The conference was designed to ensure that the people who drive our business are up to speed with the latest thinking with regard to safety, health and the environment

Serious about SHE

An annual conference held on 13 March for all senior managers and directors underlined our commitment to safety, health and the environment.

Our in-house behavioural change programme, MAD (Making A Difference), has been the catalyst for impressive safety results. In just three years our AFR has tumbled from 0.5 to 0.16 (0.12 for direct employees), accident costs are down 75% - and productivity is up 33%.

Our award-winning safety record is now one of the best in construction and engineering.

The conference was designed to ensure that the people who drive our business are aware of current legal and regulatory requirements   - and up to speed with the latest thinking with regard to safety, health and the environment. The event was also an opportunity for managers from different parts of the country to meet and exchange ideas.

Speakers included: Bernie Catterall from Human Applications, one of the UK's largest risk management consultancies; Susan Firth, a business psychologist, occupational stress expert and behaviour analyst; Claire Corfe from CLIP (the Construction Lean Improvement Programme); and Tom Ellis from the Environment Agency.

Other topics covered during the day included business improvement, cultural change (our 'Be the best' programme) and corporate assurance.

Chris Heath, Director of BISHE, said: "We had a full house and the feedback was incredibly positive - not always the case for a 'health and safety' event.

"This really illustrates that we are coming at this from a different direction to most - and that our approach is paying off. This positive feedback also came from the speakers who visit many different organisations."