"Admissions to Health and Safety?" Is a question I have been asked quite a lot over the past year. For context, my undergraduate degree (albeit 5 years old now) was in Mechanical Engineering. I’ve always enjoyed creating solutions to practical challenges. As time has gone on, this has grown into a keen Interest in applied health and safety.
In my 2022 appraisal, whilst working as a Postgraduate (PG) Admissions Officer, I expressed my interest in health and safety, my then Line Manager was very supportive and encouraged me to seek out further opportunities both in and outside of Queen Mary to pursue this endeavour. At the outset of this journey, I undertook some organisation training courses, such as the First Aid at Work (FAA Level 3 Award) and began to further familiarise myself with how Health and Safety is managed here at Queen Mary.
A short while later, I reached out to the Director of the Health and Safety Directorate (HSD), Rebecca Jones. I arranged a meeting in which I expressed my interest in the area. During our initial discussion, I queried if there was any potential to undertake some shadowing in the HSD, allowing me to gain some real hands-on experience. Rebecca agreed to this proposal, and I was tasked with drafting a shadowing schedule. I then presented this back to both my Line Manager in Admissions, and to Rebecca in the HSD for sign off. We agreed on 4 hours per week for a period of 8 weeks, beginning in mid-January and ending in March 2023.
I was issued a mentor during this shadowing period in Steven Carter, the Health and Safety Manager for Professional Services. He helped to further organise and mediate sessions during my time shadowing the HSD.
Some of the topics and areas I gained exposure to during the shadowing, included:
During this time, I also successfully completed the internal 3-day IOSH Level 2 Managing Safely course.
In addition to the scheduled shadowing sessions, I undertook a project which involved producing a report and delivering a presentation back to the HSD. This covered the Risks, Hazards and Controls related to Dept W. To begin this project, I undertook a routine walk around inspection of Dept W, alongside Health and Safety Manager for Professional Services - Steven Carter, the Building Coordinator for Dept W – Nodine Edwards, and a representative from Central Estates and Facilities – Scott Keeble. This allowed me to make thorough observations, enabling me to determine any suggestions or potential actions. As part of this report, I gave several recommendations to help further improve and promote good health and safety across this workspace.
This experience of shadowing the HSD was beneficial for both my personal and professional development and allowed me to build upon my existing knowledge and interests.
Just over a month after my shadowing had come to an end – and I had returned to the Admissions team and my former role, a vacancy (for a fourth month secondment) became available in the HSD for the role of Health and Safety Adviser for the Faculty of Science and Engineering (S&E) and Chemical Waste Lead. I was successful at interview and began this role in June 2023.
During my secondment, I have been line managed by the Health and Safety Manager for the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Chemical Safety Adviser and Non-Ionising Radiation Protection Officer - Charles Coster.
My current role in the HSD is based within the Office of the Principal. This role involves liaising with Academics, Staff, Safety Coordinator’s, and Students from across Science & Engineering (S&E) to advise them on how to comply with any relevant health and safety legislation and policy. In this role, I am also responsible for undertaking inspections of a variety of areas across S&E, as well as for undertaking investigations and managing accident and incident reports made via the MySafety Health and Safety Management System. As the Chemical Waste Lead, I am also responsible for managing the chemical waste produced across Queen Mary, for its eventual uplift and disposal via an appointed waste contractor – Anglian environmental. Every day in health and safety brings new challenges and it suits the adage that "every day is different".
This role is vastly different to my former role as an Admissions Officer, based in the External Relations Directorate. In this role, during my day to day I was responsible for assessing applications for study to our PG taught and research programmes, against specific entry criteria. This involved assessing the comparability of overseas qualification against a recognised UK framework. I would liaise with applicant’s and prospective students – providing them advice and insight into studying with us at Queen Mary. This role was predominantly decision driven, whilst ensuring that excellent customer service was provided – conversely my role in the HSD is mainly compliance driven, whilst still providing an excellent level of service, when advising a variety of different stakeholders.
Since beginning my secondment, my Line Manager in the HSD (Charles Coster) has supported me immensely both professionally and personally in numerous ways.
He has provided me with suitable and sufficient guidance, instruction, and training of how to undertake the broad and varied responsibilities of the Adviser role. This includes those relating to the management of hazardous chemical waste. I have been provided with opportunities to contribute towards numerous ongoing and arising projects. For example, creating hazard maps and resources for S&E premises, which are used by the London Fire Brigade when attending any emergency incident at a non-residential building at Queen Mary.
The HSD is a small and close-knit team of only 13. During my time working with them, I have built strong working relationships with all these members. The entire HSD Team have been a great support to me during my Secondment. They have all been on hand whenever I have needed their support, providing their insight, guidance, and expertise – helping me to overcome any challenges or difficulty I have experienced.
During my time on secondment, I have also built working relationships with members of staff from across the wider Institution, in their respective areas – specifically in S&E. Having this broad and helpful network on hand to provide guidance, insight and to answer any questions I had has also been an extremely valuable support.
In early October [2023], I am leaving Queen Mary, to take up a job as a HM Trainee Inspector of Health and Safety with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The HSE are the independent regulator for Health and Safety across Great Britain. This role will be based in their construction division located in Basingstoke. Alongside the role, I will be undertaking a Level 7 Regulator Training Programme (RTP) which lasts for approximately 3 years and encapsulates the NEBOSH General Certificate and Diploma.
The experience, skills, and knowledge I have gained during my time shadowing and whilst on secondment with the HSD has allowed me to build a strong foundation of knowledge, and to experience first-hand how health and safety applies to and is managed at a large organisation and research-intensive university, such as Queen Mary.
If you identify a different area of the organisation that you may wish to gain more exposure into, try to take advantage of the opportunities that can come your way – if you simply reach out to the right people, ask the right questions and show ambition and initiative.
Ensure that you utilise all the development opportunities available to you, such as internal training courses, items of interest on QMPlus and those available externally on platforms such as LinkedIn Learning. External qualifications and experience can also be hugely beneficial to you, when trying to enter a new area of the organisation.
If there is another department at Queen Mary that you are interested in working with, or that may benefit you in your current role, I would highly recommend that you approach your line manager in the first instance to express your interest and to discuss the possibility of undertaking some shadowing.