Rank: New forum user 
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Looking for guidance as to how H & S legislation is applied to churches, where most support is voluntary and the congregation transient
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Rank: Super forum user
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There's a document on the HSE website about H & S in voluntary organisations.
In essence, the responsible party is the owner of the building(s) and management of safety is similar to managing a public procession or carnival.
A well-designed ergonomic risk assessment can provide indications of key risks, (e.g. moving vehicles, falls) and how to manage (boisterous) young and (frail) elderly.
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Rank: Forum user
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Jeremy
Look at the Ecclesiastical Insurance website and search health and safety there is information on there specifically for churches. It would appear that each church requires a H&S Policy for starters and then risk assessments, both H&S and fire
Martin
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Rank: Super forum user
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I used to deal with this area a lot and wherever there is an employer and employee [even only 1 employee] situation the laws apply to all that undertakings activities where that employee could be involved and each circumstance needs individual evaluation noting that this is probably the most powerful organisation in the UK who not want to spend any of their fortune hence the use of volunteers and other 'freebee's where possible and it does not like to be told what applies/does not apply. And in all my years I have found very few clergy that were uncooperative or unsupportive to H&S and the sites noted are good places to get info
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Rank: Super forum user 
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I remember reading something on this subject in SHP years ago, probably in the late 90s. The view in the article was that the Church (CofE in this case but also most Christian denominations) didn't actually have employees, as Vicars etc have a vocation and are answerable directly to God (look, I didn't make this up, it's what I read). This does pose certain problems; e.g. where would notices be served.
The author then went on to say that most of the larger churches, notwithstanding this, were at the time getting more serious about H&S, as strict legalities aside they view it as a moral issue.
Now, this was probably 15 years ago, so not sure what if anything has changed,
John
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Rank: Super forum user 
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jwk wrote:I remember reading something on this subject in SHP years ago, probably in the late 90s. The view in the article was that the Church (CofE in this case but also most Christian denominations) didn't actually have employees, as Vicars etc have a vocation and are answerable directly to God (look, I didn't make this up, it's what I read). This does pose certain problems; e.g. where would notices be served. It's a little more complicated than that, and depends on such subtleties as the difference between a 'vicar' and a 'rector' - although civilians may use 'vicar' interchangeably for whoever is top-dog-on-earth within a parish, actually a vicar is one who holds the post vicariously (hence 'vicar') rather than in their own right (if they did, they would be a rector). Freehold incumbents are not employees of the bishop, the diocesan board of finance or anyone else, but they are not employees of God (at least as far as UK law is concerned) - they are effectively self employed, I believe. Furthermore, it does differ with respect to denomination - there's a court of appeal decision from 2011 which ruled that Methodist clergy are employees of the Methodist Church of Great Britain. Methodism doesn't have the concept of a freehold incumbent. It may be relevant, however, that the minister is not an employee of the local church (ie, the congregation in that place). Furthermore, irrespective of the employment status of the clergy, many churches employ a cleaner, or gardener, or some other person.
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Rank: Super forum user
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This only the case in the CoE where parish priests are not contracted employees but appointments( a bit like judges). In some places though priests and the like are being treated as being subject to a contract of employment which makes them easier to sack for misconduct for example. In the Roman Catholic Church in the UK priests are treated in law as being employed by the Bishop of the Diocese, who functions as a corporation sole ie a one-man business with responsibility resting with the function not the person. As to others, I am not sure. Most are simply employees of the church but others may be classed self employed, depending on the churches governing structure.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Thanks for the update, especially the case law about Methodist Ministers. It is complicated, I would think some of this stuff still comes under canon law,
John
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Rank: Super forum user 
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interesting stuff
I wonder if I could get Billy Connoly interested in making a comedy out of it?
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