Health and Safety Policy — Willesden House Clearance Rubbish Services

Willesden House Clearance maintains a comprehensive Health and Safety Policy that governs all aspects of our house clearance and rubbish removal operations. This document sets out our approach to protecting employees, contractors, clients and members of the public while delivering professional rubbish collection, waste removal and domestic clearance services. The policy reinforces our commitment to safe systems of work, robust risk assessment and continuous improvement.

Our objectives are clear: to prevent injury and ill health, to comply with relevant health and safety standards and to reduce environmental impact during every clearance and rubbish clearance job. We adopt a practical, risk-based approach to task planning, ensuring that every site has an appointed competent person responsible for safety, and that all teams follow safe procedures for manual handling, vehicle loading and disposal of materials.

Scope and Application

This policy applies to all staff, sub-contractors and temporary workers engaged in house clearance, rubbish collection and waste transport. It covers work across residential properties, communal blocks and communal landings, and includes the safe handling of bulky waste, electrical items, soft furnishings and general household refuse. We avoid over-specific local references and instead focus on universally applicable safety standards and good practice for a professional rubbish company service area.

Responsibilities and Leadership

The company management has overall responsibility for implementing this policy, and will ensure that sufficient resources are available for health and safety arrangements. Supervisors and team leaders are responsible for day-to-day enforcement, while each employee must take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others. All personnel must report hazards, near misses and incidents immediately.

We emphasise training and competence: every operative receives induction training covering manual handling, safe operation of clearance equipment, correct use of personal protective equipment (PPE), traffic awareness during rubbish collection and safe loading techniques for vehicles. Refresher training and toolbox talks are provided regularly to reinforce safe practice and to introduce changes to procedures.

Risk Assessment and Safe Systems

A documented risk assessment is completed for each clearance job. These assessments identify specific risks such as unstable structures, sharps or hazardous materials, electrical appliances, asbestos risk indicators and manual handling challenges. Where risks cannot be controlled through standard measures, work is altered, postponed or specialist contractors engaged. Controls include safe lifting techniques, use of lifting aids, clear segregation of recyclables and general rubbish, and traffic management at collection points.

PPE, Equipment and Vehicle Safety

Operatives are provided with appropriate PPE including gloves, safety footwear, high-visibility clothing and respiratory protection where necessary. Equipment such as trolleys, straps and mechanical aids are inspected daily and maintained to industry standards to prevent failures during clearance and waste removal tasks. Vehicles used for rubbish removal are subject to regular servicing, safety checks and secure loading procedures to prevent shifting loads in transit.

We maintain clear procedures for safe disposal: hazardous or unknown waste is identified, segregated, labelled and transferred to authorised handlers in accordance with waste duty of care principles. Items that can be re-used or recycled are separated from general rubbish to minimise landfill and support responsible waste management in the broader service area.

Emergency Procedures and Reporting Emergency arrangements are in place to deal with incidents such as injuries, fires, chemical spills or incident involving hazardous materials. First aid provision and trained first aiders are available as appropriate to the worksite. All incidents and near misses are recorded, investigated and used to update risk controls and training to prevent recurrence.

Monitoring, Review and Continuous Improvement

We monitor health and safety performance through regular site inspections, audits and performance indicators such as incident rates, training completion and equipment checks. Findings are reported to senior management and acted upon promptly. This policy is reviewed annually or following significant change, incident or regulatory update to ensure continued relevance and effectiveness for the rubbish clearance and waste removal services we offer.

Records, including risk assessments, toolbox talk logs, training records and maintenance certifications, are maintained to demonstrate compliance and to enable learning across the team. Sub-contractors are expected to meet the same standards and to provide evidence of competence and insurance before engagement.

Commitment: Willesden House Clearance is committed to conducting all house clearance and rubbish services in a manner that safeguards people and the environment. We strive to be a responsible rubbish company in our service area by embedding health and safety into every task and by promoting a culture where safety is everyone's responsibility.