Research

Evaluation

In 2008 the HSE Board asked a Steering Group to oversee an independent evaluation of measures taken to strengthen director leadership of health and safety. The Group's concluding report and the research that it had conducted are below:

• Steering Group's report to the HSE Board
• Evaluation of guidance for directors and board members (RR695)
• Circumstances under which government guidance impacts on the actions of directors of corporate bodies (RR817)
• Organisational behaviour (directors) research (RR816)
• Second evaluation of guidance for directors and board members (RR815)

Effectiveness

Evaluation of the effectiveness of measures, both legislative and non-legislative, on director responsibility.

In 2005, the Government asked the Health and Safety Commission and Executive to evaluate the effectiveness of current measures, both legislative and non-legislative, on director responsibility. HSC/E commissioned research to enable a review of all the available evidence.

The review of evidence comprised the following pieces of research

• A response to the CCA report Making companies safe: what works? Greenstreet Berman (RR332)
• Director leadership of health and safety – review of literature – Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) (HSL/2005/21)
• Directors' responsibilities for health and safety: the findings of two peer reviews of published research (RR451)
• A survey of the use and effectiveness of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 as a legal sanction against directors convicted of health and safety offences
• Health and safety responsibilities of company directors and management board members: 2001, 2003 and 2005 surveys (RR414) Published 2006. Brings together the results of three surveys on the extent to which there was board level direction of health and safety in large private and public sector organisations. The research showed that the percentage who report that health and safety is directed at a board level, had risen from 58% in 2001 to 70% in 2005.
• International comparison of health and safety responsibilities of company directors – Centre for Corporate Accountability (RR535)

Director involvement

Back to the Floor: Director involvement in workplace health and safety – RoSPA

The Commission debated the need for director leadership and reviewed the evidence at meetings in December 2005 and April 2006. It replied to Government as follows:

• Commission letter to ministers – December 2005
• Commission letter to ministers – May 2006

Corporate governance

Defining best practice in corporate occupational health and safety governance – Acona Ltd (RR506) published 2006

Case studies

• Leadership and worker involvement on the Olympic Park
• Case studies that identify and exemplify boards of directors who provide leadership and direction on occupational health and safety (RR450) published 2006.
• Case studies that identify and exemplify boards of directors who provide leadership and direction on occupational health and safety (RR499) published 2006.

Public reporting

HSE has published several pieces of research that measured the extent of public reporting. The most recent was:

Study of the public reporting of occupational health and safety performance in 2005 by UK businesses with over 250 employees (RR515) published 2006.