Gardeners Bankside Health and Safety Policy

Gardeners Bankside is committed to providing gardening and grounds maintenance services in a way that protects the health, safety, and welfare of our employees, contractors, clients, visitors, and the public. This policy sets out our approach to managing risks arising from our work, including general gardening, landscaping, planting, lawn care, hedge cutting, tree work within our competence, and the use of tools, machinery, and substances associated with these activities.

Policy Aims

The aim of this Health and Safety Policy is to prevent injury and ill health arising from our gardening operations and to create safe working environments at all sites where we operate. We will do this by identifying hazards, assessing risks, implementing effective controls, and promoting safe working practices for all tasks, from routine garden maintenance to more specialised horticultural work.

Management Responsibilities

Senior management at Gardeners Bankside has overall responsibility for health and safety. Management will lead by example, provide resources, and ensure that health and safety considerations are built into all planning and operational decisions. This includes assessing the suitability of work methods, tools, machinery, and materials used on both residential and commercial gardening projects.

Managers and supervisors will ensure that all gardeners and support staff understand their duties, follow safe systems of work, use equipment correctly, and report any concerns without delay. They will monitor working practices on site, address unsafe behaviours, and arrange refresher training when required.

Employee Responsibilities

All employees and regular contractors of Gardeners Bankside share responsibility for maintaining a safe working environment. Every individual must take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions during gardening activities.

Employees are required to follow training and instructions, use personal protective equipment provided, operate tools and machinery only when competent to do so, report hazards, defects, incidents, and near misses, and co operate fully with accident investigations and site specific safety requirements.

Risk Assessment and Safe Systems of Work

Before starting gardening or landscaping tasks, Gardeners Bankside will assess the risks associated with the work. This includes evaluating terrain, access, slopes, underground services, overhead hazards, traffic movement, weather conditions, and client specific features such as ponds, steps, walls, and fragile surfaces.

Risk assessments will inform safe systems of work. These may include the selection of appropriate tools and machinery, safe working distances, the use of barriers and signage, traffic management arrangements, manual handling methods to reduce strain injuries, and emergency procedures. Risk assessments will be reviewed regularly and whenever there is reason to believe they are no longer valid.

Training, Supervision, and Competence

Gardeners Bankside will ensure that all personnel are competent to carry out the tasks they are assigned. This includes providing induction training on general health and safety, job specific training for gardening tasks such as hedge trimming, lawn mowing, planting, strimming, and clearance work, and instruction on the safe use of machinery and powered tools.

Where work involves higher risk activities, such as working at height or the use of specialist equipment, only trained and competent individuals will be authorised to carry out the work. Less experienced staff will be supervised closely until they are deemed competent to work independently.

Tools, Machinery, and Equipment

All gardening tools, machinery, and equipment used by Gardeners Bankside will be suitable for the task, properly maintained, and checked regularly. Faulty or damaged equipment must be removed from service immediately and reported to management for repair or replacement.

Employees will be instructed in correct operation, cleaning, and storage procedures for equipment such as lawn mowers, hedge trimmers, leaf blowers, strimmers, and hand tools. Guards and safety devices fitted by the manufacturer must not be removed or bypassed, and equipment will only be used in accordance with its intended purpose.

Chemicals, Substances, and Environmental Considerations

Where gardening work involves the use of substances such as fuels, oils, fertilisers, or approved garden chemicals, Gardeners Bankside will assess the risks and implement appropriate control measures. Only trained personnel will handle such substances, following product instructions carefully.

We will seek to minimise the use of potentially harmful substances wherever reasonably practicable, and will store and dispose of them responsibly to protect people, wildlife, plants, and the wider environment. Spillages will be contained and cleared promptly using safe methods.

Personal Protective Equipment

Gardeners Bankside will provide suitable personal protective equipment free of charge where risks cannot be adequately controlled by other means. This may include gloves, safety boots, eye protection, hearing protection, high visibility clothing, and weather appropriate outerwear.

Personnel must use the protective equipment provided, keep it in good condition, report any loss or damage, and request replacements when needed. The choice of equipment will be based on risk assessment and the nature of the gardening work undertaken.

Working at Height and Access

Where gardening tasks require work at height, such as pruning, hedge cutting, or accessing raised beds and structures, Gardeners Bankside will take steps to prevent falls. Only suitable and well maintained access equipment will be used, and ladders or platforms will be positioned securely on stable ground.

Work at height will be avoided where safer alternatives exist, and it will be carried out only by competent individuals following site specific safety arrangements. Weather conditions will be considered, and work will be postponed if it cannot be carried out safely.

Traffic, Public Areas, and Client Premises

Much of our gardening work takes place in areas accessible to the public or close to vehicles, roads, and footpaths. Gardeners Bankside will take care to protect clients, neighbours, passers by, and other contractors from risks arising from our activities. This may include the use of barriers, cones, warning signs, and designated working zones.

We will respect client premises and gardens, keeping work areas tidy, securing tools and machinery when not in use, and leaving sites in a safe condition at the end of each visit.

Accidents, Incidents, and Emergency Response

All accidents, injuries, near misses, and dangerous occurrences involving Gardeners Bankside staff or activities must be reported promptly to management. We will investigate incidents to understand causes and implement corrective actions to prevent recurrence.

First aid provision will be available, and personnel will be informed of emergency procedures relevant to the gardening sites where they are working. This includes knowing how to summon assistance if an incident occurs.

Monitoring, Review, and Continuous Improvement

Gardeners Bankside will monitor health and safety performance through site inspections, incident reviews, maintenance records, and feedback from staff and clients. Lessons learned will be incorporated into updated procedures, training, and risk assessments.

This Health and Safety Policy will be reviewed regularly, and whenever there are significant changes to legislation, our organisation, or the nature of the gardening work we undertake. We are committed to continuous improvement in health and safety as an integral part of delivering reliable, professional gardening services.