Posted By Mark Bickerdike
I have just seen examples of risk assessments produced by the HSE (available on their website). None of them have the scoring system that I have seen in so many risk assessments in the past. ie severity x likelihood etc. I must say that I prefer their approach but would welcome others comments as I am currently reviewing our company procedure. To score or not to score, that is the question.
Thanks.
Mark B

Posted By Rob Randall
Hi Mark,

I score all the time!

I think it very much depends upon who your target "audience" is and how the risk assessment is presented. My target "audience" are clients of SME's whose knowledge of H&S is limited. They are usually senior managers or directors who are used to thinking targets and numbers and feel most comfortable when presented with an apparently objective measurement.

My system is a combination of risk assessment and audit. I give each "existing control" and each "additional control required" a rating, divide one by the other to reach a percentage, and present the results as percentage residual risk.

I have said "an apparently objective measurement" because of course there is always a subjective element otherwise you wouldn't need a professional to do risk assessments. I give this subjective element a rating as well and either add it to the score or deduct it from the score as appropriate before calculating the percentage.

If I can say to an MD you have a 25% risk of a serious accident he or she is more likely to take notice than if I say you have a medium risk of an accident. Medium to many people is synonymous with average and your average MD would find an average risk acceptable.

Regards,

Bob R