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British Safety Council welcomes launch of the Building a Safer Future Charter ‘Charter Champion’ initiative

The Building a Safer Future (BSF) Charter has launched its ‘Charter Champion’ initiative to help companies drive the systemic culture change required to put building safety first.

The Charter, which is open to all, will help companies identify potential issues and develop continuous improvement plans to advance their overall approach and performance on leadership and culture in relation to building safety. This is critical if further tragedies like the Grenfell fire – where failure of leadership and culture were key underlying causes - are to be avoided in the future.

British Safety Council is delighted that the first 12 companies have signed up to complete the robust benchmarking and independent assessment process required by the ‘Charter Champion’ status, and in so doing are demonstrating real sectoral leadership.

Mike Robinson, Chief Executive at British Safety Council, commented:

“The Charter is a key mechanism for delivering the culture change badly needed by the sector. Becoming a registered signatory means organisations can proactively demonstrate their commitment to building safety. The whole sector has a collective responsibility to safeguard the people living in their buildings and ensure these are safe places to live, both now and in the future.”

“We would encourage participation in the Charter Champion initiative from across the construction and wider built environment sector and, in particular, the Duty Holders required under the new legislation to undertake the benchmarking process.”

“We look forward to seeing the Charter Champions group grow as others also realise the benefits of becoming part of this important scheme.”

Abigail Bainbridge, Chair of British Safety Council Construction Sector Group and Persimmon Homes Group Health, Safety and Environment Director, said:

“The principles of the BSF Charter clearly align with our commitment to building safety, so we are proud to sign up to the initiative. We look forward to encouraging partners and suppliers across the industry to strive for Charter Champion status.”

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Notes to editors

  1. For more information on the Building a Safer Future Charter and the Charter Champion scheme, see here.

About British Safety Council
British Safety Council believes that no-one should be injured or made ill through their work. 

Since its foundation in 1957, British Safety Council has campaigned tirelessly to protect workers from accidents, hazards and unsafe conditions, and played a decisive role in the political process that has led to the adoption of landmark safety legislation in the UK. Its members in more than 60 countries are committed to protecting and improving the wellbeing of workers, believing that a healthy and safe work environment is also good for business.

As part of its charitable work, British Safety Council leads health and safety networking forums for all sectors, facilitates and promotes best practice in Britain and overseas. It also offers a range of services and products, including training, qualifications, publications, audits and awards. British Safety Council works closely with organisations, charities and individuals who share its vision of ensuring that every worker goes home at the end of the day as healthy as they were when they went to work.

We would be grateful if you could use British Safety Council in full rather than abbreviating to BSC when quoting our organisation.

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