) is a bacterium that can cause legionnaires’ disease a potentially fatal form of pneumonia. Initial symptoms include high fever, chills, head and muscle pain. Infection is usually caused by breathing in small droplets of water contaminated by the bacteria. Although the disease can affect anybody, some people are at higher risk e.g. those over 45 years of age, smokers, heavy drinkers, those suffering from chronic respiratory or kidney disease, and people whose immune system is impaired.

The legionella bacteria are naturally present in the environment. However, if bacteria are allowed to thrive and grow, the risk of Legionnaire’s disease will increase. Legionella bacteria survives low temperatures and thrive at temperatures between 20-45°C if the conditions are right e.g. nutrients are present such as rust, sludge, scale, algae or other bacteria.

All suspected legionella cases must be reported to the Health & Safety Team immediately who will notify the HSE if required. Action will then be decided on a case-by-case basis.

Colleges/ PSUs have a specific obligation under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH) to assess the risk of exposure to substances hazardous to health with appropriate controls put in place to manage any risks. This includes biological agents such as legionella.  

Within your Colleges/ PSU you need to first identify what equipment/ systems are used that could pose a legionella risk. As with any hazard, you then need to assess the risk and eliminate it or control it. Responsibility for operating, maintaining and ensuring the safety of College/ PSU ‘owned’ equipment/ systems rests with the College/ PSU. This includes assessing any legionella risks associated with the equipment/ system’s operation. As part of this process it is recommended risk assessments are discussed with the Fire & Premises Manager/ Compliance Officers so appropriate controls can be developed and introduced.

The Fire & Premises Manager will also be able to source external advice on legionella risks associated with specialist or higher risk equipment if required. 

Legionella Awareness training is available to you, take a look at our training pages.

Supporting Documents

Find out more about Legionella.

Legionella- Procedure for Flushing Infrequently Used Taps

Legionella - Infrequently Flushed Taps Form