Annual safety assessment procedure

Audience

Department-wide

Purpose

This procedure provides the minimum standard for conducting and managing the Department of Education’s (the department) Annual Safety Assessment (ASA) in schools, education centres and workplaces. The completed ASA will be used to identify corrective and preventative actions to facilitate continuous improvement of health, safety and wellbeing (HSW) performance and reduce HSW risk in schools, education centres and workplaces.

Overview

The ASA program is a key component of the department’s Health, Safety and Wellbeing (HSW) assurance processes. It is used to assist schools, education centres and workplaces to measure the implementation of and compliance with the department’s HSW Management System (HSWMS) (DoE employees only). Schools, education centres and workplaces are required to complete an ASA each year. Outcomes of the completed ASA contribute to annual operational planning activities and the prioritisation of resources in individual schools, education centres and workplaces, which will ultimately contribute to improving HSW performance and reducing HSW risks.

Responsibilities

All employees

• Comply with all reasonable instructions provided by their principal or manager in relation to conducting and completing the ASA for their work area
• Participate in any HSW training as required
• Contribute to the development, implementation and review of corrective and preventative actions from completed ASAs as required.

Health and safety advisor or delegated person

• Facilitate the completion of the ASA on behalf of the principal or manager. If the school, education centre or workplace does not have a health and safety advisor (HSA), the principal or manager is to delegate this task to another employee (delegated person)
• Provide the findings of the ASA to the principal or manager and the school, education centre or workplace HSW committee
• In consultation with the principal or manager, develop the ASA action plan and assist in the implementation of associated actions
• Participate in any HSW training as required.

Principals or managers

• If the school, education centre or workplace does not have a HSA, the principal or manager is to delegate the responsibilities of the HSA within this procedure to another employee
• Coordinate resources to enable the completion of the ASA
• Ensure that an ASA is planned, resourced and conducted each calendar year, including the development, approval and completion of the subsequent ASA action plan and associated actions
• Ensure the maintenance of accurate records related to the identification, assessment and control of hazards and risks
• Submit the completed ASA to the school, education centre or workplace HSW committee and Organisational Safety and Wellbeing unit (OSW) for recording and actioning.

Regional directors

• Monitor and ensure that schools, education centres and workplaces within their region complete the ASA each calendar year, develop action plans and complete actions within agreed timeframes.

School, education centre or workplace HSW committees

• Assist the HSA or delegated person and the principal or manager in planning, conducting and completing the ASA
• Assist the HSA or delegated person and the principal or manager to develop an ASA action plan to address the findings of the ASA
• Work with the HSA or delegated person and the principal or manager to implement the ASA action plan
• Monitor the completion of school, education centre, regional or divisional ASA action plans and associated actions.

Regional health and safety consultants

• Where required, support schools, education centres and workplaces to facilitate the ASA process and develop corrective and preventative actions.

Organisational Safety and Wellbeing unit, Human Resources Branch

• Receive and record completed ASAs from schools, education centres and workplaces in a central location
• Collate and review regional ASA data and report ASA performance as part of the department’s formal HSW performance reporting processes
• Provide tools and resources to support the completion of the ASA in compliance with HSW assurance processes.

Process

1. Planning and preparing for an ASA

• The following schools and designated workplaces will complete an ASA each calendar year:
  • Central Office – as a function of the Department’s Health Safety and Wellbeing Committee
  • Each regional office
  • Each school and education centre
• If the school, education centre or workplace does not have a HSA, the principal or manager will delegate the task of facilitating the completion of the ASA to another employee (delegated person)
• The principal or manager will plan and identify an appropriate time to conduct the ASA each calendar year. This includes the identification and allocation of time, dates, resources and personnel to conduct or assist in completing the ASA and implement approved actions
• In consultation with the principal or manager the HSA or delegated person will identify who will be involved in the ASA process. With principal or manager approval, they may allocate certain sections of the ASA to relevant employees (e.g. subject matter experts such as science, industrial technology and design staff, school and agricultural officers)
• The principal or manager will ensure that an ASA is conducted with follow up actions completed each calendar year
• The principal or manager will ensure that the HSA or delegated person is provided with sufficient time and resources to conduct the ASA.

