The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) is working with the Farm Safety Partnership (FSP) and farmers and growers across the country to reduce the number of accidents on farms.
From October to December 2020, the focus is on working at height.
The FSP is sharing guidance on how best to approach any work at height, following these key messages:
- Avoid roof work or work at height maintaining buildings;
- Do as much as you can from the ground;
- Use a professional contractor with the knowledge, skills, equipment and experience to safely work at height on buildings;
- Avoid doing the work yourself;
- Where maintenance work at height cannot be avoided, plan ahead to make sure you have the right equipment and training;
- Don’t be tempted to use the wrong equipment.
NFU vice president and FSP chairman Stuart Roberts said:
“This is the time of year when many farmers look to do general maintenance around the farm.
While we farmers like to consider ourselves a jack of all trades, we need to start asking ourselves: What if the shoe was on the other foot? Would we let a builder grow our crops or care for our livestock?
“This is even more important at the moment as many of us are coping with additional pressures from the coronavirus, Brexit uncertainty and the challenging weather, and it’s easy to overlook the smaller things when we’re distracted.
“Whether it’s finding a way to do the job from the ground, investing in training staff or hiring a professional contractor, all it takes is a bit of planning to make sure we have the right people, the right training and the right equipment for the job at hand.
“A safe workplace is not only crucial for our welfare and the welfare of our employees, but for the sustainability of our businesses too,” he concluded.
