CDM/General/TBT-CDM-014

MHSWR 1999 Awareness

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MHSWR 1999 Awareness

Toolbox Talk Record

Ref: TBT-CDM-014  |  Issue: 1  |  Date: March 2026
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What?

  • The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 set out general duties for managing workplace risks.
  • Regulation 3 requires employers to carry out suitable and sufficient risk assessments for all work activities.
  • Risk assessments must be recorded where the employer has five or more employees.
  • Employers must appoint competent persons to help them comply with health and safety law (Regulation 7).
  • Regulation 10 requires employers to provide employees with comprehensible health and safety information.
  • Employees have a duty to use equipment correctly and report dangerous situations (Regulation 14).
  • Special provisions apply to new or expectant mothers, young persons, and temporary workers.
  • Employers must establish emergency procedures and appoint persons to implement them (Regulation 8).
  • Cooperation and coordination between employers sharing a workplace is required by Regulation 11.
  • MHSWR 1999 underpins all other health and safety regulations on construction sites.

Why?

Foundation regulationMHSWR 1999 is the core regulation that requires risk assessment and safety management across all industries.
Legal dutyFailure to comply with MHSWR 1999 is a criminal offence that can result in prosecution, fines, and imprisonment.
Worker protectionRisk assessment and competent safety management are the mechanisms that prevent death and injury at work.
Do Don't
  • Complete suitable and sufficient risk assessments for all work activities on site
  • Record risk assessments in writing and make them available to all relevant workers
  • Appoint competent persons to advise on health and safety management
  • Provide workers with clear health and safety information relevant to their tasks
  • Establish and communicate emergency procedures for all foreseeable incidents
  • Assess specific risks to young workers, new starters, and expectant mothers
  • Cooperate with other employers sharing the workplace on safety matters
  • Review risk assessments when conditions, methods, or personnel change
  • Train employees on the hazards they face and the controls in place
  • Report any dangerous situations or safety concerns to your supervisor immediately
  • DON'T start any work activity without a risk assessment being in place
  • DON'T assume generic risk assessments cover site-specific hazards — review them
  • DON'T ignore your duty as an employee to follow safety procedures and report hazards
  • DON'T employ young workers or new starters without assessing their specific risks
  • DON'T fail to coordinate safety with other employers when sharing a workplace
  • DON'T appoint unqualified persons to advise on health and safety compliance
  • DON'T keep risk assessments locked away — they must be accessible to workers
  • DON'T neglect to review assessments after incidents, near misses, or changes on site
  • DON'T treat risk assessment as a paper exercise — it must inform how work is done
  • DON'T forget that MHSWR duties apply to all employers, regardless of company size

See also: CDM 2015 Awareness | HSWA 1974 Awareness
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