Confined Space Categorisation and Auditing

Aims & Objectives

This service assesses and categorises your confined spaces in line with the Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 (and the associated Approved Code of Practice, third edition). It considers what is and is not a confined space, the specified risks present, the precautions needed within a safe system of work, emergency and rescue requirements, and when a permit-to-work is required.

The outcome is a detailed, site-specific report that categorises each confined space entry and sets out the controls needed for safe access, egress and working.

Suitability

Any organisation whose staff or contractors access confined spaces such as chambers, tanks, vats, silos, pits, trenches, pipes, sewers, flues or wells, and who need those spaces formally categorised and audited. Delivered on site and scoped to each individual site.

Requirements

What counts as a confined space?

Under the Confined Spaces Regulations 1997, a "confined space" means any place - including any chamber, tank, vat, silo, pit, trench, pipe, sewer, flue, well or other similar place - in which, by virtue of its enclosed nature, there is a reasonably foreseeable specified risk.

A "specified risk" includes risks such as fire or explosion, loss of consciousness from raised body temperature, loss of consciousness or asphyxiation from gas, fume, vapour or lack of oxygen, drowning, or asphyxiation from a free-flowing solid.

Syllabus

Regulatory Framework

• Assessment against the Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 and the associated Approved Code of Practice (third edition)
• Definitions of a confined space and the specified risks that apply
• Consideration of what is, and is not, a confined space

Safe Systems of Work

• The precautions to be included in a safe system of work for entry and working
• Whether entry is genuinely necessary (Regulation 4 - avoiding entry where reasonably practicable)
• What must be considered when designing a permit-to-work, and when a permit-to-work is required

Emergency & Rescue Arrangements

• Suitable and sufficient emergency rescue arrangements appropriate to the space, the risks and the likely nature of an emergency (Regulation 5 / ACOP)
• Why arrangements cannot rely on the public emergency services
• Rescue and resuscitation provision

Access & Egress

• The size of openings needed for safe access and egress
• Condition of floors and traffic routes, with reference to the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992

Categorisation (City & Guilds 6150 Scheme)

• Low - entries that do not require escape breathing apparatus, because the risk of a hazardous atmosphere is very low, or escape would take less time than donning an escape set
• Medium - entries requiring escape breathing apparatus, because the risk of a hazardous atmosphere is significant, or evacuation increases risk to entrants (e.g. distance travelled, or more than one entrant), with a realistic expectation of encountering a specified risk
• High - entries normally requiring full breathing apparatus, because there is a known hazardous atmosphere or a significant risk of one occurring, whether from intrinsic hazards or from introduced tasks

Deliverable

• A detailed, site-specific report categorising each confined space and setting out the required controls

Notes

This service is delivered on site and is specific to each site assessed. On completion you will receive a detailed report categorising each confined space and setting out the controls required for safe access, egress and working.

Certification

This service is scoped on a site-by-site basis and quoted on application. A detailed, site-specific report will be issued on completion.