• Wear puncture-resistant gloves for all manual handling on brownfield and demolition sites.
• Visually inspect the ground and materials before handling rubble, soil, or vegetation.
• Use litter pickers, tongs, or shovels to move debris rather than bare or gloved hands.
• Report any needle or sharps find to the supervisor immediately without touching it.
• Place found needles in a sharps bin using tongs — never pick them up by hand.
• Know the location of the nearest sharps bin and first aid point on your site.
• Seek immediate medical attention if a needle stick injury occurs — within one hour.
• Accept Hepatitis B vaccination when offered by your employer before working on high-risk sites.
• Record all needle finds on the site hazard log to alert other workers in the area.
• Brief your team on the needle stick risk before starting clearance work each day.

• DON'T pick up a discarded needle or syringe with your bare hands under any circumstances.
• DON'T attempt to recap, bend, or break a found needle before disposing of it.
• DON'T put sharps waste in general waste bags, skips, or standard rubbish bins.
• DON'T squeeze or suck a needle stick wound — wash with soap and running water only.
• DON'T delay seeking medical treatment — post-exposure drugs are time-critical to work.
• DON'T assume a needle is clean because it looks new or unused — treat all as contaminated.
• DON'T reach into areas you cannot see during demolition or clearance without checking first.
• DON'T refuse Hepatitis B vaccination if your work involves likely exposure to sharps.
• DON'T keep a needle stick injury to yourself — the incident must be formally reported.
• DON'T rummage through rubble with unprotected hands on any brownfield or demolition site.

See also: Leptospirosis (Weils Disease) | COSHH Awareness