Science and research FAQs

The Chief Scientific Adviser is assisted by an external science assurance group, the Science Quality Assurance Group (SQAG) whose members are aligned to the science needs for HSE’s strategy. SQAG reports directly to the Chair of HSE.

SQAG supersedes the external review process (archived external reviews 2007-2012).

There is further information on WHEC and its remit in the committee section regarding Workplace Health Expert Committee (WHEC).

The health and safety system in Great Britain aims to ensure that risks in the changing workplace are properly controlled. One of the six strategic themes in the Help Great Britain Work Well Strategy (2016) is Keeping Pace With Change: anticipating and tackling new health and safety challenges. HSE's Foresight Centre undertakes futures activities that contribute to the strategic themes. The Foresight Centre identify and analyse trends and emerging issues and consider their potential to affect health and safety. When HSE's futures capability is combined with its unrivalled knowledge and expertise of health and safety, it can help Great Britain to tackle the anticipated problems of tomorrow, today.

HSE's science and evidence procurement policy is to ensure that science and evidence is contracted efficiently and effectively to maximise value for money, ensure financial probity and further our health and safety interests. Wherever possible, HSE aims to commission science and evidence in partnership with relevant industries and stakeholders, and collaborates with national, international and EU programmes. HSE science is primarily carried out by our specialists at our Buxton laboratory, Bootle headquarters, and our Chemicals Regulations Division, (CRD) in York, as well as by contractors from private industry, consultants, government laboratories and universities.

Funding comes from HSE's grant in aid from government, shared research and commercial sources. HSE does not award research grants.

Further information on research procurement can be found at Contract opportunities.

HSE has developed a statement for the implementation of the Government Chief Scientific Adviser's 'Guidelines on the use of scientific and engineering advice in policy making.

HSE is committed to providing open access to peer-reviewed papers describing research we have funded.

From 1st January 2014, we have made ALL HSE-led research published as scientific papers in peer-reviewed journals and comparable conference proceedings open access, wherever the publisher gives this option. This policy implements, for HSE, the UK Government's commitment to improving access to publicly funded research.

The majority of publications authored by HSE are subject to ©Crown Copyright. Their access, download and re-use are governed by the terms of the Open Government Licence (OGL) which can be viewed at: nationalarchives.gov.uk/. Open access articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence.

A full list of publications can be found on the HSL website. We publish lists of peer-reviewed publications resulting from research we have fully, or jointly, funded, in the Annual Science Review 2018.