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Health and safety in higher education: Fatal and serious incident management

It is vital that universities adhere to regulations to ensure the health and safety of staff, students and visitors.

This includes providing a safe and healthy environment for work and study, identifying and managing risks, and providing appropriate training and information to staff and students.

Serious incident management

We provide advice on all aspects of investigation and prosecution. This includes dealing with police and regulator requests for disclosure, internal investigations (legal privilege), interviews under caution and subsequent representation before the criminal court and at inquests.

We have extensive experience of advising across a wide range of criminal, regulatory and compliance areas from the outset to the conclusion of a case.

Effective preparation is key, that’s why we offer bespoke support, so that you and your key stakeholders are well informed and well equipped with the plans and processes to manage incidents confidently.

Get in touch to find out how we can deliver a bespoke training session for your organisations.

What we do

You’ll learn:

  • What’s involved in a regulatory investigation.
  • Who needs to be involved.
  • How to deal with regulators confidently.
  • Common themes in police and Health and Safety Executive investigations and prosecutions.
  • Key elements of the investigation so you can understand and prepare.
  • Consequences of failure or breaches of duty.
  • The role of the Office for Students and its powers.

We’ll share with you our experiences and practical tips on:

  • RIDDOR.
  • Police primacy and other regulators support.
  • Taking witness statements, Section 9 CJA 1967 and legal support i.e. comment on policies, training, etc.
  • Seizure of documents and PACE 1984.
  • Consent, DPA 2018, confidentiality and legally privileged materials.
  • Compulsory powers and Section 20 HSWA 1974.

We’ll discuss who and what might be involved, including:

  • The police.
  • HSE and other regulators.
  • Coroner.
  • Claimants.
  • Insurers.
  • Third parties i.e. press, FOI and experts.
  • Internal investigations and legal privilege.
  • Professional bodies and unions.
  • Disciplinary investigation.
  • Serious case review.

We’ll talk to you about your current plans and processes for managing a serious incident to ensure it’s robust and fit for purpose:

  • Outline a plan.
  • Agree key internal stakeholders.
  • Identify key external contacts.
  • Set out regulatory powers, ensure you’re well informed.
  • Set out a framework for what investigation involves.
  • Key steps to consider:
    • Who to contact.
    • Record keeping.
    • Example report framework.
    • Remedial measures.
    • Lessons learnt.

Key contact

Expertise