2. Conducting the ASA

• The HSA or delegated person is to facilitate the completion of the ASA by completing the current ASA tool(DoE employees only)
• The HSA or delegated person must gather information across all twelve criteria within the ASA tool and where relevant, observations, evidence and findings are to be recorded
• Where necessary, relevant employees are to assist the HSA or delegated person in gathering information for the ASA
• On completion of the ASA, the HSA or delegated person is to collate the information gathered, and provide the ASA results to the principal or manager.

3. ASA review and approval

• The principal or manager is to review the completed ASA, associated findings and recommendations
• The principal or manager is to finalise and approve the ASA including, agreed findings and recommendations
• The principal or manager is to ensure that the completed ASA is tabled at the school, education centre or workplace HSW committee meeting for review, discussion and to report on completion.

4. ASA action plan development and approval

• The principal or manager is to develop an ASA action plan (embedded in the ASA tool) (DoE employees only) in consultation with the HSA or delegated person and HSW committee to address the findings and recommendations of the ASA
• The ASA action plan is to be developed and approved using the department’s ASA tool (DoE employees only), and should include, as a minimum:
  • a list of any issues and instances of non-compliance in the school, education centre or workplace
  • assigned corrective and preventative action(s) for each item and a priority level (P1, P2, P3, P4) for completion, based on the level of risk associated with each issue
  • a person or persons assigned to complete each corrective or preventative action and a nominated date for completion
• The principal or manager is to approve the final ASA action plan (DoE employees only) prior to implementation.

5. Communicate the outcomes

• The principal or manager is to communicate the outcomes of the ASA (including the action plan) to all employees at the school, education centre or workplace prior to the completion of the calendar year in which the ASA is conducted
• The principal or manager is to submit the completed ASA to the department’s Organisational Safety and Wellbeing unit prior to the end of the calendar year. This is done by clicking the submit button on the completed ASA tool.

6. Record keeping, monitoring and review

Monitor and review implementation of the ASA action plan

• All ASA action plans are to be monitored and reviewed each quarter, as a minimum, by the:
  • principal or manager;
  • HSA or delegated person; and
  • relevant school, education centre or workplace HSW committee.
• Items identified through the ASA that are unable to be resolved locally may be referred to the regional HSW committee in accordance with the Health, safety and wellbeing committees procedure
• Monitoring and review of the ASA action plan is to be a standing agenda item for each HSW committee meeting until all actions have been completed.

Record keeping

• The principal or manager of the school, education centre or workplace will ensure that:
  • completed ASAs and associated action plans are attached to their registered HSW committee in MyHR WHS;
  • as a minimum, each ASA action plan review is noted on the HSW committee minutes and updated ASA action plan(s) attached to the HSW committee meeting record in MyHR WHS as evidence of review;
  • records of each completed ASA and subsequent action plan are maintained in MyHR WHS.

7. Annual operational planning and prioritisation of resources

• Principals and managers are to utilise the outcomes of the ASA to inform HSW aspects of the operational planning process for the school, education centre or workplace for the next calendar year. In particular, the allocation of resources for HSW, scheduling of committee meetings, inspections, hazard and risk reviews, staff training and professional development, maintenance planning, budgeting and broader school, education centre or workplace planning
• The department’s Organisational Safety and Wellbeing unit will collate ASA data at a department level to inform strategic, department-wide HSW planning and resourcing.

Definitions

Legislation

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)

Delegations/Authorisations

• Nil

Other resources

• Health, safety and wellbeing committees procedure
• Annual Safety Assessment (DoE employees only)
• Annual Safety Assessment Tool – instruction video (DoE employees only)
• Health, Safety and Wellbeing Management System 2016-2020 (DoE employees only)

Superseded versions

Previous seven years shown. Minor version updates not included.

Nil