In line with the Buckinghamshire Council (BC) Health and Safety Policy Headteachers, Corporate Directors, Service Directors, Managers and Supervisors are responsible for:

• ensuring incidents are reported; investigated as necessary, follow up actions taken and preventative measures implemented.
• ensuring the School/Directorate/Service has an adequate number of key staff trained across Service Areas to record incident details on the AssessNet system.
• ensuring that all staff know when and how to report an accident/incident/near miss for their School/Directorate/Service/Establishment/Team.
• nominating 2-3 lead reporters within each Directorate and who will collate incident data as required by Corporate Directors and Service Directors. This data may typically be requested on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis. Schools may choose one person to collate this data for the Governing Body.
• ensuring they are made aware of any major incidents or unsafe working practices by Managers along with remedial actions undertaken by Managers or Supervisors.

All BC employees and employees in maintained schools are responsible for:

• reporting any health and safety incidents or issues to their Headteacher, Manager or Supervisor. Any shortcoming they consider to be in the interest of health, safety and welfare arrangements are also to be escalated.

BC Health and Safety Advisers will:

• receive notifications of RIDDOR incident reports and investigate as appropriate if required.
• compile and analyse incident data and present to Corporate Health and Safety and Workforce Matters meetings.
• provide training, guidance and instruction to users of the incident reporting system.

Incidents to be recorded include the following:  

1.1  Definitions:

For the purpose of the incident reporting system AssessNet an incident will encompass everything that happened during an event.  An incident can therefore contain any combination of injuries, occupational diseases / illness and dangerous occurrences.

Accident – is an undesired, unplanned incident that resulted in injury, damage or loss to persons or property.   

Near miss – is an undesired, unplanned incident that did not result in injury, damage or loss to persons or property but had the potential to do so. Examples such as; unsafe working practices, a ceiling tile falling and narrowly misses hitting someone.

Near misses must be reported on AssessNet.

Workplace Violence

Any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work is an act of workplace violence. This includes physical and non-physical acts such as verbal abuse or physiological trauma.

Cases where someone is subjected to verbal abuse or where threats are made can be recorded on the AssessNet system under “Violence was involved, but no injury”. If there was an injury this can be recorded under injuries and Violence can be selected as the apparent cause.

1.2   What must be recorded on AssessNet?

All work related incidents must be reported via AssessNet.

This includes:

• Incidents arising out of, or in connection with, work activities;
• Work related incidents that occur away from any BC or school premises such as site visits or educational visits;
• Road traffic accidents that occur whilst on work business (not including a normal commute to work).

Incidents involving Non-employees (members of the public such as; visitors, contractors, clients and pupils,) should also be reported if they:

• occur on BC or school premises or as a result of a BC activity.
• relate to the medical condition of the non-employee which has been caused by the work activity, for example person with known allergies being exposed to nuts, or someone with epilepsy being exposed to strobe lighting.

Note: If first aid is provided, details should be recorded in the First Aid log.

1.3   What does not need to be recorded on AssessNet?

• Minor scrapes, bumps, cuts and bruises which are not as a result of an incident do not need to be recorded on AssessNet;
• Where first aid treatment is provided for minor bumps and scrapes, the first aider will record details in the First Aid log.
• Road traffic accidents while commuting to and from work;
• An event related to a medical condition of an employee unless caused by the work activity, for example person with known allergies being exposed to latex, persons with epilepsy being exposed to strobe lighting.

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) is the law that requires employers, and other people in control of work premises, to report and keep records of:

• work related incidents which cause death
• work related incidents which cause certain serious injuries (specified reportable injuries)
• diagnosed cases of certain industrial Occupational illnesses / diseases and;

Certain ‘dangerous occurrences’ as outlined in RIDDOR

When deciding if the incident or injury is work-related, the key issues to consider are whether the incident was related to:

• the way the work was organised, carried out or supervised;
• any machinery, plant, substances or equipment used for work; and
• the condition of the site or premises where the accident happened.

2.1 RIDDOR Reportable Deaths

All work related deaths to employees and non-employees must be reported immediately to the HSE on 0345 300 9923 and the; 

NB: A report of the work related death must be received by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) within 10 days of the incident.

2.2 RIDDOR Reportable Specified Injuries

 To Employees:

• Fractures other than to fingers or toes
• Amputation
• Permanent blinding or reduction in sight
• Crush injury to head or torso
• Serious burns or scalding covering more than 10% of the body or damage to eyes, respiratory system or other vital organs
• Scalping
• Loss of conscious caused by head injury or asphyxia

Further guidance on specified injuries can be found in the link below:

HSE Reportable Specified Injuries

Over seven day injuries to employees

An incident is RIDDOR reportable when an employee, or self-employed person, is away from work or unable to perform their normal work duties for more than seven consecutive days. This seven day period does not include the day of the incident, but does include weekends and rest days.

The report of the specified injury must be made within 15 days of the accident to the HSE.

