The Revitalising Health and Safety Strategy Statement stated at Action Point 2 that:

"The Health and Safety Commission will promote publication of guidance, by March 2001, to allow large businesses to report publicly to a common standard on health and safety issues. The Government and the Health and Safety Commission challenge the top 350 businesses to report to these standards by the end of 2002, and will then work to extend this to all businesses with more than 250 employees by 2004."

See below for further text from Strategy Statement on Annual reports

HSC document

CCA response

HSC Final Document

Excerpt from DETR Strategy Statement

Action Point 2
The Health and Safety Commission will promote publication of guidance, by March 2001, to allow large businesses to report publicly to a common standard on health and safety issues. The Government and the Health and Safety Commission challenge the top 350 businesses to report to these standards by the end of 2002, and will then work to extend this to all businesses with more than 250 employees by 2004.

42. An analysis of health an safety coverage in the annual reports of companies in the FTSE 100 was carried out by the charity 'Disaster Action' in 1996. This showed that roughly half of these reports covered health and safety in some way, with wide variation in the quality of reporting.

43. In line with the approach adopted on environmental reporting, were there are some excellent examples, Ministers wish to seek to encourage more widespread reporting on a voluntary basis in the first instance. However, Ministers are minded to move to a compulsory regime if good progress is not made against this action point.

44. It is anticipated that the new guidance on annual reporting will encourage companies to include details of their health and safety policies, numbers of reported incidents and details of any enforcement action. Ministers attach particular importance to details of prosecutions , fines and statutory notices being made public. Many of the unions responding to our consultation argued for auditable standards for reporting the costs of health and safety failures and the benefits of health and safety failures and the benefits of health and safety interventions. The feasibility of this proposal will be considered in working up guidance.

45. The Royal society for the Prevention of Accident is taking forward a new initiative called Director Action on Safety and Health (DASH). One aspect of this work is to be a consultation on encouraging best practice in measurement and reporting (both internally and externally) of health and safety performance and plans.

46. The Company Law Review, which includes within its remit an examination of the legal framework for company accounting, reporting and disclosure, may also make proposals relevent to company reporting on health and safety. The Review, which was launched by the Department of Trade and Industry in 1998, is overseen by a steering group of independent experts. It is due to make its final report in Spring 2001

Back