1. Leadership and Worker Involvement
LWI
Leadership and Worker Involvement

2. Leadership and Worker Involvement
LWI
Leadership and Worker Involvement
Training Pack 2 Delivering Toolbox Talks (TT’s) or Safety Briefings (SB’s) A Guide for Managers and Site Supervisors
Preparation prior to delivering this session!
Read through this presentation first.
There is a blank slide that needs to be completed by you!
Make sure that you have developed the TT (and SB) prior to delivering this presentation as those receiving this training are able to see the TT they are expected to deliver. There is also the opportunity to carry out role play activities using the TT material.
Introduction: Provide those attending with an introduction if required.
Purpose of presentation / training: These slides are for managers to brief their site supervisors and/or foremen about what is expected of them when they deliver TT’s or SB’s. These slides can be used for either form of communication and will give them the necessary guidance and tips on how to deliver effective TT and SB.
Advice for the presenter:
It is important to bear in mind that whilst the messages that are delivered during TT’s or SB’s are essential for protecting the health and safety of everyone on site, those messages will be lost if the person doing the delivery is unwilling or unable to communicate effectively. Therefore, spend time considering the selection of individuals that will be delivering the TT and SB.
Volunteers are better than conscripts because workers will pick up on subconscious signals and body language that indicates either the presenter is indifferent or uninterested.
Depending on the size of the business, TT’s can be a useful training and development opportunity for workers looking to further their supervisory and/or management skills.
As an aside to training the deliverers of TB’s and SB’s, it may be beneficial to communicate to all your workers what is expected of them during each TT, (e.g. they should expect to participate by discussing issues amongst their colleagues, complete exercises, etc).
It may be beneficial to run this training with small groups of supervisors and foremen (e.g. 6-8). This way if you carry out interactive role play activities (as noted later on), they will be more likely to participate in a small group. Remember role play is daunting!

3. Key aims and objectives are:
To explain why TT’s and SB’s are important.
To explain who TT’s and SB’s should be delivered to.
To provide some advice on how to prepare for TT’s and SB’s.
How to structure TT’s and SB’s and what they should contain.
To provide advice on presentation and delivery.
Explain that this presentation will cover the following things:
What TT’s and SB’s are and why they are so important.
Who should deliver TT’s and SB’s and who to.
Guidance on how to prepare for TT’s and SB’s .
Guidance on how to structure and deliver TT’s and SB’s giving top tips and take home messages.
See also ‘Effective communication skills for toolbox talks, safety briefings and inductions’ in Step 4 of this toolkit for further advice.
This session will be a mixture of PowerPoint presentations and interactive activities.

4. The WHAT and WHY! ?
This section will give you some background information on what TT and SB are and why it is important to carry them out. 4

5. Some definitions! TT’s: SB’s:
Short talks that focus on a specific topic e.g. manual handling, working at heights etc.
Allow you and your workers to explore the risks of specific health and safety issues and think about ways to deal with them.
Help inform inexperienced workers and provide reminders to experienced workers of correct control measures.
SB’s:
Short talk to detail the health and safety hazards and risks workers will face.
Inform all workers of necessary control measures.
There is a legal requirement to consult and engage with workers and to ensure that they are fully aware of the risks and hazards they face. TT’s and SB’s help ensure that you are meeting that legal requirement.
TT’s:
Toolbox talks engage staff in such a way that we can make Health and Safety everyone’s business and everyone’s responsibility. We want to create a climate where STOP or SLAM (STOP…LOOK…ASSESS…MANAGE) is at the forefront of everyone’s mind when they think they are about to carry out a task in an unsafe or unhealthy way or when they see someone else.
They can provide useful training for inexperienced workers and timely reminders to those with more experience as there is always the temptation to slip into old habits of working when the pressure is on.
SB’s:
EVERYONE SHOULD ATTEND A SAFETY BRIEFING INCLUDING SUB-CONTRACTORS AND KEY SUPPLY CHAIN PERSONNEL.
Note to Presenter – if your workers are operating on a large site you may need to have a discussion at this stage about the logistics of briefing visitors, suppliers, etc. 5

