Rank: New forum user 
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Hi all.
Help and advice is required please;
I have been presented with a fantastic opportunity to work as a consultant for a new small business, 30+ staff, which requires a completed H&S management system. I know that I will need professional indemnity insurance, but what else do I need and what are the rates for a NEBOSH Diploma qualified , GradIOSH with 2 + years experience in a safety critical industry?
All advice is greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Sarah
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Hi Sarah,
In the absence of a comment or advice I will try to help.
I assume you are already working full-time in health and safety? All you really need is PLI, which your client would be better placed arranging and saving you the hassle and cost. It is very difficult to say what the rate should be as it needs to be worthwhile to you, whilst not overly costly for the client. It will also depend to some extent how much work is involved. For most practitioners a rate of £50 per hour is not unreasonable and recommended by IOSH, however if it is extra income you might consider something like £30-40 per hour, plus you get the benefit and experience of implementing a h&s management system from scratch.
I suggest you decide on a rate/ fee and discuss it with the prospective client, bearing in mind the more time you spend on the project (in theory) the better their management system will be, which may influence the overall cost or hourly rate. So, do they want something cheap and nasty, middle of the road, or state of the art?
Good luck.
Ray
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Rank: Forum user
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What type of business does the company do?
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Rank: New forum user
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Hi,
Ray, thank you very much for your advice. I am already working full time in H&S so yes it for extra income and the experience of implementing a H&S management system from scratch. Regarding the rates you have confirmed what I though, which is reassuring.
I am in the process of putting together a quote detailing rates etc- how much detail would a client be expecting as I presume it also depends on what they require, as you said- cheap and nasty, middle of the road or bells and whistles.
Again, thank you for taking the time to reply as all advice is much appreciated.
Sarah
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Rank: Super forum user
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No worries.
For a quote for services you need to assess what needs to be done by what documents you have in your archives. If supplying essentially generic documents, perhaps with a tweak here or there, then the cost should reflect this. However, if you are writing a lot of documents specific to the organisation and industry - it will take more time and hence cost more.
A fairly simple quote should suffice ie reviewing what policies and procedures are required; providing h&s policy, xyz procedures, sundries eg printing costs, etc. Bearing in mind it always takes longer than you think.
Incidentally, I was once told by a h&s consultant to never to put down the hourly rate and the time spent -as clients have a tendency to question both!
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Rank: Super forum user
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Sarah
You need Professional Indemnity Insurance with several years run off i.e. extending beyond the period of delivery of the services for when it potentially all goes horribly wrong and your client decides to sue you.
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Also remember that as a new business it will almost certainly undergo significant and frequent change, probably needing regular support. If you price the entire job, be prepared for project creep; if you price by time used, be prepared for challenges on why it is needed.
It's great being a consultant.
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Rank: Forum user
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Quite right Ray. Quote for the job only.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Ha, you see I did listen...sometimes.
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Rank: Forum user
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I read these and learn so much. Thank you Sarah for the question and to everyone else for the great advice, all of us benefit, thank you.
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