While many height safety risks appear obvious, there are many risks that we expose ourselves to without ever realising.
The first step in mitigating any sort of safety risk – whether it be at work or even at home – is to identify the risk itself.
But when it comes to working at height and fall risks, identification that a risk is present is often the most difficult step to complete. In this blog post, the HSE team will review what a height safety risk can be and provide some tips on how you can identify where they might be in your workplace or job site.
Defining a fall risk
The types of fall risk that are required to be managed by a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) is defined in the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW).
Section 78 of the regulation states “risks to health and safety associated with a fall by a person from one level to another that is reasonably likely to cause injury to the person or another person” must be managed by the PCBU.
This can include, but is certainly not limited to, areas like near voids and edges or on surfaces not able to sustain a person’s weight.
The writing of the regulation is done in in a purposefully vague manner. The intention is that before work commences a risk assessment is completed and mitigations put in place based off those results.
Given the infinite number of ways in a person can fall “from one level to another” it would be impossible to fully specify each individual instance a fall risk could be present.
Some fall risks are clearer than others
Although the definition of what is or is not a fall risk is vague, not every fall risk requires detailed investigation and consideration to identify. There are many risk areas that could be considered somewhat obvious.
Working near the edge of a roof, for example, is a common fall risk. This is just as likely to exist on a building that is 100 years old as it is one that is still under construction.
The use of portable ladders is another area where the understanding that a fall is possible is typically considered clear and obvious.
There are, however, many situations where a worker can find themselves exposed to a fall risk and not immediately realise it.
In the construction sector, voids and incomplete stairwells in unfinished buildings are the two most common fall risks. In many cases, these can go unrecognised because, in a way, no one considers a set of stairs a fall risk. The missing context is that in a finished building, a stairwell or void is typically surrounded by balustrade or railing, which is not always the case if the building is still being built.
It’s a matter of perspective
Unfortunately, the reality is that what is or is not considered a fall risk (or working at height) varies greatly between workplaces and between individual workers themselves.
Research conducted by Safe Work NSW in 2023 found that workers and their supervisors did not consider themselves working at height when on single-storey buildings. Working at “height” started once a worker was on a second storey, or around six metres off the ground. In contrast, the data shows most fatal falls and accidents occur at heights of four metres and less.
Portable ladders are involved in a substantial umber of serious and fatal falls every year. These occur at both workplaces and in domestic settings.
Ultimately, what is considered a fall risk or to be working at height comes down to what the outcome of the risk assessment is. And the outcome of the risk assessment is a matter of opinion.
Addressing the risks, positioning for protection
The key to making sure that fall and other risks that exist at a workplace or on a job site is to start the risk assessment assuming that whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.
When looking at a site and trying to identify what may be a risk to someone’s safety, it is always prudent to take a point of view that is very pessimistic. At every step, at every moment be thinking about what the worst possible outcome is.
The reason for this is simple – this is the way of thinking that will allow the identification of the most risks on site. It assumes that more things likely to cause harm to a worker or bystander.
Once the risk has been identified, considering out likely it is to occur should also be done from a position of assuming it is more likely than might be thought at first instance. Being purposeful in this regard can assist in removing the extremely common “it won’t happen to me” attitude.
From there mitigations can be developed and then implemented. These mitigations should reduce the likelihood of the accident occurring, the severity of the accident if it does order. The best mitigations will achieve both.
Identifying height safety risks
So how does all this get applied when looking for height safety and fall risks on site?
When it comes to identifying what could be a fall risk – somewhere there could be “a fall by a person from one level to another” – the scope of what is considered a risk must be generous. A good starting point is considering any moment where a worker’s feet are leaving the ground.
When the feet leave the ground to stand on something else it immediately creates a situation where a worker can fall from one level to another. This is the case even if the worker is only standing on a small, step platform.
Areas where the ground level changes should also be looked at closely. This could be a hold where a pit is going to be installed, trenching dug for pipework, the location of an in-ground swimming pool or where a retaining wall will be placed.
Multi-storey buildings also bring with them several fall risk areas that need to be identified. Again, it is important to consider not just the well-known risk areas, such as unprotected edges, stairwells and voids, but also less-known fall risks.
For example, a raised platform on a second or third floor presents not only a risk of a fall from the platform to the floor, but also a fall potentially beyond that depending on the exact location.
In these situations, it is even more important to have a view that considers any moment where a worker is off the ground to be a situation where a fall from height could occur.
Next steps
Once all the risk areas have been identified, they need to be assessed for their potential severity should the fall occur.
This is another area where taking a view that considers the worst possible outcome is beneficial. Taking this approach provides a mind-set where any proposed mitigation is geared to avoiding the worst-case scenario. When this is done, the mitigation is more likely to provide workers with the strongest level of protection.
The Height Safety Engineers team has written more about completing a risk assessment in this piece.
Partners in protecting people
When it comes to addressing and mitigating working at heights and fall risks at your site, HSE are your partners in protecting people.
Working with the entire chain from owners and architects through to employers and team members our experts can design, install, certify a height safety system customised to your exact needs. We can also train or up-skill your team with courses that consider the latest standards and best practise methodology.
To start your safety journey with us call 1300 884 978, email enquiries@heightsafety.net or drop us a line by clicking here.
