What training, qualifications and refreshers are needed to be considered competent in health and safety, and how can this be evidenced?

There’s no single qualification that makes someone legally competent. Competence comes from a mix of knowledge, training, and experience for the risks involved. This can include formal training (IOSH/NEBOSH) or role-specific training, evidenced through clear records.

How often does health and safety training need to be refreshed, including for fire wardens and competent persons?

UK law doesn’t set fixed refresher periods. Training must be kept up to date, meaning it should be refreshed when risks, activities, equipment, or laws change. Many organisations choose annual updates for fire wardens, first aiders, and competent persons.

What health and safety documents need to be kept, reviewed and recorded, and how do you show they’re up to date?

Employers should keep risk assessments, fire assessments, policies, training records, accident reports, and equipment checks. Use clear review dates, version control, and update notes to provide a clear audit trail.

How should organisations encourage and record near miss, risk and incident reporting?

Reporting works best when it is simple and blame-free. Using an easy, secure digital system ensures consistency. All incidents and near misses should be recorded with actions noted to show learning and prevention steps are being taken.

What risk assessments are required for office based organisations, and who can carry them out?

Office-based businesses usually need general workplace, fire, and DSE assessments. In low-risk environments, a competent person within the business (like HR or management) can carry these out without needing an external specialist.

What risk assessments are required for remote and hybrid workers, and how can they be carried out in practice?

Employers must assess risks for remote work, typically through DSE and homeworking risk assessments. These are often completed via self-assessment with clear guidance, and should be reviewed when working arrangements change.

How should employers manage health and safety risk for staff working on customer or third party sites?

Employers should request site-specific risk assessments from the third party. If unavailable, the employer should assess the risks themselves, brief staff on hazards, and ensure they know how to report concerns or stop work if unsafe.

What are the PAT testing requirements for remote and distributed teams, and how can this be managed in practice?

There is no legal requirement for a fixed PAT testing schedule. Equipment must be safe and maintained. For remote teams, use a mix of visual checks, guidance, and occasional testing when equipment is replaced or brought into the office.

What are an employer’s responsibilities for risk assessments - especially for fire safety - in shared or rented premises?

Responsibilities are shared; landlords usually cover common areas, while employers are responsible for areas they control. Employers must ensure suitable risk assessments and fire procedures are in place and communicate with landlords regularly.

What requirements need to be met for team members who are self-employed or contractors?

Employers must check contractor competence, share risk information, and agree on responsibilities. While contractors manage their own work, the employer must coordinate and cooperate to ensure everyone's safety.

Is third party sexual harassment for employees an HR matter or health and safety?

It is both. Under the Worker Protection Act (October 2024), employers must take proactive, reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment from customers or clients, making it a combined HR and health and safety duty.

Where can we get the health and safety law poster?

The poster is available from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). It can be downloaded for free from their website or purchased as a printed version from HSE Books.

Do health and safety regulations change for businesses in Northern Ireland?

The law is broadly the same but enforced by the HSENI instead of the HSE. While duties are equivalent, there can be minor differences in guidance, so it is best to check Northern Ireland-specific resources.

When will the Breathe Health & Safety module be available and how will it be priced?

It will be available from 25 February 2026. Pricing starts from £12 a month for businesses with fewer than 10 employees, scaling based on team size.

What will the Breathe Health & Safety module include?

The module includes tools for risk assessments, incident/near-miss logging, safety role management (first aiders/fire wardens), document storage, and tracking training certifications.

What health and safety training does Breathe offer, and what’s coming next?

Breathe offers courses on DSE, manual handling, stress management, infection control, and more. Over 50 additional courses, including fire and electrical safety, are currently being prioritised.

Is Breathe’s training legally compliant and suitable as evidence of competence?

Courses are authored by ELMO Software’s compliance specialists and reflect the latest UK updates. They serve as evidence of training, though professional guidance should be sought for specific legal concerns.

Health & Safety in 2026: Webinar Takeaways & FAQs

Key takeaways

Health and safety works best as a shared responsibility

Health and safety shouldn’t sit with just one person. When everyone understands their role and feels responsible for spotting and raising risks, issues are picked up earlier and safer habits become part of everyday work.

Keep documentation up to date and easy to access

Out-of-date policies, missing records or documents stored in different places can quickly create gaps. Audience polls showed that risk assessments (33%) and reviewing and updating health and safety policies (26%) were the biggest documentation paint points for SMEs.

Regular reviews and keeping documents easy to find helps businesses stay organised and confident if they ever need to show what they’re doing. When information is clear and accessible, it’s far easier to keep things up to date.

Low-risk doesn’t mean no risk

Offices and similar environments still carry risks, from slips and trips to poor workstation set-ups. The same care and consistency applies, even when the workplace feels low risk.

