Is a health and safety consultant the same as a competent person?

In many cases, yes.

UK employers must appoint one or more competent people to help them meet their health and safety duties. Where that knowledge or experience is not available internally, an external health and safety consultant can provide that support.

OJ Health & Safety can act as your competent person, giving you access to experienced health and safety professionals who understand your business and can provide practical advice when you need it.

The employer still retains overall legal responsibility, but having competent external support can give directors and managers greater confidence that risks are being properly identified, managed and reviewed.

The Health and Safety Executive provides further guidance on appointing competent health and safety help.

What can OJ Health & Safety help with?

Our consultancy support is designed around the real issues businesses face, rather than simply producing documents and leaving you to manage everything yourself.

Depending on your requirements, OJ can help with:

• Health and safety policies and procedures
• Risk assessments and method statements
• Workplace and site inspections
• Accident and incident investigations
• SSIP Accreditation Support
• Support following incidents, inspections or enforcement concerns
• Advice when premises, activities or working practices change
• Ongoing telephone and email advice
• Competent Person support
• Construction and CDM advice
• Wider compliance services including fire safety, asbestos, legionella and training

This means clients have one established consultancy they can turn to for both everyday health and safety questions and more specialist compliance support.

More than just health and safety paperwork

OJ Health & Safety does not believe good health and safety should be reduced to a folder full of generic documents.

Policies, risk assessments and procedures are important, but they need to reflect what actually happens within your business.

Our consultants focus on making sure:

• Documentation reflects real working practices
• Controls are sensible and proportionate
• Managers understand what they need to do
• Staff can realistically follow the arrangements put in place
• Documents are reviewed when circumstances change
• Problems are identified before they become incidents

The aim is simple: health and safety arrangements that work in practice, not just on paper.

When should you speak to OJ Health & Safety?

Businesses contact OJ for many different reasons.

You may need additional support if you employ staff, use contractors, operate multiple sites, work in a higher-risk industry or simply want reassurance that your current arrangements are suitable.

We regularly support businesses in sectors including construction, property, manufacturing, warehousing and commercial environments, where health and safety responsibilities can quickly become more complex.

You may also benefit from speaking to us if:

• You are unsure whether your current arrangements meet legal requirements
• Your business has grown and your existing systems have not kept pace
• You have had an accident, near miss or enforcement concern
• Your clients are requesting stronger health and safety documentation
• You need someone available to answer day-to-day health and safety questions
• You want independent reassurance that your business is managing risk properly

Why many businesses choose retained health and safety support

Health and safety is not something that can usually be completed once and forgotten about.

Businesses change. People change. Equipment, premises, contractors and working practices change too. Guidance and legal requirements can also develop over time.

OJ’s retained health and safety consultancy gives clients ongoing access to professional support rather than having to find a consultant every time an issue arises.

It also means we get to know your business, your people and the way you operate, allowing our advice to become much more relevant than a one-off generic assessment.

What do you get with OJ’s retained consultancy service?

Our retained clients have access to a wider health and safety support service designed to help them manage compliance throughout the year.

Depending on the level of support required, this can include:

• Access to competent health and safety advice
• Health and safety policy support
• Risk assessment and RAMS assistance
• Regular reviews and compliance support
• Advice following accidents and incidents
• Support with contractors and clients
• Help preparing for inspections and audits
• Ongoing advice as the business changes

Instead of waiting until something goes wrong, clients have somebody they can contact when they need an answer.

Why choose OJ Health & Safety?

OJ Health & Safety has been supporting businesses since 2007 and works with hundreds of organisations across Yorkshire and throughout the UK.

Our consultancy is led by Chartered health and safety expertise and supported by experienced consultants working across construction, property, commercial and higher-risk environments.

But qualifications are only part of the reason businesses choose OJ.

Clients come to us because they want straightforward advice, responsive support and a consultancy that understands the realities of running a business.

We can also provide access to a much broader range of compliance services, including:

• Health and Safety Consultancy
• Competent Person support
• CDM and Principal Designer support
• Fire Risk Assessments
• Fire safety services
• Asbestos surveys and consultancy
• Legionella risk assessments
• CITB and health and safety training
• CSCS testing
• HR support
• EPC and environmental services

That breadth means businesses do not necessarily need separate providers for every area of compliance.

Is OJ Health & Safety suitable for small businesses?

Yes.

A large proportion of the businesses we support are small and medium-sized organisations that do not have an internal health and safety department.

For these businesses, employing a full-time health and safety professional may not be practical. Retained consultancy provides access to experienced support without the cost of building a dedicated in-house team.

We can scale the level of support around the size, sector and risk profile of the organisation rather than offering a one-size-fits-all service.

Do OJ Health & Safety consultants support higher-risk businesses?

Yes.

OJ has extensive experience supporting construction companies, contractors, property organisations, manufacturing businesses and other workplaces where health and safety risks require more active management.

This experience means our advice is grounded in real working environments rather than purely theoretical compliance.

Where specialist support is required, our wider services in areas such as CDM, asbestos, fire safety and legionella can also be brought into the same relationship.

How do I know if my current health and safety arrangements are good enough?

A few simple questions can help identify whether additional support may be worthwhile:

• Are your risk assessments suitable, sufficient and current?
• Does your health and safety policy reflect how your business actually operates?
• Are responsibilities clearly assigned?
• Are accidents and near misses properly reviewed?
• Are contractors being managed effectively?
• Would you feel confident if the HSE or another enforcing authority visited tomorrow?
• Do managers know who to contact when they have a health and safety question?

If the answer to any of these is unclear, it may be worth having your arrangements reviewed.

OJ Health & Safety can assess your current position, identify any gaps and recommend a proportionate level of support based on what your business actually needs.