A good start will be to carry out an internal audit on all areas that will need to be part of an OHSAS audit by identifying hazards and carrying out risk assessments.

You may have the expertise within your company to develop the system. Alternatively you may wish to employ someone from an external source who has experience in implementing health and safety management systems and can advise you on what is needed to achieve 18001 accreditation. ACS Registrars have UKAS certification  so before you start contact us to find out more.

You will need support from the entire management team to implement processes across all areas of the organisation. Some things you will need to consider:

• Planning and establishing a framework
• Establishing roles and responsibilities
• Processes for hazard identification and risk assessments
• Reporting and monitoring
• Documentation
• Emergency procedures
• Measure and constantly improve processes
• Performance reviews
• Understanding legal obligations
• Staff training requirements
• Establish OHSAS checklist

OHSAS 18001 Regular Auditing Procedure

Regular audits will be carried out to check processes are being followed and documentation is kept up to date. During the audit you will be assessed on:

• Documentation control
• Records being kept
• Staff and management conformance to the system
• Implementation of operational controls
• How the system is working in each area of the organisation
• Staff training necessary to meet the requirements

The audit can be undertaken by a number of Certification bodies, however it is important to note that not all auditing organisations are UKAS accredited. If you do not use a UKAS accredited auditor your certification could end up being worthless. Please check out the British Government Department BIS for clarification: http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/innovation/standardisation/non-accredited-certification