How To Start A Safety Talk

Health and safety talks are important. They can raise awareness of hazards. They can help improve health and safety. They can help people understand risks. And they can help you comply with your legal requirements.

But having to talk about something that doesn't necessarily come naturally to you, for 5 minutes, and delivering the talk to a group, can seem daunting. It can feel a bit like teaching, or even lecturing, and most people that need to deliver health and safety talks are not teachers - or lecturers.

So how do you start a safety talk?

It's simple, isn't it? You can just... talk?! Well, it might sound simple, but health and safety talks can often get forgotten. And there's usually a reason why they don't get done. They can be difficult to start.

Of course, you can start a talk any way you like. It's better to do something than to do nothing. But for the best chance of a successful talk, one that delivers a message, a talk that is listened to, and one that makes an impact, you should:

1. Pick a good time
2. Pick a suitable topic
3. Prepare the talk
4. Start the talk

And once you are at step 4, starting your talk should feel easy. Or at least easier. Because having a good topic prepared, and giving the talk at the right time, means the talk will be both interesting and useful to your team.

1. Pick a good time

The timing of your safety talk is important.

While health and safety talks should be short and sweet, they also need to be relevant and grab attention. Start a safety talk at the wrong time, and your team might not be listening to the important safety message you are trying to share.

One of the best times to start a safety talk is at the start of the shift. This is the most beneficial time to deliver the talk because:

• Workers are ready to start work
• The talk will be fresh in their minds throughout the shift

Thinking about it, this makes sense. At the beginning of the day (or the start of the shift) your team is ready to work. If you can give them some relevant information in the talk, that applies to the work they will be doing, they are going to take notice. Because it applies to them.

It's information that is going to be useful there and then.

If you did the talk at the end of the shift, it's not relevant to what they are about to do. They are leaving work. It's home time! Your team will go home and the information will start to go stale before they have a chance to apply it to their work. They might have their minds on other things at the end of the shift, like what they are doing that evening, picking the kids up, or what's for dinner.

And if your talk is going to delay them leaving work, it might even be annoying. They are so busy thinking about all those other things they need to do now that work is over, your talk just won't sink in at all.

Safety talks should happen often. Ideally, you'll want to have daily toolbox talks, or if that sounds like too much for your workplace, start with weekly.

You don't have to be rigid with your safety talk schedule, having some flexibility with when you give a safety talk means you can start it at one of the best and easiest times. But aim for the start of the shift, when you can get the most attention.

2. Pick a suitable topic

We have mentioned it already, but the best way to start a safety talk is when it is most relevant. And for your talk to be relevant, you need to pick a suitable topic.

You shouldn't start your talk until you have picked a topic.

A good subject for your health and safety talk is:

• Relevant to the work you are doing
• Relevant to the people you are talking to

In step one, we talked about picking a good time. And timing is not just about the time of day, but also about the timing of the work you are doing. Is there a new hazard they need to be aware of? Do they do a particular type of work? Does any new information need to be communicated? Has something changed?

Your talk should be short and to the point. So figure out what the point of your talk is before you start. You need to find the best safety talk subject for your team - there's not a great deal of relevance in a talk about underground services if you are working on a decorating project.

Stuck for health and safety topics? Here are 100 safety topics for daily toolbox talks.

If you're planning ahead of schedule, make sure you plan your talks to be delivered at the time when the topic being discussed relates to the work being undertaken or the issues you are experiencing.

3. Prepare the talk

Now you have your topic sorted, you need to talk about it. Health and safety talks are easier to start when you have something prepared, so get some notes together on a relevant subject, or use one of our pre-prepared toolbox talks.

Remember, health and safety talks on-site should be short and to the point. 5-10 minute refreshers, rather than full health and safety courses.

Keeping your talk interesting will help get your team's attention. So don't worry about writing an essay on the topic. Just include the important key information your team needs to know.

For larger topics, it might make sense to break the talk down over several days, so that the information is still easy to digest when delivered in a talk format.

Let's say the site is getting messy, this is a perfect opportunity to start a safety talk. Get the team together and start a talk on good housekeeping. You can raise awareness of the dangers of a messy site, from slip and trip hazards to fire risks.

Or maybe you are about to start some work at height. Great, another opportunity for a safety talk, maybe a talk on scaffolding? You can let your team know the dangers of working at height, the equipment you have in place to provide safe access, and how to safely use it.

About to start some excavation work? Start a talk about excavations or underground services. Make sure everyone knows how to act safely in and around excavations, and what rules must be followed.

If the talk is relevant to the work that is being carried out, or a health and safety subject that keeps cropping up on-site, it will be more interesting and useful to the team. They can apply the knowledge, ask questions and put forward ideas. Each day, your workplace becomes safer, as people apply the information from the talk.

There are hundreds of health and safety topics you can choose from.

4. Start the talk

Now you can start your talk.

Even when you plan to do them, in many workplaces safety talks just don't get done as often as management would like them to happen. But now you know:

• When to do it
• What subject to discuss
• What to talk about

Preparation and practice are key here. Planning for safety is essential. Once you get into the routine of starting a health and safety talk, that's half the battle won.

You can have a positive impact on health and safety by delivering a safety talk. With regular talks, you can quickly build up the level of health and safety awareness in your workplace.

Over time, you will cover more and more topics, in short, relevant bursts. Before you know it, health and safety has become a positive habit for every member of your workforce. And you're well on your way to creating a positive health and safety culture.

---

Go ahead, and start a safety talk today. We've prepared 30 free toolbox talks to help you!