Our History

The British Safety Council has actively promoted good health and safety in the workplace for over 50 years.

From modest beginnings, the British Safety Council has progressed to being one of the largest independent occupational health, safety and environmental organisations in Europe.

Founded in 1957, the British Safety Council is a registered charity which aims to support a healthier, safer and more sustainable society. It has a proud tradition of campaigning on health, safety and environmental issues. Indeed, the Robens Committee, from which the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 flowed was a result of tireless effort and perseverance by its founder, James Tye.

Following the death of James Tye in 1996, our second Director General, Sir Neville Purvis put in place a strategic plan upon which we have built our recent success. Sir Neville's background in the Navy, especially his experiences at the forefront of the nuclear submarine programme, bred into him a lifelong obsession with health, safety and environmental management.

With the pace at which new legislation and EU directives are being introduced, companies throughout Europe and the world need an impeccable source of guidance - which is why many leading businesses are members of the British Safety Council.

Funded by our commercial surplus, our charitable activities have gathered pace in recent years. In the biggest ever drive to protect young workers, we are paying for all 14-19 year olds in full-time education in the UK to gain an accredited qualification in health and safety before they embark on work experience or their first job. We also offer free Level 1 qualifications to organisations delivering health and safety training to those not in education, employment or training (NEET). Member organisations can also claim 100 free Level 1 examinations each year in order to formalise health and safety induction training as a nationally-recognised qualification. In 2009, some 58,000 people benefited from a free health and safety qualification through our charitable activity.

When James Tye founded the British Safety Council in 1957, he had a vision of wiping out the vast majority of accidents in UK workplaces. Our current Chief Executive, Julie Nerney, believes the vision remains the same today, but the means of achieving it have progressed and the market is multinational. The British Safety Council now has an International Division to deal with the increasing demands of our overseas customers. We recognise that many of our larger clients want to co-ordinate their HSE activities across national boundaries. We now have member organisations in over fifty countries and this figure is growing on an annual basis.

We now have member organisations in over fifty countries and this figure is growing on an annual basis.

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