A leading health and safety consultancy is urging businesses to take part in a public consultation to help shape the future of workplace incident reporting in the UK.

The Health and Safety Executive – national regulator for workplace health and safety – is inviting businesses, employers, health practitioners and industry stakeholders to have their say on RIDDOR – the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR).

Northamptonshire’s Acorn Safety Services, which provides health and safety services to businesses, charities and organisations across the UK, says the consultation provides an opportunity for everyone to share their views on the wording used by HSE and their understanding of RIDDOR.

This will allow the HSE to update regulations that underpin how work-related injuries, ill health and dangerous occurrences are reported to strengthen protections for workers and to lessen administrative burden on businesses.

Health and Safety Manager Stevie Melvin said: “The HSE are looking to clarify some of the wording, so that when they’re getting RIDDOR reports in they are more accurate and there’s no ambiguity in the incidents and the investigations that take place.

“The aim of the consultation is for anyone to go on to the HSE website and give their feedback. While us health and safety specialists are used to dealing with and reading through legislation and working out what we need to report, it is not as obvious to people not working in the industry. They are not used to the language that the HSE uses and so hopefully this will make that legislation clearer for people and give them a wider knowledge base.”

“This will also lead to a revision of the list of some of the incidents and dangerous occurrences that they want to know about, to better reflect modern workplace risks.”

The consultation runs until 30^th June 2026. For more information and details on how to submit a response visit https://consultations.hse.gov.uk/hse/proposals-riddor-2013/

For further information about Acorn Safety Services visit www.acornhealthandsafety.co.uk or call 01604 930380.