University reaps financial rewards of health and safety
17:25 - 23/08/2011
University reaps financial rewards of...
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) have highlighted the huge £75,000 annual saving made by an English university as a result of its new wellbeing scheme.
The leading health and safety body is hoping that Leeds Metropolitan University, one of the largest in the UK with over 30,000 students, can act as a positive example for other companies and organisations and demonstrate the financial benefits of keeping staff healthy and safe.
The ground-breaking wellbeing programme was implemented over two years ago by John Hamilton, the Head of Safety, Health and Wellbeing at the university. Mr Hamilton, a member of IOSH, launched the scheme in order to tackle issues such as high absenteeism.
The scheme centres on an innovative self-help website for both staff and students, which features advice, support and guidance in over 200 topics. In addition to the £75,000 saved in wages every year, the scheme has also seen the number of stress-related absences decrease by 16% and the accident/incident rate fall well below the sector average.
The scheme’s success comes as IOSH continues its ‘Life Savings’ campaign, which aims to demonstrate that a good, sensible approach to health and safety can be a driver for growth. IOSH representatives are now urging employers to learn from the university and concentrate on the moral and financial rewards of following good health and safety practice.
Michelle Muxworthy, IOSH Yorkshire Branch Chair, said: “Any British business that doesn’t take good health and safety seriously is missing a trick, whether it is part of the public, private or third sector. Potentially, they are losing out on hundreds of thousands of pounds just because they haven’t got the right health and safety strategies in place.
“Leeds Metropolitan University’s wellbeing programme is already proving to be a benchmark for other organisations. It has gone through a culture change, cutting lost-time and absenteeism, while making a saving that, for other businesses, could be the difference between survival and failure – crucial in the current economic climate.”
First Response Training is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of health and safety training for the workplace, offering a wide range of courses for all industry sectors, from first aid to
manual handling to food hygiene and infection control.
Perry Leeks, Managing Director at First Response, says: “Workers who lead unhealthy lifestyles or follow unsafe practices can end up costing employers up to £3 billion a year. Organisations who care about staff welfare and maintain a positive culture of good, sensible health and safety practice will find that they benefit financially from increased productivity and a reduction in employee sickness and downtime.
“Health and safety training is not unnecessary expense; it actually helps businesses save money in the long run, as well as making staff feel valued and protected and potentially saving lives.”
Call First Response Training today on free phone 0800 310 2300 to find out more.
The leading health and safety body is hoping that Leeds Metropolitan University, one of the largest in the UK with over 30,000 students, can act as a positive example for other companies and organisations and demonstrate the financial benefits of keeping staff healthy and safe.
The ground-breaking wellbeing programme was implemented over two years ago by John Hamilton, the Head of Safety, Health and Wellbeing at the university. Mr Hamilton, a member of IOSH, launched the scheme in order to tackle issues such as high absenteeism.
The scheme centres on an innovative self-help website for both staff and students, which features advice, support and guidance in over 200 topics. In addition to the £75,000 saved in wages every year, the scheme has also seen the number of stress-related absences decrease by 16% and the accident/incident rate fall well below the sector average.
The scheme’s success comes as IOSH continues its ‘Life Savings’ campaign, which aims to demonstrate that a good, sensible approach to health and safety can be a driver for growth. IOSH representatives are now urging employers to learn from the university and concentrate on the moral and financial rewards of following good health and safety practice.
Michelle Muxworthy, IOSH Yorkshire Branch Chair, said: “Any British business that doesn’t take good health and safety seriously is missing a trick, whether it is part of the public, private or third sector. Potentially, they are losing out on hundreds of thousands of pounds just because they haven’t got the right health and safety strategies in place.
“Leeds Metropolitan University’s wellbeing programme is already proving to be a benchmark for other organisations. It has gone through a culture change, cutting lost-time and absenteeism, while making a saving that, for other businesses, could be the difference between survival and failure – crucial in the current economic climate.”
First Response Training is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of health and safety training for the workplace, offering a wide range of courses for all industry sectors, from first aid to
manual handling to food hygiene and infection control.
Perry Leeks, Managing Director at First Response, says: “Workers who lead unhealthy lifestyles or follow unsafe practices can end up costing employers up to £3 billion a year. Organisations who care about staff welfare and maintain a positive culture of good, sensible health and safety practice will find that they benefit financially from increased productivity and a reduction in employee sickness and downtime.
“Health and safety training is not unnecessary expense; it actually helps businesses save money in the long run, as well as making staff feel valued and protected and potentially saving lives.”
Call First Response Training today on free phone 0800 310 2300 to find out more.
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