FROM HSE Executive
Ref: OVAE-8E7NDS
Dear
Thank you for your enquiry regarding rest facilities.
The requirements on an employer to provide facilities for rest and to eat
meals are covered by the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations
1992 as amended by the Health and Safety (Miscellaneous Amendments)
Regulations 2002.
Regulation 25 states :
(1) Suitable and sufficient rest facilities shall be provided at readily
accessible places.
(2) Rest facilities provided by virtue of paragraph (1) shall -
(a) Where necessary for reasons of health or safety include, in the case of
a new workplace, an extension or a conversion, rest facilities provided in
one or more rest rooms, or, in other cases, in rest rooms or rest areas;
(b) Include suitable facilities to eat meals where food eaten in the
workplace would otherwise be likely to become contaminated.
(3)Rest rooms and rest areas shall be equipped with -
(i)An adequate number of tables and adequate seating with backs for the
number of persons at work likely to use them at any one time; and
(ii)Seating which is adequate for the number of disabled persons at work
and suitable for them.
(iv) Suitable facilities shall be provided for any person at work who is a
pregnant woman or nursing mother to rest.
(v) Suitable and sufficient facilities shall be provided for persons at
work to eat meals where meals are regularly eaten in the workplace.
The Approved Code of Practice states:
For workers who have to stand to carry out their work, suitable seats
should be provided for their use if the type of work gives them an
opportunity to sit from time to time.
Suitable seats should be provided for workers to use during breaks. These
should be in a suitable place where personal protective equipment (for
example respirators or hearing protection) need not be worn. In offices
and other reasonably clean workplaces, work seats or other seats in the
work area will be sufficient, provided workers are not subject to excessive
disturbance during breaks, for example, by contact with the public. In
other cases one or more separate rest areas should be provided (which in
the case of new workplaces, extensions and conversions should include a
separate rest room).
Rest areas or rooms provided in accordance with regulation 25(2) should be
large enough, and have sufficient seats with backrests and tables, for the
number of workers likely to use them at any one time.
If workers frequently have to leave their work area, and to wait until they
can return, there should be a suitable rest area where they can wait.
Where workers regularly eat meals at work suitable and sufficient
facilities should be provided for the purpose. Such facilities should also
be provided where food would otherwise be likely to be contaminated,
including by dust or water, for example:
(a) cement works, clay works, foundries, potteries, tanneries, and
laundries;
(b) the manufacture of glass bottles and pressed glass articles, sugar, oil
cake, jute, and tin or terne plates; and
(c) glass bevelling, fruit preserving, gut scraping, tripe dressing,
herring curing, and the cleaning and repairing of sacks.
Seats in work areas can be counted as eating facilities provided they are
in a sufficiently clean place and there is a suitable surface on which to
place food. Eating facilities should include a facility for preparing or
obtaining a hot drink, such as an electric kettle, a vending machine or a
canteen. Workers who work during hours or at places where hot food cannot
be obtained in, or reasonably near to, the workplace should be provided
with the means for heating their own food.
Eating facilities should be kept clean to a suitable hygiene standard.
Responsibility for cleaning should be clearly allocated. Steps should be
taken where necessary to ensure that the facilities do not become
contaminated by substances brought in on footwear or clothing. If
necessary, adequate washing and changing facilities should be provided in a
conveniently accessible place.
Canteens or restaurants may be used as rest facilities, provided that there
is no obligation to purchase food in order to use them.
Good hygiene standards should be maintained in those parts of rest
facilities used for eating or preparing food and drinks.
Facilities for pregnant women and nursing mothers to rest should be
conveniently situated in relation to sanitary facilities and, where
necessary, include the facility to lie down.
Reference: L24, Workplace health, safety and welfare, The Workplace
(Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 : Approved Code of Practice,
ISBN 9780717604135, priced at £5.75 for a hard copy. You can now view or
download this publication free of charge on the HSE website at the
following address:
hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/l24.pdf
A free leaflet is available called Workplace, health, safety and welfare:
Guidance for managers, Ref: INDG244. This leaflet can be downloaded online
at the following web address:
hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg244.pdf
The above publications can be ordered directly from HSE Books:
HSE Books
PO Box 1999,
Sudbury,
Suffolk, CO10 2WA.
Tel: 01787 881165
Fax: 01787 313995
Email: hsebooks@prolog.uk.com
books.hse.gov.uk/hse/public/home.jsf
Many of the free publications can also be downloaded from the HSE Website:
hse.gov.uk
There are three methods of payment currently available from HSE Books:
- Via the post, bank cheques/ postal orders made payable to HSE Books
- Via the telephone, American Express, Master Card, Visa or a debit card
- Existing approved credit account customers may use the Banks Automated
Clearing System
(BACS). However, new accounts are not being set up.
If you wish to make a complaint regarding your workplace, you will need to
contact the relevant enforcing authority for health and safety.
Under the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authorities) Regulations 1998, this
will depend upon the nature of the work activity carried out at that
workplace.
The HSE enforce health and safety legislation in premises such as
factories, building sites, mines, farms, fairgrounds, quarries, chemical
plant, offshore and nuclear installations, schools and hospitals.
The weblink below provides information on how to resolve your concerns, how
to make a complaint and what happens after the complaint has been made.
hse.gov.uk/contact/concerns.htm
A form has been provided to make a complaint to HSE. This is available at
the following weblink:
extranet.hse.gov.uk/lfserver/external/comp1
Alternatively, you can contact Infoline at the telephone number below and
they can put you in contact with the relevant local HSE office.
The Environmental Health Department of the Local Authority enforce health
and safety legislation in premises such as retailing, some warehouses, most
offices, hotels and catering, sports, leisure, consumer services and places
of worship.
The telephone number for the Environmental Health Department of the Local
Authority will be available from your local telephone directory.
Alternatively, the details of all local authorities can be found via the
A-Z of local authorities facility of the following website:
www.direct.gov.uk
I hope this helps, but if you require further assistance, please do not
hesitate to contact this address again or telephone HSE Infoline on 08453
450055.
Yours sincerely
Owen
HSE Infoline
HSE is committed to maintaining your personal information in a manner that
meets the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998.
Sometimes, we may need to pass your details to another government
department or public body so that they can help you with your enquiry.
HSE Infoline is provided by Connaught Compliance Services Ltd on behalf of
HSE
