Storage Kingsbury Health and Safety Policy
Storage Kingsbury is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for all employees, customers, contractors and visitors. This policy sets out our approach to managing health and safety risks across our storage facilities and removal operations. We aim to prevent injury and ill health by identifying hazards, assessing risks, and putting effective control measures in place.
Policy Objectives
The objectives of this Health and Safety policy are to protect people, property and the environment, to comply with applicable health and safety legislation and industry best practice, to ensure that our storage and removal activities are planned and carried out safely, and to promote a positive health and safety culture across the business.
All employees are required to co-operate with these objectives and to take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions.
Management Responsibilities
Senior management is responsible for establishing, maintaining and reviewing this Health and Safety policy and associated procedures, ensuring that appropriate resources, training and supervision are provided, setting clear safety standards for storage operations, handling of goods, vehicle movements and removal activities, and regularly monitoring performance and implementing improvements where necessary.
Managers and supervisors must ensure that safe systems of work are in place, that risk assessments are completed and kept up to date, and that employees follow agreed procedures at all times.
Employee Responsibilities
Every employee has a duty to work safely and to support our health and safety standards. Employees must follow all safety instructions, procedures and training, report hazards, near misses, incidents and unsafe conditions to their manager, use equipment, tools and vehicles only as trained and authorised, and wear any required personal protective equipment when carrying out tasks such as loading, unloading and manual handling.
Employees must not intentionally misuse or interfere with anything provided in the interests of health and safety.
Risk Assessment and Safe Working Procedures
Storage Kingsbury will carry out suitable and sufficient risk assessments for all significant hazards associated with storage units, handling of customer goods, operation of vehicles and equipment, and removal and delivery services. These assessments will consider the nature of items being stored or moved, manual handling requirements, access routes, working at height where relevant, and any environmental or seasonal risks.
Safe working procedures will be developed from these assessments and communicated clearly to employees and, where appropriate, to contractors and customers. Procedures will be reviewed regularly and updated when changes to operations or equipment occur.
Manual Handling and Lifting
Manual handling is a key part of storage and removal activities and presents a significant risk of injury if not managed correctly. Storage Kingsbury will minimise manual handling where reasonably practicable through the use of appropriate equipment such as trolleys and lifting aids, carry out manual handling risk assessments and plan lifting tasks in advance, ensure that employees receive suitable training in safe lifting techniques, team lifting and load assessment, and ensure that loads are stored and stacked safely to prevent collapse and reduce strain injuries.
Employees must not attempt to lift or move loads that are beyond their capability or training and should seek assistance or equipment when required.
Vehicle Movements and Removal Operations
Vehicles, including removal vans and customer vehicles, are an integral part of our service. To reduce risks associated with vehicle movements, Storage Kingsbury will manage traffic flow within sites to separate vehicles and pedestrians where possible, use signage and markings to indicate loading areas, speed limits and access routes, ensure that drivers are competent, appropriately licensed and familiar with site rules, and require safe loading and securing of goods during removal and transport operations.
Reversing and manoeuvring should be controlled and, where practical, supported by a trained guide. Customers and visitors must observe site traffic rules and instructions from staff.
Safe Storage Practices
Storage units and communal areas will be maintained and managed to reduce risks of fire, trips, falls, and damage to property. Storage Kingsbury will provide guidance to customers on safe stacking, weight limits and prohibited items, monitor common areas, corridors, loading bays and stairways to keep them free from obstruction, maintain lighting, signage and flooring in good condition, and take prompt action to remedy reported defects.
Customers are expected to comply with site rules and to ensure their goods are stored in a manner that does not create risk to staff, contractors or other customers.
Fire Safety and Emergency Procedures
Storage Kingsbury will maintain appropriate fire safety arrangements, including detection systems where provided, alarms, clear fire evacuation routes and assembly points, and identified fire wardens where applicable. Emergency procedures will cover evacuation, incident reporting and liaison with emergency services.
Employees will be given information and, where necessary, training on emergency procedures. Customers and visitors must familiarise themselves with fire exits and follow staff instructions during any emergency.
Health, Welfare and First Aid
We are committed to providing suitable welfare facilities and first aid arrangements for employees and visitors. This includes access to sanitary facilities and drinking water, provision of first aid equipment and designated first aiders where required, and procedures for responding to accidents, injuries and sudden illness on site.
All accidents and incidents will be recorded, investigated where appropriate, and used to identify trends and improvements.
Information, Instruction and Training
Storage Kingsbury will provide employees with adequate information, instruction and training relevant to their work and the risks involved. This may include induction training, manual handling and vehicle safety training, and task-specific training for removal, loading, unloading and equipment use.
Training needs will be reviewed regularly and refresher training provided where necessary to ensure that knowledge and competence are maintained.
Contractors and Visitors
Contractors working on site must comply with this Health and Safety policy and with any site-specific rules and instructions. Storage Kingsbury will take reasonable steps to ensure that contractors are competent and have appropriate safety arrangements in place.
Visitors and customers must follow safety signage and any directions given by staff. Children and pets must be supervised at all times and kept away from loading areas, vehicles and equipment.
Monitoring, Review and Continuous Improvement
Compliance with this Health and Safety policy will be monitored through inspections, audits, incident analysis and feedback from staff and customers. Senior management will review the policy periodically to ensure that it remains effective, relevant and aligned with legal requirements and industry standards.
Storage Kingsbury is committed to continuous improvement in health and safety performance and expects all employees, contractors and customers to support this aim by reporting concerns, suggesting improvements and promoting safe behaviours throughout our storage and removal operations.