6. Why are TT’s and SB’s important?
Allow you and your workers to explore the risks of specific health and safety issues and think about ways to deal with them.
Encourage worker engagement.
Help support a planned series of site observations.
Encourage health and safety to become everyone’s responsibility.
SB’s:
Are a simple way of sharing health and safety problems on a daily basis.
Are essential for fostering a good health and safety culture on site.
Encourage staff to report potential failures without fear of ‘getting done’.
Key reason:
Explain to attendees that we have a legal and moral responsibility to ensure that everyone coming on site knows about the health and safety issues and are equipped to deal with them. We all know that situations change quite rapidly on site and even if we take time out each day to go through potential issues we have made a start. If we can encourage staff to Stop Look Assess and Manage health and safety throughout the day by fostering a health and safety culture on site then it’s good for all of us.
Then talk through the points on the slide. 6

7. Preparing for your Toolbox Talk or Safety Briefing!
This section will provide attendees with advice and help in preparing them to deliver TT’s and SB’s, considering who should present them and what each should cover. 7

8. Who should present? TT’s: Don’t need to be an expert but… SB’s:
Some experience of training is useful.
Good presentation skills are essential.
Presenter needs to be serious about health and safety and take the TT seriously.
SB’s:
This should be the site supervisor. They need…
Good communication skills.
The ability to question and explain.
Explain that we are not looking for someone to know every thing about every trade but we do want someone who is serious about health and safety and is confident when standing up in front of a group of workers, who will make it interesting, informative and assertive enough to keep the session on track. 8

9. Preparation of TT’s and SB’s
Who
When
How long
Location
Seating
Lighting
Flip Charts/DVD player
Guidance/Information
Preparation Time
Note to presenter: go through the following preparation steps with attendees:
WHO:
TT’s: you should target any workers on site that you feel would benefit from attending the tool box talk and arrange with their supervisor, dutyholder or manager that they can come away from the job. No more than 8-10 workers at a time.
SB’s: you should ensure that all workers who will be working on the particular site are involved.
WHEN:
TT’s: Explain to attendees that they need to consider the best time to deliver their TTs, I.e. either at the beginning of the day or during a refreshment break but the latter may not go down well with your workers. Will workers be listening on a Friday afternoon? When do most accidents happen on site – maybe TT should be delivered then?
SB’s: Do them daily ideally, when something unexpected is due to happen (e.g. unplanned deliveries etc.) or when any unexpected changeovers need to take place. They should take place each day before anyone starts work on site. The difficult thing is to plan for unexpected changes during the day. If someone is moved from one part of the site to another how do you make sure they are made aware of any potential issues?
HOW LONG:
TT’s: No more than 15 minutes including allowing for questions.
SB’s: The limit for most peoples’ attention span is 30 minutes, sometimes less. Briefings should be exactly that – BRIEF. Remember most people will only remember 25%-50% of what you said so you may need to think about briefing cards or putting issues raised from the safety briefings on the notice board. Aim for around 5-10 minutes.
LOCATION:
TT’s: Somewhere warm and dry. Use mess facilities if you can.
SB’s: On site.
SEATING:
TT’s: If your audience is comfortable they may be more receptive to the message. If you want more discussion get them facing one another rather than in rows but make sure if it’s a TT that they can see DVD/FLIP chart etc.
LIGHTING:
TT’s: You want them to be able to read any materials or view a DVD if you have one without glare or straining. Some people don’t like wearing glasses so if you use a flip chart make sure the people at the back of the room can see your writing.
FLIP CHARTS/DVD player:
TT’s: Most people cannot concentrate for long periods so if you do all the talking you’ll lose their attention. Mix it up a bit by using questions, using flip charts to record any comments or present any stats or show a DVD.
GUIDANCE:
TT’s: There are a number of free materials that can be downloaded from the HSE website including video footage or from the Major Contractors website.
PREPARATION TIME:
TT’s: Make sure you build time into your week to prepare and look through the materials, check the running order and timings to allow for question and answer sessions. 9

