What is the difference between an improvement notice and a prohibition notice?

An improvement notice requires you to remedy a specific contravention within a set time (minimum 21 days). A prohibition notice stops a dangerous activity immediately and can only be lifted once the HSE is satisfied the risk has been removed. Prohibition notices do not require a court order.

What will an HSE inspector look for?

Inspectors typically check that a current, written risk assessment exists and covers significant risks, that control measures are in place and being used, that employees have been trained, and that accidents and near-misses are being recorded. They will also check COSHH assessments, manual handling assessments, and equipment maintenance records where relevant.

What does an EHO inspect differently from the HSE?

EHOs from local councils inspect food businesses for HACCP compliance, hygiene standards, allergen management, pest control, and food safety management systems. HSE inspectors focus on worker safety. Both can visit the same premises and have overlapping authority in food manufacturing environments.

How much notice will I get before an HSE inspection?

Routine proactive inspections may be unannounced. Reactive inspections following a complaint or accident will often be announced, but the HSE has the legal power to visit without notice. The best preparation is to ensure your documentation is always current, not just before known visits.

Can Anyrisks documents be used as evidence during an inspection?

Yes. Your Anyrisks-generated risk assessment is a formal written document covering hazards, risk ratings, and control measures. It can be presented to any inspector as evidence of a suitable and sufficient assessment. You can also edit the Word document to add site-specific observations.

How to Prepare for a Health & Safety Inspection UK

Who Inspects UK Businesses for Health & Safety?

There are three main enforcement bodies for workplace health and safety in the UK, and which one inspects your business depends on your industry:

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) — enforces health and safety law in higher-risk sectors: construction, manufacturing, chemical processing, agriculture, railways, nuclear, and gas. HSE inspectors are appointed under HSWA 1974 Section 19.
Local Authority Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) — enforce health and safety in lower-risk workplaces: retail, offices, hospitality (pubs, restaurants, hotels), warehousing, and leisure. The split between HSE and LA enforcement is governed by the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1998.
Ofsted — inspects schools, nurseries, childminders and further education settings against the EYFS Statutory Framework and the Education Inspection Framework. Ofsted assesses safeguarding and welfare, including the adequacy of risk assessments.

Some businesses are subject to inspection by more than one authority. A food manufacturing site, for example, is subject to both HSE (for machinery and process safety) and the LA (for food hygiene under the Food Standards Agency).

What Powers Does an HSE Inspector Have?

Under HSWA 1974 Section 20, an HSE inspector (and an EHO exercising the same powers) has extensive statutory powers to enter and inspect workplaces. These powers include:

Enter any premises at any reasonable time (or, if there is danger, at any time) — without notice and without a warrant
Take a police officer for assistance if serious obstruction is anticipated
Examine and investigate any matter or situation — including examining the risk assessment documentation
Direct that the premises (or any part) or anything in them be left undisturbed while an investigation is carried out
Take measurements, photographs, and samples
Take possession of articles or substances for examination, testing or evidence
Require any person to answer questions and sign a declaration as to the truth of the answers (under caution)
Inspect and take copies of any books, records or other documents (including risk assessments)

Obstructing an inspector is a criminal offence under HSWA Section 33(1)(c).

What Do Inspectors Actually Look For?

Risk assessments

The first thing most HSE inspectors request is the risk assessment documentation. They are looking for assessments that are suitable and sufficient under MHSWR 1999 Regulation 3(1): specific to the actual work being carried out, identifying significant risks, and with implemented control measures. Generic templates, undated assessments, or assessments that bear no relation to the observed workplace conditions are the most common failure points.

Evidence that assessments are implemented

A risk assessment on paper is worthless if the controls it identifies are not in place. Inspectors will look around the workplace to verify that the control measures stated in the assessment are actually being used: PPE being worn, guarding in place on machinery, ventilation systems running, manual handling aids available. A disconnect between the written assessment and the observed workplace is a serious finding.

Training records

Inspectors will ask whether workers have been trained to carry out their tasks safely, and ask to see evidence: induction records, toolbox talk registers, COSHH training, manual handling training, first aid certificates.

