Guidelines for HSE inspectors on ‘ALARP’

HSE is reviewing the ‘as low as reasonably practicable’ (ALARP) guidelines for inspectors, which were published in 2001 with minor updates in 2003. These pages set out guidelines and principles to help HSE inspectors reach decisions about the control of risks and make clear what they should expect from dutyholders.

HSE enforcement action is proportionate to the risks to people and to the seriousness of the breach of law. Visit the Enforcement Policy Statement[16] for HSE’s general principles and approach. The Enforcement Management Model[17] gives a framework to support consistent decisions on whether to take enforcement action and what type.

You can find HSE’s previous historical guidelines to help inspectors (from 2001) on the National Archive.[18]

Reducing risks, protecting people (R2P2)

‘Reducing risks, protecting people: HSE’s decision-making process’ document was published by HSE in 2001.

This document includes HSE’s Tolerability of Risk Framework. HSE is currently working on publishing this framework in webpages. This is part of the ongoing updates to the HSE website to ensure that content is accessible and supports transparency on how HSE regulates. There is no intent to change the principles embedded in this framework.

You can find R2P2 (2001) on the National Archive.[19]

Link URLs in this page

  1. How HSE regulateshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/index.htm
  2. Overview - Our role as a regulatorhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/our-role-as-regulator.htm
  3. Strategy policy and lawhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/strategy-policy-legal.htm
  4. Advice and guidancehttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/advice-information-guidance.htm
  5. Influencing and engaginghttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/influencing-engaging.htm
  6. Permissioning and licensinghttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/permissioning-licensing.htm
  7. How we inspecthttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/how-we-inspect.htm
  8. When and how we investigate https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/when-how-investigate.htm
  9. Overview - Enforcement actionhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcement.htm
  10. Enforcement Policy Statement (EPS)https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcepolicy.htm
  11. Enforcement Management Model (EMM)https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcement-management-model.htm
  12. Working with other regulatorshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/working-with-other-regulators.htm
  13. Expert guidance on risk managementhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/expert/index.htm
  14. Register of convictions and noticeshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/convictions.htm
  15. Resourceshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/resources.htm
  16. Enforcement Policy Statementhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcepolicy.htm
  17. Enforcement Management Modelhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcement-management-model.htm
  18. You can find HSE’s previous historical guidelines to help inspectors (from 2001) on the National Archive.https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20230703110201/https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/expert/index.htm
  19. You can find R2P2 (2001) on the National Archive.https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20230703113731/https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/expert/r2p2.htm
  20. Managing risks and risk assessment at workhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/simple-health-safety/risk/index.htm

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Updated 2025-03-14->