A competent person is a legal requirement

SMEs must have someone with the right knowledge, training and experience overseeing health and safety, whether that’s someone in the business or external support. For most organisations, this is more achievable than it sounds with the range of accessible training available.

Make reporting simple and blame free

People are more likely to report concerns when they feel safe to speak up and know what will happen next. Clear processes, regular conversations and easy reporting all help surface risks before they turn into incidents.

Working from home brings health and safety responsibilities many SMEs feel unsure about

During the webinar, it was clear that many attendees felt uncertain about what health and safety looks like once work moves out of the office. Questions around risk assessments, DSEs and where responsibility sits for home and hybrid workers came up repeatedly.

The key takeaway here is that remote and hybrid working still count as the workplace, and while this can feel daunting, focusing on sensible, proportionate risk assessments and clear guidance goes a long way to meeting your responsibilities and supporting your people.

Keep an eye on our website for checklists and templates to help.

Keeping HR and health and safety information together makes compliance easier

Health and safety doesn’t sit in isolation from HR. Things like training records, role changes, sickness, incidents and risk assessments are closely linked, but they’re often managed separately. 74% of attendees said they’re currently managing HR and health and safety in different systems.

Bringing this information together makes it much easier to spot gaps, keep records accurate, and stay on top of reviews. For SMEs, it helps compliance feel more manageable and reduces the risk of things being missed.

ROI: A safer workplace benefits everyone

Getting health and safety right reduces employee accidents and time off work, improves retention, boosts employee engagement, and protects you from costly legal penalties.

Quick fire practical, proactive advice:

Make health and safety part of your everyday conversations
Keep documents current and in one place
Use digital tools to centralise information
Invest in quality training for your “competent person” and your wider team
Encourage open reporting without fear of blame
Review risk assessments when processes or equipment change
Work closely with landlords or other building tenants if you don’t control the whole workspace

Frequently asked questions

What training, qualifications and refreshers are needed to be considered competent in health and safety, and how can this be evidenced?

There’s no single qualification that makes someone legally competent in health and safety. The law says competence comes from the right mix of knowledge, training and experience for the risks involved. That could be formal training, such as IOSH or NEBOSH, or role-specific training in lower risk settings. All employees should be kept up to date, with refreshers when risks or legislation change, and evidenced through clear records.
How often does health and safety training need to be refreshed, including for fire wardens and competent persons?

UK law doesn’t set fixed refresher periods. Training must be suitable, sufficient and kept up to date, which means refreshing it when risks, work activities, equipment or the law change, or after an incident or near miss. Fire wardens, first aiders and competent persons often need more frequent refreshers due to their responsibilities, with many organisations choosing annual updates. Regular refreshers also help improve risk awareness and reporting accuracy.
What health and safety documents need to be kept, reviewed and recorded, and how do you show they’re up to date?

Employers should keep key documents such as risk assessments, fire risk assessments, policies, training records, accident and near miss reports, and equipment check records. These don’t have expiry dates but should be reviewed regularly and updated when something changes. Clear review dates, version control and notes on what’s been updated help show documents are current and provide a clear audit trail.
How should organisations encourage and record near miss, risk and incident reporting?

Reporting works best when it’s simple, clear and blame free. People are more likely to speak up when they understand what to report, why it matters and trust they’ll be supported. And having an easy, secure system that people can access on any device makes accurate reporting far more likely.

Incidents, near misses and identified risks should all be recorded consistently, even if resolved at the time, with actions noted, so it’s clear learning is happening and steps are being taken to prevent repeat issues.
What risk assessments are required for office based organisations, and who can carry them out?

Office based organisations usually need a general workplace risk assessment, a fire risk assessment and DSE assessments for screen users, plus others where specific risks apply. In low risk environments, these don’t need to be done by an external specialist. A competent person, such as someone in HR or management, can carry them out as long as they understand the risks and controls.

Keep an eye out on our website for free templates that can help.
What risk assessments are required for remote and hybrid workers, and how can they be carried out in practice?

For remote and hybrid workers, employers still need to assess risks linked to the work being done. This usually includes DSE assessments for both the office and home set-up, as well as a homeworking risk assessment, regardless of whether working from home is the employee’s personal choice.

Where specific risks are identified, additional assessments may also be needed, such as for lone working or health conditions. These are often carried out through self-assessment, supported by clear guidance and a way for people to raise concerns.

You don’t need to visit every home, but you do need to show you’ve considered the risks and review assessments when working arrangements change.

Keep an eye out on our website for free templates and checklists that can help.
How should employers manage health and safety risk for staff working on customer or third party sites?

Employers still have a duty of care when staff work on customer or third party sites. It’s good practice to request relevant risk assessments and site information and keep a record of those requests. If nothing is provided, employers should assess the risks of the work being done, brief staff on likely hazards and make sure they know how to report concerns or stop work if needed. The focus is on taking reasonable, practical steps to protect people.
What are the PAT testing requirements for remote and distributed teams, and how can this be managed in practice?