10. What should a SB cover? Reminder about “SLAM”.
Any Staff/Site changeovers.
Check risk assessments and method statements are still relevant.
Weather conditions.
Ground conditions.
Excavations.
Existing buried and/or overhead services.
Working at heights.
Public safety.
Traffic on and off site.
Plant and machinery.
Site Health and Safety performance.
Any feedback/suggestions from staff.
Capture any information on near misses or dangerous occurrences.
Deliveries, visitors, arrival of specialist equipment, sub-contractors.
Explain that there is a lot to cover during the safety briefings and these topics should be covered if and when appropriate.
SLAM is an important reminder that workers should STOP work when they consider what they are about to do or are doing contravenes health and safety. They should LOOK at what others around them are doing and remind them when they should be using the appropriate controls for the task they are doing. They should ASSESS the situation and report to their supervisor or manager. They should MANAGE Health and Safety by ensuring they wear the appropriate PPE and apply the correct controls.
Make sure they understand the importance of highlighting any workers/site changeovers and the health and safety implications of that must be fully discussed and risk assessed. If any changeovers happen at other times of the day then it will be the supervisors responsibility to ensure a briefing is undertaken.
Weather/Ground conditions are likely to have implications for using ladders, scaffolds, and potential slips and trips.
Working at heights - ensure that workers appreciate it is not just ladders but working on roofs or on or around joists and to be aware of traffic (human) below.
Similarly public safety, has thought been given to walkways, access and overhead working or vehicles moving on and off site?
Plant and Machinery should be operated by qualified workers only and a reminder to switch off engines before alighting the vehicle or ensuring the use of a Banksman is fully considered.
Also stress that deliveries, visitors on site, arrivals may present additional risks.
For further advice, see Template A in ‘Guidance To Accompany Training Pack 1’ in Step 4 of this toolkit. 10

11. What should a TT cover?
TT should cover specific issues that you have identified from walking around the site, issues raised during SB’s or those which cause the most accidents or near misses on site.
Examples:
Manual handling
Slips and trips
Asbestos
Noise induced hearing loss
Bad backs
Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome 11

12. How to structure and deliver your Toolbox Talk or Safety Briefing!
This section will provide attendees with guidance on how to structure a TT or SB. 12

13. How to structure your TT:
Allow enough time e.g minutes.
Have a beginning, middle and an end.
Tell workers you will be asking if they have any questions as you go along.
Tell them not to be afraid to ask.
Do not assume you need to know all the information – draw on others’ experience.
Do not read from a script. You will lose the interest of your audience if you do!
Note to presenter: go through the points detailed on the slide.
As a TT presenter, explain to supervisors and managers that they don’t have to be an expert on every single trade on site but hat they do need to be committed to health and safety and not afraid to use the experience of those in the room to answer a question. For example,
- If you were faced with a difficult question you’re answer could be:
“That’s a really good question. Let’s open that out to the others to see what they think.”
- Or bat the question back to the questioner, for example:
“Okay, your question is how can you work safely in such a small, confined space so if you change one thing what would that be?”
You may want to use Template B in ‘Guidance To Accompany Training Pack 1’ in Step 4 of this toolkit to record what has been discussed.
Prior to explaining how you want the attendees to deliver TT, is there a video of a good TT being delivered? Is it possible to video someone (e.g. yourself) delivering a TT to demonstrate the desired behaviour to the attendees?

14. How to structure your SB
Allow enough time e.g minutes.
Make sure all workers are present before you begin.
Go though the task and hazards. Highlight safety problems, and control measures for each hazard.
Inform workers of changes.
Tell workers not to be afraid to ask questions. Discuss issues raised.
Finish by asking if everyone understands.
These are some top tips on how a supervisor might look to structure their SB:
Allow enough time minutes.
Make sure all workers are present before you begin.
Go though the task and associated hazards in turn. Highlight all control measures for each hazard. Highlight potential safety problems and areas of concern. Draw attention to safety messages/signs and pictures.
Inform workers about changes to Safety Reps/First Aiders/Points of Contact.
Tell workers not to be afraid to ask questions - Stress that briefings are to share information and not to punish workers for their honesty. Discuss any issues raised or common safety issues.
Finish by asking if everyone understands.

15. How to begin a TT:
Get the attention of workers quickly by showing enthusiasm and professionalism.
Give them a reason for being there which will mean something to them.
Give them some numbers to think about such as the number of days lost due to injury or the number of fatalities.
Let them know which hazards are associated with the site.
This slide provides some guidance on how a presenter might begin a TT:
Show workers you are interested in Health and Safety. If you want to be there then they will want to be there. There is a difference between being jokey and showing enthusiasm. Health and safety is a serious business so do not use jokes. The first 4-7 seconds of any presentation are important in that they determine how the audience react to you. Be confident and in control and your audience will listen no matter how nervous you are.
Give them a reason for being there, e.g. the impact an injury may have on their personal and social lives. A broken leg will mean they cannot drive for several months, they may not be able to go to football or take care of their family. They may not get sick pay that covers the bills/mortgage/rent if they are s/e sub contractors so play on that. If you can use a real life example and get them to think about the impact an injury or fatality is likely to have on family and friends.
HSE website provides some basic statistical information for the construction industry and for specific hazards. Use any information you collect on sight about RIDDOR etc.
Let them know which are the hazards mainly associated with the work that is being done on site.

