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News – Safety harnesses and CDM

The recent judgement against Oxford Architects Partnership for breaching the CDM Regulations – see this link to the report on the Building Design website – is interesting primarily as it gives legal weight to the Health and Safety Executive’s view that safety harnessess should be considered as a last resort after all other methods of preventing falls have been eliminated.

This is already giving some architects problems as the HSE start to require handrails and balustrades in locations where harnesses have previously been considered acceptable – the edges of flat roofs accessible only for maintenance, for example.

News – CSCS Cards

Abridged from RIBA Practice Bulletin No.542 – 29 April 2010

The CSCS site safety card for professionals was re-launched this month following discussions with professional bodies through the Construction Industry Council. The new system claims to be much simplified for members of recognised professional bodies, including the RIBA.

Registered architects can apply for the Professionally Qualified Persons (PQP) card after they have passed the Management and Professional (MAP) health and safety test. All applicants must satisfy their respective professional body’s competency tests and should also be able to produce two years of CPD records. Further information is available in a CSCS brochure.

Read more about CSCS Cards on the ArchiMentor Knowledge page [subscribers only].