WIREDGOV

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accident’s (RoSPA) prestigious health and safety awards will be marking a milestone next year when it reaches its diamond anniversary.

The RoSPA Awards will be celebrating 60 years of presenting highly-regarded and sought after accolades to businesses and organisations which have shown commitment to accident and ill-health prevention.

The Health and Safety Awards scheme is the largest and longest-running programme of its kind in the UK and one of the most prestigious in the world in any discipline.

Preparations for next year’s event are under way, with the entry process now open for the 2016 awards round.

Open to businesses and organisations of all types and sizes from across the UK and overseas, the RoSPA Awards recognise organisations’ commitment to accident prevention in the workplace. Running parallel to these awards will be the Guardian Angel Awards - based on a nomination process and designed to recognise individuals who have worked tirelessly to promote safety in their workplace or community.

Presentation ceremonies for the internationally recognised RoSPA Awards will once again be held in London, co-located with the Safety and Health Expo 2016, as well as in Birmingham and Glasgow. They will take place at ExCeL Exhibition Centre London on June 21, the Hilton Birmingham Metropole on July 13-14 and the Hilton Glasgow on September 15.

Thousands of winners and their guests will attend RoSPA’s daytime ceremonies and evening gala dinners to receive their accolades.

Julia Small, RoSPA’s head of awards and events, said: “It is a great achievement for the Health and Safety Awards to have reached the 60-year milestone and is a ringing endorsement of the thousands of businesses and organisations that have committed to continuous improvement in accident and ill-health prevention.

“Not only are the RoSPA Health and Safety Awards internationally recognised but they have fast become the most sought after accolade by organisations from every sector.

“It gives businesses and organisations a platform from which they can prove their ongoing commitment to raising health and safety standards. We look forward to welcoming all of our award winners next year.”

The majority of awards are non-competitive and mark achievement at merit, bronze, silver and gold levels. Gold medals, president’s awards and orders of distinction are presented to organisations sustaining high standards over time.

Competitive awards go to the best entries in 22 industry sectors including construction, healthcare, transport and logistics, engineering, manufacturing and education.

There are specialist awards for workforce involvement, occupational health, environmental management and fleet safety, and a trophy for the best organisation operating or based in Scotland. RoSPA’s top accolade is the Sir George Earle Trophy.

A free e-book, designed to guide organisations new to the awards through the application process by helping them choose the right award to apply for and giving top tips on achieving gold and beyond, is also available. To sign up for the e-book visit safety.rospa.com/awards/index.html  

To enter for a non-competitive occupational health and safety achievement award, entrants need to register at www.rospa.com/awards/ by January 8, 2016, for the Birmingham and London ceremonies and April 29, for the Glasgow ceremony.

All organisations wishing to enter for a competitive industry sector or specialist award must register by January 8, 2016. Early registration discounts are available for those registering by December 9.

Headline sponsor for the awards will be NEBOSH - the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health - for the 11th consecutive year.

For more information about the RoSPA Awards, or to register for the 2016 scheme, visit www.rospa.com/awards