Managing Safely (IOSH)

IOSH Managing Safely is a practical occupational health and safety training programme designed for managers, supervisors and team leaders who are responsible for managing people and workplace activities. Managers have an important responsibility to ensure that employees work in safe conditions and that organisational health and safety procedures are properly implemented.

However, effective safety management requires more than simply knowing the rules. Managers must understand how to identify hazards, assess risks, implement appropriate control measures, investigate incidents and monitor workplace safety performance.

This course provides participants with the practical knowledge and tools needed to integrate health and safety into their everyday management responsibilities. It is designed to make health and safety management understandable and applicable, even for managers who have no previous formal health and safety training.

Who should attend this course?

The course is suitable for:

• Departmental managers.
• Operations managers.
• Project managers.
• Construction managers.
• Site managers.
• Security managers.
• Facilities managers.
• Production managers.
• Warehouse managers.
• Supervisors and team leaders.
• Business owners responsible for workplace operations.

What participants will learn

The programme covers seven important learning areas.

1. Introducing Managing Safely

Participants are introduced to the principles of managing occupational health and safety.

They explore why effective safety management is important to organisational success and how managers influence the safety culture of their workplaces. This section explains the relationship between workplace safety, employee wellbeing, productivity and business performance.

Participants also learn about the responsibilities associated with their management positions and why health and safety should form part of everyday operational decision-making.

2. Assessing risks

Risk assessment is one of the most important responsibilities in workplace health and safety management. Participants learn how to identify hazards, determine who might be affected and evaluate the level of risk associated with different workplace activities.

They explore the importance of considering both the likelihood of an incident occurring and the possible severity of its consequences. For example, a manager overseeing a warehouse should assess the risks associated with forklift operations, storage arrangements, pedestrian movement and manual handling.

Participants also learn why risk assessments should be reviewed when workplace conditions, equipment or working procedures change.

3. Controlling risks

Identifying risks is only the first step. Managers must also ensure that suitable measures are implemented to prevent or reduce harm. This section explores the selection and implementation of appropriate risk control measures.

Participants learn about different approaches to controlling workplace hazards, including eliminating hazards, substituting dangerous materials or processes, introducing engineering controls, establishing administrative procedures and providing appropriate personal protective equipment.

For example, instead of relying only on protective helmets in a construction environment, management should also consider barriers, safe access systems and procedures that prevent objects from falling in the first place.

The module helps managers understand how to choose controls that are effective and appropriate for their working environments.

4. Understanding responsibilities

Managers need to understand their legal and organisational responsibilities for maintaining workplace safety.

This module explores the duties of employers, managers, supervisors and employees. Participants learn why organisations must establish clear responsibilities, provide appropriate training, maintain safe working conditions and ensure that employees understand the procedures they are expected to follow.

The course also examines the importance of accountability and communication in effective health and safety management. Where organisations operate in Ghana, the training provider should relate these responsibilities to the applicable Ghanaian occupational health and safety legal framework.

5. Understanding hazards

This module develops participants’ ability to recognise different types of workplace hazards.

These may include:

• Fire and electrical hazards.
• Chemical and biological hazards.
• Noise and vibration.
• Manual handling.
• Machinery and equipment.
• Working at height.
• Slips, trips and falls.
• Workplace stress and health-related hazards.
• Environmental hazards.

Participants learn how different hazards can affect employees and how managers can establish appropriate measures to prevent injuries and occupational illnesses. The knowledge gained can be applied in offices, factories, construction sites, warehouses, hotels and other working environments.

6. Investigating incidents

Workplace accidents and near misses should be investigated to understand what happened and prevent similar incidents from happening again.

This module introduces participants to the principles of incident investigation. They learn how to collect relevant information, examine evidence, interview witnesses where appropriate and identify the underlying causes of incidents. The course also helps participants understand the difference between immediate causes and underlying or root causes.

For example, if an employee slips and falls, the investigation should go beyond identifying the wet floor. It should also establish why the floor became wet, whether warning signs were provided and whether the inspection and cleaning procedures were adequate.

Participants learn how to use investigation findings to recommend corrective actions and improve workplace safety.

7. Measuring performance

Effective health and safety management requires continuous monitoring.

This module introduces participants to ways of measuring whether their organisation’s safety arrangements are effective. They explore the use of workplace inspections, audits, accident records, employee feedback and safety performance indicators.

Participants also learn the difference between monitoring activities that help prevent incidents and reviewing information about incidents that have already occurred.

Examples of performance indicators include:

• Number of reported workplace accidents.
• Number of near misses reported.
• Completion of workplace safety inspections.
• Employee safety training completion rates.
• Implementation of corrective actions.
• Compliance with established safety procedures.

The aim is to help managers use evidence to identify weaknesses, monitor progress and improve workplace safety. These seven areas are identified in the official IOSH Managing Safely course information. IOSH +1

Course duration and assessment

• Duration: Three days for the full course.
• Delivery: Classroom, online or hybrid, depending on the provider.
• Assessment: Includes examinations and a practical workplace risk assessment.
• Certification: Successful participants receive an IOSH Managing Safely certificate.

IOSH also provides a one-day refresher course for people who have already completed the full Managing Safely programme. IOSH +1

Benefits of completing the course

Participants should be able to:

• Manage workplace health and safety more effectively.
• Identify hazards and assess workplace risks.
• Implement appropriate risk control measures.
• Understand their management responsibilities.
• Investigate accidents and near misses.
• Monitor and evaluate safety performance.
• Improve employee safety awareness.
• Reduce workplace accidents and disruptions.
• Support compliance with applicable safety requirements.
• Build a stronger organisational safety culture.

Overall course objective

The main objective is to equip managers and supervisors with practical health and safety management skills that enable them to protect employees, control workplace risks and improve organisational safety performance.