Maintenance and inspection records

For equipment covered by specific regulations (PUWER, LOLER, COSHH), inspectors will ask for maintenance records, inspection certificates and statutory examination records (e.g. LOLER 6-monthly examination certificates for lifting equipment).

Accident and near-miss records

Inspectors will review the accident book and ask about any RIDDOR-reportable incidents in the previous 3 years. RIDDOR (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013) requires employers to report specified workplace accidents, occupational diseases, and dangerous occurrences to HSE.

Improvement Notices vs Prohibition Notices: What’s the Difference?

Improvement Notice

Under HSWA 1974 Section 21, an inspector who is of the opinion that a person is contravening a legal provision, or has contravened it in circumstances that make it likely to recur, may issue an Improvement Notice. This specifies: the legal provision being contravened, the reasons for that opinion, and a deadline (at least 21 days) for the contravention to be remedied. Work can continue during the period of an improvement notice. Failure to comply by the deadline is a criminal offence. The business can appeal to an Employment Tribunal within 21 days.

Prohibition Notice

Under HSWA 1974 Section 22, an inspector who believes there is a risk of serious personal injury can issue a Prohibition Notice. A prohibition notice requires the cessation of the activity that poses the risk — immediately (a ‘deferred’ prohibition notice may allow a short period to make the activity safe). Unlike an improvement notice, a prohibition notice does not require an existing contravention: the risk of serious injury is sufficient. Prohibition notices are the most serious enforcement action short of prosecution. Appealing a prohibition notice does not suspend it — the prohibition continues pending the appeal unless the tribunal specifically suspends it.

Prosecution

For serious offences — particularly those involving death or serious injury — HSE or the Crown Prosecution Service may bring a criminal prosecution under HSWA Section 33. Following the Health and Safety (Offences) Act 2008 and the Sentencing Council’s Health and Safety Offences, Corporate Manslaughter and Food Safety and Hygiene Offences Definitive Guideline (2016), fines are scaled to turnover. For a large company (turnover £50m+), a high-culpability death could result in a fine of £10 million or more.

EHO Inspections vs HSE Inspections: Key Differences

Environmental Health Officers work for local authorities and inspect lower-risk workplaces. Their focus is typically broader than HSE: in addition to workplace safety, EHOs also enforce food hygiene law, licensing law, and noise and nuisance. For a restaurant or hotel, an EHO inspection may cover food safety (HACCP, allergen management, temperature control) as well as general H&S (slips and trips, manual handling, COSHH for cleaning chemicals). For a pub, the EHO may check licensing compliance at the same visit.

The Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1998 set out the split: broadly, HSE covers construction, agriculture, and manufacturing; local authorities cover retail, offices and hospitality. The same enforcement powers (HSWA Section 20) apply to both.

How to Prepare: Your Pre-Inspection Checklist

Risk assessments generated, reviewed, and up to date for all significant activities — not generic templates
Control measures from the risk assessment actually implemented and visible in the workplace
Staff training records up to date — induction, COSHH, manual handling, first aid
Maintenance and statutory examination records filed and accessible (PUWER, LOLER, COSHH)
Accident book, RIDDOR reports, and near-miss records filed for the past 3 years
Emergency procedures and evacuation plans displayed and tested
Fire safety documentation (fire risk assessment, alarm test records, extinguisher service records)
Manual handling assessments completed where relevant
Fire risk assessment in place and up to date

For specific industries, Anyrisks provides a fast, reliable way to generate the detailed, regulation-referenced risk assessments that inspectors expect to see. Each assessment is specific to the described activity and references the relevant regulations by name and number.

What Happens After an Inspection?

In most cases, an inspection ends with verbal advice or a written letter setting out observations. A formal enforcement action (improvement notice, prohibition notice, or prosecution) is reserved for more serious findings. If you receive an improvement or prohibition notice, take legal advice immediately. You have 21 days to appeal to an Employment Tribunal. If no appeal is lodged and the notice is not complied with, prosecution is likely.

How to Prepare for a Health & Safety Inspection in the UK