Health and Safety Matters 

The Regulations apply to all building projects, regardless of size and duration.  Clients must ensure that a project is set up to control risks to health and safety of those who may be affected.  The client has overall responsibility and the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor provide support.

Who is a Client?

A client is the organisation or individual for whom the project is carried out. This includes local authorities, project originators of PFI projects and charities. Domestic clients procuring work on their own home are now included within the CDM Regulations, but special arrangements apply.  It is to be noted that a residential landlord is not a domestic client and must comply with the Regulations.

What Clients Must Do for All Projects

Make suitable arrangements so that health, safety and welfare are secured.  Arrangements should be proportionate to the size of the project and risks arising.

Appoint Designers (including the Principal Designer) and Contractors (including the Principal Contractor) and ensure that:

• the roles, functions and responsibilities of the team are clear.
• sufficient resources and time are allocated.
• members of the project team communicate, coordinate and cooperate.
• the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor comply with their duties.
• the health and safety performance of Designers and Contractors is maintained.
• construction workers are provided with suitable welfare facilities.

Notifiable Projects

If the construction work is scheduled to last longer than 30 working days and have more than 20 workers working simultaneously at any time or exceed 500 person days, the client must give notice in writing to Health and Safety Executive before construction and include prescribed information (detailed in Schedule 1 to the Regulations).

Further Duties of the Client

Provide information to Designers and Contractors (such as asbestos survey reports) which the client may have or may reasonably obtain.

Check that the Principal Designer is carrying out his or her duties.

Ensure that the Principal Contractor produces a Construction Phase Plan, setting out how they shall manage health and safety on site.  The Plan should be project specific and proportionate to site risks.  Residents living around construction works, such as when common areas are refurbished, need to be considered.

Ensure that the arrangements made for management of health and safety during the Construction Phase are working successfully.

As the project nears its end, the client should check arrangements for completion and handover. 

At the end, obtain and maintain the Health and Safety File and provide the information in the File to those carrying out future construction, demolition, cleaning or maintenance work on the building or structure.  There is an ongoing obligation to keep the File up to date and provide it to new owners or leaseholders.

The client needs to take an active part in projects.  Guidance is available from HSE and the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor are there to assist and advise.

Cameron Miller is Associate DIrector at Keegans