I have recently taken up a part time position at an FE college. Part of the role is to do some workplace visits assessing their H&S arrangements particulalry related to the apprentices safety.
If the workplace arrangements are appalling, no guards on engineering machinery and fire exits completely blocked in a motor trade workplace but the apprentice is already there I am being asked where we stand relating to telling the parents and apprentice about the issues.
There are some issues with the assessors visits which should pick up these issues but are not currenly doing so but I do not see myself as an enforcement agency, I do give trenchant advice but should the college be advising HSE for instance and where are we if the apprntice does have an accident when we know the situation is poor.
I am aware of the recent DfE chnages which effectively say the placement company is available but how would I feel if the student was severely injured whan I know about the problems.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

If the businesses are as poor as you say and the students are at risk then you have no choice but to get them out of there, immediately. You must then follow up and explain to the student and their guardians why you took this decision. You must also contact the employer and explain to them why you took the student out.
You are perfectly entitled to contact the enforcement bodies for that employer (HSE or LA), especially if you feel that the employer won’t do anything about the issues you have raised and you cannot see yourself placing students there in the future. There is no legal duty on you to report this but there is probably a moral duty to call in the HSE/LA
From the experience I have had with colleges sending over students to us, usually they check out the place thoroughly BEFORE placing a student here. Then then carry out follow up visits a few weeks into the placement, basically to make sure that all of the things the employer promised to do have actually happened.

Are the children basic work experience placements or real apprentices as the areas are slightly different and what ages are they as people at 18 are adults even though they may be at school

This a complicated area and not simple H&S of a workforce [I am speaking after 17 years experience in these areas] so I suggest that U contact H&S people who are competent in these areas [there are not many left as council after council etc. have got rid of them over the last few years and schools probably do as they wish] to pick brains and get opinions, support etc. so as U can build up your competence in these areas and also study specific education law, Safeguard, Wellbeing etc. as HSWA etc. is not the sole authority here and politics play a big part as does Ofsted etc.

One of the big problems schools have is that they are obliged to get work placements however most employers do not want to know [especially in hard times] so many 'less than good employers re H&S' are used & those given the task, and targets, of placing young people and auditing such targets etc. e.g. Ofsted! usually with little if any H&S experience & have to satisfy many masters and schools today have little real management from local LA's etc. so there is little support there

One point to note is that the HSE are not politically interested in schools so U should not have problems here unless there is a death/very near death and the EHO's [if we have any left] only look at specific areas

Try to join forces with your local placement person [it may be a teacher with teaching on their mind] to work through a system so as all can be involved and satisfied prior to a placement & on-going there after and go into such situations with a very flexible mind and covering your back with regards to what is really reasonably practicable in the circumstance noting that we are getting worse and worse at giving our children/young people the right tools for life in this country. However that said we cannot have unjustified higher risk so U may have to work with the employer as well noting that U have no authority with such employers so its a 'good will' thing with lots of balance & there may be occasions where children may have to be pulled out of poor environments

NB:
*The biggest risks children face is crossing the road to their school but nobody seems to bother about this area - just a thought!

*Re my comment "U may have to work with the employer as well" I noted on many an occasion the employer was happy to get a free H&S service so yet again H&S bods were being put out of work --- I never gave such employers free advice but always pointed them towards competent consultants

*its interesting to note that employers the size and complexity of FE's and similar with probably hundreds of employees and thousands in their care have no full time competent H&S

Watch your back and the best of luck

I have experience in this field with the largest MV apprentice placement in Scotland and the North of England. Your job, as you have described, you have to assess the H&S arrangements for the apprentice safety in their work placements - so it your job and duty to do the checks and to ensure that you find suitable placements for your apprentices, therefore if you have placed them in a dangerous workplace then you may be liable especially if you were aware it was dangerous and took no action. When I was involved in this the most crucial tick in the box was appropriate liability insurance.

MV workshops come under the HSE and not LA, I would not immediately go down the route of going to the regulators as some have suggested, instead I would offer safety advice or put them in touch with someone who can help them - you would be suppressed of the outcome as most small garages are quite oblivious to good H&S management but they may be willing to learn and improve.

Yes the employer does have a duty, this goes without saying however, who is the employer, where does the direct payment go-to from the government? The FE College or the Garage, sometimes being on a placement is not being employed by placement company.

Hi, I work at a large FE College and assist our work placement team in regards to health and safety compliance when undertaking assessments.
Our stance is that, the assessors are going out to check the employer has a robust health and safety management system, and assess the work area the learner will be located in. If for instance the assessor finds a faulty guard, they are informed to make note of this to the representative of the company (whom they are undertaking the assessment with), and inform them to undertake checks of the suspected faulty equipment and provide the assessor with any actions they have or will be taking.

We do not tell our assessors to act as consultants, which you would in fact be doing if you told the employer that a particular health and safety system needs changing, but instead they are informed to mention what they found, and that the employer should assess the risk, or bring in a competent contractor to investigate.

Feel free to DM if you have any other questions in regards to FE Work placement management :)