Property Safety Policy
Policy Owner - Chief Executive
Accountable Lead - Director of Property Safety & Regeneration
Policy Level - Regulatory
Policy Reference - HS/2020/01/002
Link to Strategy - Over riding
Version Control:
V.1 – New Policy September 2020
V.2 – Updated 25.07.22
V.3 Updated 27.06.23
Effective from: July 2023
Effective till: July 2024
Approved by - Group Board July 2023
Consultation - KeepSafe Group, Property Safety Programme Board
Equality analysis - Part of H&S Policy EIA
Next review date - July 2024
Policy Statement
The objective of this policy is to keep our customers’ homes safe. Where this comes at a cost – financial, convenience, customer satisfaction – it is safety that drives our thinking.
1. Scope
1.1 This policy forms part of our corporate health and safety policy. It supports our corporate approach, setting out our commitments which:
a) keep safe all properties we own or manage, and
b) ensures that anyone who lives in, visits or works at our properties, including shared areas, is safe.
1.2 Similar policies do the same in relation to the wellbeing of our colleagues and to keeping our construction sites safe.
1.3 The commitments in 1.1 are defined as either ‘strategic’ or ‘operational’. That definition is based on a matrix which identifies those carrying the greatest risk: risks to the safety of customers, but also where the tensions are greatest between safety and cost and between safety and customer satisfaction and where the measures we adopt need to be both reasonable and practical. Our Board sets the strategic direction by putting in place those key commitments.
1.4 Supporting this policy are operational policies and procedures for each of the functional areas defined by the Board. These deliver:
• the strategic commitments the Board has set,
• operational commitments delegated by the Board, and
• the procedures that deliver both.
2 Responsibilities
2.1 The Board and the Executive, through the Policy Owner, ensure that the policy delivers our strategic objectives and reflects corporate values.
2.2 The Accountable Lead is accountable to the Executive for the effective implementation of the policy, providing assurance that the key principles established by the Board are reflected in our culture and practice.
2.3 The Accountable Lead is responsible for the operational delivery of the policy, ensuring that;
• The principles are achieved through appropriate team plans and objectives, and
• Policies and Procedures – with appropriate RACIs – translate the policy objectives into practice.
• Appropriate advice, support and training is in place for the safety team, and others responsible for requirements of this policy
2.4 Each of the supporting operational policies details responsibility for delivery, and their associated procedures set out in detail responsibilities for each task in that area of the Property Safety team and others with responsibilities for property safety.
3. Principles
3.1 ‘Great properties and places’ is one of our five strategic objectives, and the safety of those properties and places is fundamental to that goal.
3.2 Compliance with our statutory and regulatory obligations is a minimum. The commitments below deliver that, but also set out where, additionally, we go beyond that minimum because we consider it appropriate to the nature of our properties and customers, and because we can reasonably minimise risk further by doing so.
3.3 The Property Safety Commitments (ProSaC) schedule (annex 1) details the commitments we have agreed and the standards we have set. The ProSaC identifies which are ‘strategic’ commitments and which are ‘operational’ commitments.
3.4 The strategic commitments are agreed and reviewed by the Board annually through this policy. They deliver the following:
Managing the risk from fire:
• How we define the level of risk associated with each building
• How frequently we carry out risk assessments at each building
• How quickly we carry out works that mitigate risk
• The nature of the risk assessments we carry out
• The basis for deciding evacuation strategies from buildings
• Our appetite for allowing items to be placed in shared thoroughfares
• Our approach to providing alternative, shared, storage
Ensuring the safety of water:
• How we define the level of risk from legionella in our homes
• Our approach to managing that risk through checks and inspections
Managing electrical safety:
• How we define the risk of electrical faults in our homes and buildings
• How frequently we test the safety of hard-wired electrical supplies
• How quickly we carry out works to mitigate identified risks.
Managing the risk from asbestos:
• The extent to which we know where asbestos is present.
• How we define the level of risk when we know asbestos is present
• How frequently we review our knowledge or inspect known asbestos
• The action we take to mitigate different levels of risk asbestos presents
• How quickly we take that action
Managing the risk from gas and other fuels:
• How frequently we carry out gas safety checks
• How frequently we carry out check for oil and solid fuel appliances
• How we manage the risk from gas in empty homes
Managing all risks:
• Mitigating risks when we can’t get access to carry out safety checks
3.5 Further operational commitments are detailed in the ProSaC. Approval of these is delegated by the Board to the Executive Director of Property Services.
4 Application
4.1 We deliver the commitments above through the following:
• Fire Safety Policy
• Fire Safety Procedures
• Fire Evacuation Procedures
• Gas, Oil and Solid Fuel Safety Policy
• Gas, Oil and Solid Fuel Safety Procedures
• Water Safety Policy
• Water Safety Procedures
• Electrical Safety Policy
• Electrical Safety Procedures
• Lift Safety Policy
• Lift Management Procedures
• Mechanical Services Policy
• Mechanical Services Procedures
• Asbestos Safety Policy
• Asbestos Management Plan
• Radon Safety Policy
• Radon Management Plan
• CDM Procedures for all Curo owned property
5 Monitoring
5.1 Our Board will have assurance that we are providing safe homes and delivering the principles of this policy through:
• Annual Health & Safety report
• Quarterly Performance report dashboard
• Quarterly Property Compliance scorecard
• Risk and major incidents reports
5.2 Our Executive team will have assurance that our strategic objective of safe homes is being delivered by:
• Monthly Property compliance scorecard
• SHAW compliance quarterly scorecard
5.3 Our colleagues will have assurance that we are meeting our corporate commitments for safety through:
• Operational Excellence group monthly compliance scorecard
• Keep Safe Group monthly report
• Building Safety Oversite Group (BSOG) Monthly Key commitments and Operational scorecard.
5.4 Our customers will have assurance that the homes they live in and use are safe through:
• Annual Report
• Oversight Group: SHAW performance report and safety compliance scorecard
• Individual building safety communication
5.5 This policy will be reviewed every year.
6 Equality Impact Assessment
6.1 An equalities impact assessment of our Health and Safety Policy includes the Property Safety Policy in its scope.