16. Add your own text as appropriate!
The format of a TT
Add your own text as appropriate!
Note to presenter: This slide has been left blank as you need to determine how you want TT to be delivered across the organisation. Use this slide to explain how you want your supervisors and site foremen to structure a TT.
For example, is there a standard format that all TT will be delivered in? – e.g. each TT may include the following sections:
Explanation of the purpose of the TT
Necessary preparation and resources
Session content (including interactive activities such as group discussion).
Key points or take home messages
You might also want to have session handouts or cards for each TT detailing the key points from the TT. The session handout might also ask them to complete simple questions related to the TT, e.g. what would you do in ….. scenario? And what will you do differently now?
If each TT is presented in the same format, it means all supervisors and foremen delivering the TT will be familiar with every TT. Workers will also know what to expect.
Typical interactive activities / exercises might include:
A group discussion / shout out exercise of current topical issues that have been noted on site. The individual delivering the TT might want to write these onto a flipchart as the group shout them out and then take each one in turn and either provide workers with information about each one, or open it up to be discussed amongst the group as to how the issue could be dealt with. Alternatively, the deliverer might want to make a note of the issues and explain to the group that these issues will be taken to senior management for a decision to be made. Either way, this gives workers the opportunity to have their views heard, acknowledged and dealt with – I.e. making them feel they are valued members of the organisation.
A picture, photograph or video clip showing a typical scenario that workers are likely to experience. Workers could be asked to work in pairs or small groups to discuss the scenario, identifying hazards, risks and associated control measures. Feedback could then be given to the group as a whole. If using a video clip, you might consider showing the accident first, allow workers the opportunity to discuss it and then show them a video clip of what they should have done. The pictures of scenarios could include the workers themselves. Any opportunity to involve and engage the workers is beneficial. However, this will take time and money to set up initially and therefore needs to be considered before the rollout of any TT.
Introduce the TT topic and then ask workers to explain what they already know about the topic in question or what they think they need to consider regarding this hazard. This helps identify what workers already know, prevents unnecessary repetition and allows experienced workers the opportunity to put forward the benefits of their experience. This allows the deliverer to praise those who have put forward useful information to the group. This will also help ensure that you are not patronising workers. Listen to their opinions and experiences and use them. You might also encourage competition in this exercise, e.g. the individual who knows the most on this topic wins….?
A quiz at the end of the session.
Hot seating activity: An individual role plays an accident victim. They explain what happened, why and the impact that has had. You might consider using an external company or someone who has had an accident, e.g. the Jennifer Deeney or Ken Woodward DVD’s in Step 5 of this toolkit. The attendees could have the opportunity to question the individual and have a discussion around the topic. This activity may help the attendees to see the importance of safety at work. However, this activity may be better as a ‘one-off’ TT or whole session, rather than being part of a TT.
When explaining to your managers and site foremen how the TT are to be delivered, they may benefit from the opportunity to role play some of the above activities in pairs. This will give them the opportunity to practice their communication and feedback skills as well as gain a full understanding of the TT activities and typical format. Remember that role play is beneficial to aid learning but can be daunting! You will need to have developed the TT and resources beforehand.
You may also consider giving each supervisor expected to deliver TT a copy of all TT during this training, including the session handouts and associated resources. This means they will have all necessary information at their disposal and can query any of the information during this session. Give them some quiet time to look through all the TT to ensure they understand them.
Once you have explained the TT format to be used, ask the group if they have any questions.
Remember the aim is to ensure those delivering the TT leave this session feeling competent and confident to do so.

17. How to deliver a TT – TOP TIPS!
Know your material.
Don’t get side tracked by other topics.
Make eye-contact.
Involve staff using open questions.
Summarise key points.
Make sure your voice carries to the back of the room.
Avoid talking like a robot.
Don’t speak too quickly or too slowly.
If you get nervous breathe slowly and deeply.
Keep an eye on your timings.
This slide gives guidance on how presenters might deliver TT:
Make sure you give yourself enough time to become familiar with the materials you have at your disposal and plan what you intend to say. Do not read from a script as this come across as though you do not take the subject seriously.
There will be other issues going on around the site and it is easy for the session to become hijacked with other agendas. Make sure you are clear about the purpose of the session at the outset as it will be easier for you to remind someone what the session is for.
When you ask questions make sure you direct them to a named individual otherwise you’ll find no-one will have the courage to speak out. Give the person time to think and respond but be aware of awkward silences.
If you have a large number of workers with English as a second language or have reading difficulties, they may struggle. So you need to think about the pace of your delivery and also ask questions to check their understanding. Try not to get too technical. Keep it simple and straightforward. Be consistent with your messages. Keep the language simple and straightforward. Think SLAM (STOP, LOOK, ASSESS, MANAGE).
Summarise the key points you have made.
Project your voice to the back of the room or group.
Timings are crucial the last thing you want to do is cram everything you really wanted to say into the last minute. Hopefully you will have had a chance to practice your timings for the sessions beforehand but if not keep your watch in front of you or if you have one, work on the basis that you move on every 2-3 minutes either by summarising, showing a video clip or asking questions. An egg timer can be useful as long as you are prepared for the comments!

