Why does COSHH matter?

CoSHH, or to give it it’s full name, the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 are UK workplace health and safety regulations aimed at protecting employees from the risks of exposure to hazardous substances. 

Its important as it aims to prevent ill health, and even death from exposure to hazardous substances within workplaces, this can be from dusts, vapours, liquids, fumes and even some microorganisms which can cause infection. 

Despite this legislation being in place for a long time, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) statistics for 2024 show that 12,000 people are dying from lung disease deaths each year and that these are estimated to be linked to past exposures at work. This means that workers are being exposed and that businesses still don’t have the controls in place that they need to protect them.

What does the law say?  

As an employer, you have to assess risks, put control measures in place and maintain them to prevent exposure to hazardous substances. You need to monitor exposure levels, provide health surveillance and train employees on safe handling. Plus, you have to have procedures for emergencies involving hazardous substances. 

How do you carry out a COSHH assessment?  

COSHH risk assessments for products are created using information found on the safety data sheet (SDS). The SDS is provided by the seller or manufacturer of the product upon request and contains hazard statements, firefighting information and first aid instructions for each route of exposure.  

For non-manufactured hazardous substances, such as welding fumes or silica dust, the HSE has safety data sheets for various types which can be used to create your COSHH assessment.   

Who can carry out a COSHH assessment? 

A COSHH assessment should be carried out by a competent person who has the right skills, knowledge and experience to identify hazards and assess risks associated with hazardous substances. This could be a trained employee, a Health & Safety officer or an external consultant. The key is that the assessor must understand the specific processes and substances involved in your workplace.  

An e-learning course is available on Atlas for the basics of COSHH.  

How to be compliant with COSHH regulations 

• Keep SDS at most recent version and review COSHH assessments regularly. 

• Share COSHH assessments with those handling the substances.  

• Practise hierarchy of control by using the least hazardous version of a product.  

• If you have to use PPE (which should be a last resort) to protect people, you need to supply it free of cost.  

• Provide anyone exposed to hazardous substances with health surveillance.  

• Provide employees with training on the use of hazardous substances. This could be through a toolbox talk on a specific substance.  

• Establish emergency procedures for dealing with an exposure to hazardous substances.  

The Principles of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH)

Eliminate

• Can you complete the task without using or producing the hazardous substance?

Substitute

• Is there an alternative less hazardous substance you could use instead?

Engineering Controls

• Does LEV need to be put in place?
• Can a barrier/guard be put in place to segregate the substance from people?
• Can the process using or producing the substance be automated?

Administrative Controls

• Do you have the most recent manufacturer’s SDS?
• Have you shared the findings of the COSHH assessment with all relevant people?
• Have you set a review date relevant to the level of risk the substance presents?

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)/Respirable Protective Equipment (RPE)

• Have you identified a requirement for PPE or RPE from the findings of the COSHH assessment?
• Are arrangements in place to store PPE/RPE correctly?
• Have you trained employees on the safe use of PPE/RPE, including when to replace such items?