To non-employees

Work related incidents involving members of the public or people who are not at work must be reported if a person is injured, and is taken from the scene of the incident to hospital for treatment to that injury. There is no requirement to establish what hospital treatment was actually provided and no need to RIDDOR report incidents where people are taken to hospital purely as a precaution when no injury is apparent.

2.3 RIDDOR Reportable Occupational Illnesses and Diseases

Employers and self-employed people must report diagnoses of certain occupational diseases, where these are likely to have been caused or made worse by their work. A reportable disease must be diagnosed by a Doctor.

These reportable diseases include:

• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: where the person’s work involves regular use of percussive or vibrating tools
• Cramp of the hand or forearm: where the person’s work involves prolonged periods of repetitive movement of the fingers, hand or arm
• Occupational dermatitis: where the person’s work involves significant or regular exposure to a known skin sensitiser or irritant
• Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome: where the person’s work involves regular use of percussive or vibrating tools, or holding materials subject to percussive processes, or processes causing vibration
• Occupational asthma: where the person’s work involves significant or regular exposure to a known respiratory sensitiser
• Tendonitis or tenosynovitis: in the hand or forearm, where the person’s work is physically demanding and involves frequent, repetitive movements

Further guidance on specified injuries can be found in the link below:

HSE Reportable Occupational Diseases

2.4 RIDDOR Reportable Dangerous Occurrences

Dangerous Occurrences are certain, specific events as outlined under the RIDDOR Regulations. The following list contains what is required to be RIDDOR reportable.                                                                          

Reportable Dangerous Occurrences

Examples include:

Major collapse of structure, scaffolding or lifting equipment

Explosion of closed vessel or causing serious fire

Release of any substance or biological agent which may cause damage to health

Plant or equipment coming into contact with overhead power cables

Collision of a train with a vehicle

Further guidance on specified injuries can be found in the link below:

HSE Reportable Dangerous Occurrences

2.5 Riddor Reportable Gas Incidents

Distributors, fillers, importers & suppliers of flammable gas must report incidents where someone has died, lost consciousness, or been taken to hospital for treatment to an injury arising in connection with that gas. Such incidents should be reported using the ^[9]  Report of a Flammable Gas Incident - online form

Registered gas engineers (under the Gas Safe Register,) must provide details of any gas appliances or fittings that they consider to be dangerous, to such an extent that people could die, lose consciousness or require hospital treatment to the HSE via the appropriate form.

• Each Directorate/Service/School will have designated reporters who have access to the AssessNet system and will record incident details. 
• The following forms are available to print if required: Injury form, Near misses, Dangerous Occurrence, Occupational Illnesses / Diseases, Property Damage, Violence and Incident Investigation forms for use as required. These templates are located in the Health and Safety Policies section 3.1 (a-g) and available on the AssessNet system.
• A reporter will log the incident details on the AssessNet system. The Incident Centre refers to the School, Directorate and Service Area of the affected person.  The physical location where the incident actually occurred is a free text box and this must be completed.  Confirmation will be received by e-mail.
• The reporter will forward the confirmation e-mail to the affected persons’ Headteacher, Manager / Establishment Manager / Supervisor in order to obtain details of follow up actions, witness statements and investigations and add these to the report when received back.
• Headteachers, Managers and Supervisors are responsible for ensuring that;
  • incidents are investigated as necessary;
  • follow up actions have been taken and preventative measures implemented within a realistic timeframe.
  • details of any remedial action taken and days lost from work are sent to the reporter who will update the incident record
  • in the event of a death or serious incident, information is escalated to senior management and the Health and Safety Team.
• A member of the BC Health and Safety Team will follow up and investigate certain incidents as appropriate, but the onus is on Line Managers to record, report and investigate incidents and to ask for assistance if required. 
• The level of detail of an investigation should be based on an assessment of how likely it is a similar event will occur and the seriousness of the incident (actual or potential harm). Minor injuries or near misses should not be ignored as these are often indications that a more serious incident is possible.
• As a minimum, the Line Manager and any person involved in the incident should be involved in the investigation.  For more serious incidents (or potentially serious ones) senior Managers or specialist advisers may need to be involved.

For establishments, centres and depots, it may useful to have a supply of paper copies of the incident reporting forms readily available for employees to complete which can be passed on to the designated reporter.  Managers must ensure that staff are aware of the incident reporting procedures for each place of work.  Mobile workers will also need a procedure for reporting.

New reporters can be set up on the system by emailing healthandsafety@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

Guide 1

Incident / near miss guide

Guide 2

5.0 Reporting Employee related incidents to the Health and Safety executive

Guide 3

6.0 Reporting members of the public (MOP) / Pupil related incidents to the Health and Safety executive (RIDDOR) reportable

Buckinghamshire Council's Health and Safety team via healthandsafety@buckinghamshire.gov.uk  

HSE website RIDDOR

RIDDOR Reporting

Reporting injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences in health and social care

RIDDOR Reporting for Social Care

RIDDOR Incident reporting in schools (accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences)

RIDDOR Reporting for Schools

Refer to the index for appendices with templates which can be printed as required for reporting and investigation.