More business checks to take place to make sure workplaces are Covid-secure

Blackburn with Darwen Council are again joining up with the Health and Safety Executive to carry out Covid spot checks on local businesses.

We are working with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to make sure firms in the borough are Covid-secure and to help tackle coronavirus in the local area.

The checks will start to take place from Monday, February 15^th.

The HSE will first of all make phone calls to businesses to talk through their precautions. If the business doesn’t engage with this process then inspectors will be sent to the premises to carry-out an inspection.

During the checks on businesses The Council gives advice and guidance to manage risk and protect staff, customers and visitors – but where some businesses are not managing this, we will take immediate enforcement action.

This can range from specific advice, enforcement notices, stopping certain work practices until they are made safe and, where businesses fail to comply, this could lead to prosecution.

You can check if your business is Covid-secure and find out what to do if you have any cases of Covid-19 in your workplace here:

https://www.blackburn.gov.uk/coronavirus/support-business

For further information on how to manage the risk of coronavirus in different business sectors please read the government guidance.

Councillor Phil Riley, Deputy Leader of the Council, said:

These further checks show that we and the HSE are taking the issue of workplaces being Covid-secure very seriously. We have been linked with local businesses and firms in the borough to make sure they are following the guidelines and the vast majority are doing this.

It is a legal duty for businesses to protect their staff and customers and this includes taking important steps to control the risk and protect people from coronavirus. This helps to keep us all safer and helps the entire community by taking away unnecessary risks and minimising transmission of the virus.”

For the latest information and safer business guidance, see www.gov.uk

Any concerns or issues can also be reported to: publicprotection@blackburn.gov.uk