Confined Space Safety Legislation

With the introduction of the 'Health and Safety at Work act 1974' section 16(1) came a radical overhaul of the law recognizing the existence and definition of a confined space and the potential hazards that it presents. Ongoing revision of the current legislation in the UK now makes it your responsibility as an employer to ensure the safety of your employees. The Health and Safety Executive will enforce and prosecute any employer they conceder to be criminally negligent and will push for the maximum sentence.

As defined by the Health and safety Executive, in the 1997 confined space regulations act, a : "confined space" means any place, including any chamber, tank, vat silo pit, trench pipe sewer, flue, well or other similar space in which, by virtue of its enclosed nature, there arises a reasonably foreseeable specified risk;

Under these regulations a confined space has two defining characteristics, firstly, it is substantially (although not necessarily entirely) enclosed, and secondly, there is present a foreseeable risk of serious injury from the local environment or hazardous substances.

Some confined spaces are easily identifiable, sewers, vessels and closed tanks for example, whereas others may be less obvious yet equally as dangerous, open topped tanks and vats, closed and inadequately ventilated rooms or storage silo's to name but a few. Some places may only classify as confined spaces temporarily due to the work undertaken, or local environmental or mechanical changes for example, a room during spray painting or ships holds, silos or vats.

In addition to those listed above, as defined by the Health and Safety Executive, a confined space may include: ducts, culverts, tunnels, boreholes, bored piles, manholes shafts, excavations, sumps, inspection pits, cofferdams, fright containers, ships cargo holds/tanks, ballast tanks, double bottoms, buildings, building voids, some enclosed rooms (particularly plant rooms) and compartments within them, including some cellars, enclosures for the purpose of asbestos removal, and interiors of machines, plant or vehicles.

However application and interpretation of confined space legislation to any of these places will depend on the presence of a reasonably foreseeable risk of serious injury.

A 'foreseeable risk' is defined as a combination of the confined nature of the work space and the possible presence of substances or conditions, which combined, could increase the risk to the health or safety of persons Working within.

Remember, what may be conceded safe practice in an open space, could be potentially hazardous in a confined space.

Most likely hazards could be: Toxic gases, fumes or vapours, flammable substances, oxygen enrichment/depletion, ingress or presence of liquids or solids that can flow and presence of excessive heat.