RoSPA Press Office : Press Release
June 20, 2005
SCOTLAND’S EMERGENCY SERVICES TO FOCUS ON ROAD SAFETY
Scotland’s emergency services will attend a RoSPA seminar tomorrow (June 21) to look at methods to improve the way they manage their own safety on the road and how their driving affects other road users.
Elizabeth Lumsden, RoSPA’s Road Safety Manager for Scotland, said: ““All organisations, no matter how large or small, are now expected to have a systematic approach to managing occupational road risk in place. Police, fire and ambulance services are no exception to this.
“They have a duty of care under health and safety law to ensure the safety of staff, passengers and anyone else who may be affected by their organisation's activities.
“The seminar will help them to assess the safety of their road transport operations, and to identify measures that can be adopted to manage and reduce or eliminate any risks.
“We understand that they have to exceed speed limits when responding to emergencies, but at times this can pose a significant risk to the people in the emergency vehicle and those on the road around them. It is difficult to strike the correct balance, but safety should always be the first priority.”
The seminar is being staged with the support of the Scottish Executive and Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Service at the Service’s headquarters in Hamilton. About 80 delegates from Police, Fire and Rescue Services and the Scottish Ambulance Service from throughout Scotland will attend.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has led the campaign on work-related road safety and more and more employers are starting to understand that driving is the most dangerous work activity that most people undertake.
Assistant Divisional Officer Billy Davidson of Strathclyde Fire and Rescue's health and safety section said: "We in Strathclyde are delighted to be involved with this seminar. The emergency services fully realise their responsibilities to their employees and members of the public and want to be certain that everything is being done to ensure their safety on the road.”
Speakers will include: Roger Bibbings, RoSPA’s Occupational Safety Adviser; Deputy Chief Officer Phil Robinson of Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Service; and Cameron McVean, Lothian and Borders Police Road Safety Officer.
Topics will include tiredness and the emergency services, developing drivers and managers, risk assessment and ways to take immediate action to improve the management of occupational road risk.
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RoSPA is a registered charity: Registered Charity No: 207823 Patron: Her Majesty the Queen RoSPA Head Office: Edgbaston Park, 353 Bristol Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B5 7ST, UK |
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