Safety checklist: how to evaluate your workplace safety

2026-03-24

Many organisations lack a clear picture of how staff safety actually works in practice. A concrete checklist helps you quickly identify risks and gaps – and makes it easier to take action and create a safer working environment.

Do you have control of your safety?

Many organisations have procedures and policy documents – but do not know whether they actually work in a real situation.

Understanding the risks requires a concrete review of how quickly staff can get help, how alarms are handled, and what happens when something goes wrong.

How to use this checklist

Go through each point and answer:

  • Yes → working as it should
  • No → a risk exists
  • Unsure → needs investigation
1. Alarm and contact
  • Can staff raise an alarm immediately in an emergency?
  • Can an alarm be triggered without using a mobile phone?
  • Does the alarm work in stressful situations?
  • Is there a clear alarm chain?

If the answer is no to any of these, there is a risk that help will not be reached in time.

2. Availability and response time
  • Do you know who receives alarms?
  • Is there always someone available to respond?
  • Is there a backup if the first contact does not answer?
  • Can you act quickly when an alarm is triggered?

Fast response is critical to limiting the consequences of incidents.

3. Positioning and overview
  • Can you see where staff are located when needed?
  • Can you quickly locate someone when an alarm is triggered?
  • Is it possible to follow up on incidents afterwards?

Without an overview, it is difficult to act effectively.

4. High-risk situations
  • Do staff work alone?
  • Do they meet unfamiliar or vulnerable people?
  • Do they work evenings or nights?
  • Are there situations where they cannot use their phone?

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires specific safety measures in such situations [1].

5. Procedures and training
  • Are there clear procedures for incidents?
  • Do staff know how to respond?
  • Have procedures been tested in practice?
  • Are procedures updated regularly?

Procedures must work in real situations – not just on paper.

6. Follow-up and learning
  • Do you systematically follow up on incidents?
  • Do you identify recurring risks?
  • Do you take action based on incidents?

According to EU-OSHA, follow-up is a central part of effective health and safety management [2].

When the checklist reveals gaps

If several answers are “no” or “unsure”, there is an elevated risk in the organisation.

This may mean that:

  • help does not arrive in time
  • incidents have greater consequences
  • staff feel unsafe

From insight to action

Identifying gaps is the first step.

The next step is to ensure that:

  • staff can always raise an alarm
  • someone always receives alarms
  • the right information reaches them immediately

Personal alarm with man-down alert increases workplace safety

Sensorem’s personal alarm is designed specifically to increase safety in the workplace. The alarm has an automatic man-down alert that calls alarm recipients via the watch’s built-in speakerphone with two-way communication. The alarm works outdoors and has built-in GPS positioning.

 

 

READ ABOUT SENSOREM’S PERSONAL ALARM FOR LONE WORKERS

More about staff safety and lone working in the UK

Want to know more? Read more in our guides: Safety for home care workers – Lone working regulations – Risk assessment for lone workers – Safety at the workplace for HR managers – Workplace incidents – what do they really cost?

References