18. How to follow-up a TT Give out feedback sheets at the end of the
sessions.
Talk about some of the issues raised during
the TT during your walkabouts.
Focus your site observations on the specific
topic presented at the TT.
This information provides advice on how a presenter might follow up on the TT they gave:
Research suggests that people tend to put positive comments on evaluation or feedback sheets immediately after presentation of a talk. However, you can still get useful information from workers about whether or not they felt the information was helpful or not or what else they might like to talk about and this can help you plan for future sessions.
Get feedback on the meaningfulness, messaging and content of the Toolbox talk. Ask workers what they think about it (use Template C in ‘Guidance To Accompany Training Pack 1’ in Step 4 of this toolkit) and/or ask another supervisor/manager to observe one of your talks.
It is a good idea for the week or two after a talk to focus on the issues raised during your walkabouts or focus your site observations on those behaviours you want to change. This will help reinforce the key messages given during the talk. During the walkabouts, focus on building a good relationship with your workers rather than focusing on completing a form. The aim should be to provide your workers with additional support. Listen to their concerns and feedback. Should there be any issues raised during these visits, bring these to the attention of senior management.

19. How to deliver a SB – top tips!
First impressions count - be clear about what you want to say.
Know your audience (e.g. do workers have English as a second language?).
Keep it simple, straightforward and avoid jargon.
Consider your tone!
Be respectful - listen to your workers.
Keep it positive – focus on what workers can do to create a healthy and safe working environment.
Be brief!
Pace yourself – explain and summarise.
This slide provides supervisors and managers giving SB some top tips on delivering them:
Most people make their minds up about a presentation within the first 4-7 seconds. When you are delivering the safety briefing you need to appear confident and in control.
You need to make eye-contact and ask open questions to check workers have understood rather than reading from the safety briefing checklist, e.g. don’t ask a closed question like “Do you understand?” as people tend to say, “Yes” even when they mean, “No”. If for example you have to give someone instructions on methods of work just ask them to run through how they are going to do what you have asked.
Keep it simple! Use short, simple words and short phrases. Watch out for slang words or jargon. They may not mean anything to your workers or mean different things.
Think about the tone of your voice. Workers are more likely to listen if you vary the tone of your voice. Make sure the tone of your voice is not monotone. They’ll fall asleep.
Nods and “Mmmms” “Okay,” “I see,” are ways of showing you are listening.
Keep it positive - focus on what is going well and what workers can do differently rather than things that are not working. Look for solutions not problems.
Briefings should be brief! Consider using briefing cards or putting issues raised from the safety briefing on the notice board to remind people.
Also sometimes it is an easy trap for experts to speak too quickly and that makes it harder for workers to think and remember what they are hearing. If you feel you are speeding up too much just slow down, summarise what you have said up to that point and ask an open question to check understanding. If you rush you may come across as impatient or not bothered so the worker may not feel able to ask you any questions.
You need to be aware of your audience. Some people need things explaining more than others so watching the pace of your delivery will give them time to think and summaries will help.

20. Summary Remember, TT’s and SB’s are there to:
Aid communication with your workers about health and safety issues.
Highlight problems and identify solutions.
Involve your workers.
Check your workers know and understand the risks and control measures.
Spend time preparing for them!
Use the time effectively!
Explain to the attendees that TT and SB are there to:
Aid communication with your workers about health and safety issues.
Highlight problems and identify solutions.
Involve your workers.
Check your workers know and understand the risks and control measures.
Spend time preparing for them!
Use the time effectively!

21. ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT DELIVERING TOOLBOX TALKS OR SAFETY BRIEFINGS?
Ask the attendees if they have any questions about anything discussed on the slides.
Thank them all for their time.
You could also leave your contact details so that they can contact you at a later date if needed.