On 6th April 2015 a new set of health and safety regulations came into force. They explain how building and construction projects should be delivered in a way that prevents injury and ill health.
These regulations are the updated Construction (Design and Management) Regulations, or CDM 2015. If you work in construction, you need to know the details. They’re the main set of regulations for managing the health, safety and welfare of construction projects – so whether you’re a small, medium or large size business, you can’t ignore them.
The reason behind the change is to make it easier for clients, designers, contractors and workers to work together to improve health and safety. It’s also been eight years since they were last updated.
Essentially, the CDM breaks down into six areas – each one has a document, or guide. There’s five for ‘duty holders’ and one for workers:
- Clients
- Principal Designers
- Designers
- Principal Contractors
- Contractors
- Workers
Which duty do you belong to? If you’re unsure, take a look at this article on the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) website – it’ll help you decide which guide applies to you, and there are links available to download each one. It also gives summaries of each role and its main duties.
Here are some of the key changes in CDM 2015:
- The regulations apply to all projects including domestic client jobs
- All projects must have a written construction phase plan
- There’s a duty to make sure all persons doing a job have the right skills, knowledge, training and experience
You can read more about the changes on the CITB website – where you’ll also be able to learn about the CDM Wizard app. It’s ideal for people who are on the move and want to get their construction phase plan sorted quickly, to meet the new CDM requirements. Best of all, it’s free!
Here at Jewson we’re always keen to promote safe working practices, so we’re spreading the message to make sure as many people as possible are aware of CDM 2015.
Take a look at the CITB website, explore the CDM Wizard app and feel free to share this blog with friends in the trade, so that we can all be safe and compliant while we go about our work.
