Health & Safety - A Guide for Homeowners Planning Work.
Paul Mulhern
This guide tells you what you need to know and do when you are having construction work done in your home. The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) developed this guide in light of new responsibilities for homeowners under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2013. The regulations apply to construction work that you pay to get done in your home. They do not apply to DIY (Do it yourself) jobs.
The responsibilities on home owners are quite rigorous and are set out in the document. Hofler Architects will guide you through the process and your responsibilities at the outset of a project.
What do the regulations mean?
The regulations mean that you have to appoint competent people to carry out construction work. For riskier and or longer jobs you must appoint competent project supervisors to oversee and co-ordinate safety. The role of the project supervisors of your work is very important. They co-ordinate the work of designers and contractors and make sure that the work is completed safely.
When works are being done in or near your home, you need to make sure that they don’t put you and your family at risk. The new regulations aim to reduce the number of people killed and injured while carrying out construction work. Specific requirements are set out in European law for those who hire people to carry out construction work as well as for construction workers themselves. The Construction Regulations put these requirements into Irish law.
What do you have to do?
By law, you have to:
- determine the competency of people doing paid construction work for you,
- appoint project supervisors if required,
- keep the safety file for the work as appropriate, and
- let the Health and Safety Authority know if your project is going to take longer than 30 days or more than 500 person days (person days mean the number of days the work takes multiplied by the number of people doing the work).
HSA Summary of what you have to do.
Contact Hofler Architects for further information: Contact Details.