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Electrical Safety Maintenance and Checking Policy

All reasonable steps will be taken to secure the health and safety of employees who use, operate or maintain electrical equipment in this home. The home acknowledges that working with electrical equipment can be hazardous and it is the organisation’s intention to keep the risks to within acceptable levels. 

• The person responsible for implementing this policy is the care home manager.
• When a problem arises related to electricity at work, employees must inform a responsible person immediately and the manager will take necessary measures to investigate and remedy the situation.

The organisation is committed to ensure that all electrical equipment meets the safety requirements of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 so that employees, customers service users and visitors are not exposed to danger.

In order to fulfil this duty, the following conditions will apply.

• No person may carry out work on any electrical equipment, including the fitting of plugs, fuses and lamps, unless they have been suitably trained. Only competent persons trained and authorised by the organisation will be allowed to carry out these tasks.
• Work on all electrical equipment (fixed, portable or transportable) will be carried out so that it does not constitute a risk to employees or any other persons.
• It is the responsibility of [name or job title of person responsible] to ensure that any employee or contractor undertaking work on electrical equipment is suitably qualified and classified competent by the organisation.
• Work on or near live conductors will not be permitted without the authorisation of [name or job title of person responsible].
• All reasonable precautions will be taken to ensure that live conductors are isolated before work commences.
• Employees and/or contractors who work on or use electrical equipment should always ensure that all:
  • electrical equipment is visually inspected for faults before use
  • portable electrical equipment has a valid and current test label attached to them (PAT)
  • leads and extension leads have a valid and current test label attached to them (PAT)
  • extension leads will be covered in walkways so they do not present a trip hazard.
• All electrical equipment in use will be maintained to a satisfactory standard to minimise risk to employees.
• The organisation will perform regular periodic tests on all electrical equipment in use and the findings will be recorded. These tests will be carried out either by internal competent staff or external contractors.
• Staff will carry out visual inspections prior to using all electrical equipment.
• Only competent persons will be allowed to test equipment. A record will be kept of each test and a tagging system will be used on all electrical equipment.
• Detachable leads must be tested separately and marked accordingly with a tag number. Only the power leads to computing equipment, printers, faxes, etc will be tested due to the risk of damage to the equipment.
• Wherever possible, trailing leads will be restricted from use. Any trailing lead in use will be tested separately. Visual inspections will be carried out before use and on a regular basis.
• Any electrical equipment found to be faulty will be taken out of service and clearly marked:

DO NOT USE — FAULTY.

• No personal mains-powered equipment will be used on any of the organisation’s’s premises unless permission has been given for its use by [name or job title of person responsible] and the equipment has evidence of a current valid test (displayed on an adhesive label on the lead or the equipment itself).

Reporting

All accidents or “near-miss” incidents involving electricity or electrical equipment should be reported to the care home manager and an appropriate form filled out. Forms will be reviewed by the care home management in collaboration with staff representatives on a regular basis.

Review and Revision

Regular checks of accident and “near-miss” incidents as well as annual auditing of the care home’s management systems for inspection, maintenance and use of electrical equipment should be conducted by the care home manager to help to identify whether the procedures for working with electrical equipment are sufficient. This policy will be reviewed and revised as required.

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Responsible Person: {{org_field_registered_manager_first_name}} {{org_field_registered_manager_last_name}}

Reviewed on: {{last_update_date}}

Next Review Date: {{next_review_date}}

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