Do You Need a Written Health and Safety Policy With Under 5 Employees?

 Short answer: yes, you still need one. The 5 employee threshold changes how detailed it has to be, it doesn't remove the requirement altogether.


WHAT THE LAW ACTUALLY SAYS


Section 2(3) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires every employer to prepare a written statement of their general policy on health and safety, and to revise it as often as needed. That applies to every employer, there's no exemption for being small.


WHERE THE 5 EMPLOYEE NUMBER COMES IN


The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 is where the size threshold actually appears. If you employ five or more people, you need to record your full arrangements in writing too: who's responsible for what, and how the policy is actually put into practice day to day. Under five employees, you still need the written policy statement itself, you just aren't legally required to formally document every arrangement behind it, although doing so properly is still worth it if you ever need to show an inspector or an insurer what you actually do.


WHAT IT ACTUALLY NEEDS TO SAY


A policy that will hold up needs three things: a general statement of your commitment to health and safety, who in the business is responsible for what, and the practical arrangements for how safety is actually managed, risk assessments, training, reporting incidents, and so on. A one paragraph statement pinned in a break room and nothing else won't cut it if it's ever actually tested.


WHY IT MATTERS EVEN IF NO ONE'S CHECKING


In practice, nobody comes round checking small businesses have a policy unless something's gone wrong or you're bidding for a contract that requires you to show one. But that's exactly when it matters most: after an accident, or when a client wants proof you take this seriously before they'll work with you.


GETTING ONE WRITTEN PROPERLY


If you've got under 5 staff and know you should have a proper policy but haven't got round to it, or the one you have was copied from somewhere years ago, I write UK health and safety policies for small businesses, tailored to what you actually do. You can see the packages here: https://www.fiverr.com/tonycarlyon/write-a-professional-health-and-safety-policy-for-your-uk-small-business

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