There’s no legal requirement to PAT test equipment on a fixed schedule. The law requires work equipment, including home-used equipment, to be safe and maintained. For remote teams, this usually means a risk-based approach, using a mix of employee visual checks, clear guidance and PAT testing where appropriate. In practice, PAT testing can be done by bringing equipment into the office occasionally, using local testing providers, or testing equipment when it’s replaced or returned.
What are an employer’s responsibilities for risk assessments - especially for fire safety - in shared or rented premises?

Responsibilities are often shared, but employers remain responsible for their employees’ safety in the areas they control. This includes having suitable risk assessments and clear fire procedures. Landlords or managing agents usually cover common areas and the overall fire risk assessment, but employers should check this is in place, raise concerns if needed and keep records. Clear communication and evidence of reasonable checks are key.
What requirements need to be met for team members who are self-employed or contractors?

Employers still have health and safety duties when engaging contractors or self-employed people, especially where work could affect others. This includes checking competence, sharing relevant risk information and agreeing responsibilities. Contractors manage their own work safely, but employers must coordinate and cooperate. Clear communication and records help show risks are understood and managed.
Is third party sexual harassment for employees an HR matter or health and safety?

It’s both. Third party sexual harassment affects dignity, wellbeing and how concerns are handled, making it an HR issue, but it’s also a health and safety issue because employers must protect people from harm at work. From October 2024, the Worker Protection Act strengthens this by requiring employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, including from customers or clients. That means being proactive, not just reacting after an incident.
Where can we get the health and safety law poster?

You can get the health and safety law poster directly from the Health and Safety Executive. It’s available as a free digital download from the HSE website, or you can buy a printed version from HSE Books if you need one to display in the workplace.
Do health and safety regulations change for businesses in Northern Ireland?

Health and safety law is broadly the same in Northern Ireland as in Great Britain, but it’s enforced by a different regulator. Instead of the Health and Safety Executive, it’s overseen by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland. Most duties on employers and employees are equivalent to Great Britain, but there can be small differences in guidance and how things are applied, so it’s always worth checking Northern Ireland specific guidance to be sure you’re on the right track.
When will the Breathe Health & Safety module be available and how will it be priced?

Breathe’s Health and Safety module will be available from 25 February 2026, giving you a simple way to stay on top of your responsibilities and keep your people safe at work.

It’s an add-on to your Breathe subscription, built to help you manage health and safety clearly and confidently.

Pricing is based on the size of your team, starting from £12 a month for businesses with fewer than 10 employees. It’s a straightforward, affordable way to support your people and stay compliant.
What will the Breathe Health & Safety module include?
The Breathe Health & Safety module brings everyday health and safety tasks into the same system as your HR data, so responsibilities are clearer and easier to manage. It includes tools to:
- Create, store and review risk assessments, with clear ownership and reminders
- Log accidents, incidents and near misses, and track follow-up actions
- Manage safety roles such as first aiders and fire wardens
- Keep health and safety policies and documents securely in one place
- Track training and certifications linked to individual employees
- Record when employees have read key policies or completed training
- Support wellbeing by helping identify risks like stress or fatigue
For businesses that want to deliver training in the same system, Breathe Learn can be added to support health and safety and people training, keeping learning, records and follow-up actions connected as the business grows.
What health and safety training does Breathe offer, and what’s coming next?
Below are the health and safety related courses that are included in Breathe’s training module, Breathe Learn.
- Aged care: Supporting individuals in daily living - Healthcare specific
- Alcohol and other drugs in the workplace
- Armed robbery survival skills
- Asbestos awareness
- Chronic disease awareness
- Dementia awareness
- Emergency procedures
- Fatigue management
- Hand hygiene
- Health and safety at work (Great Britain)
- Health and safety at work (Northern Ireland)
- Hygiene for the workplace
- Incontinence awareness - Healthcare specific
- Infection control in the workplace
- Manual handling
- Navigating psychosocial hazards in the workplace
- Office safety
- Preceptorship - Healthcare specific
- Safeguarding
- Stress management
- Stress management awareness for managers
We have prioritised a further 50 + health and safety courses, including key topics such as electrical safety, fire safety & more.
Is Breathe’s training legally compliant and suitable as evidence of competence?

Our learning suite is authored by ELMO Software’s dedicated Content Development Team and supported by a staff of learning and compliance specialists. These specialists use industry-leading tools to monitor legislative changes and make sure course materials reflect the latest UK updates.

Please note: These courses serve as a general summary of the subject matter. They do not constitute legal advice and Breathe recommends seeking professional guidance for specific legal or regulatory concerns.

Health and safety in 2026: Webinar takeaways and Q&A