Q1 has to be who decided the Policy Statement needed a major rewrite and why? That statement should be the corner stone of your Org's culture and H&S goals and objectives and you can't go rewriting it on a whim.
Q2 Does the org have an intranet? If so, use it!
Q3 Are there existing systems for cascading other information and instructions to the workforce? If they work, use them. Don't reinvent wheels
Note: Risk Assessments do not have to be communicated to the workforce, only the major findings - and that can be done via safety reps.
Before you go any further be sure you've gathered the views and have the necessary buy-in of workforce and management and continue that consultation throughout drafting and final issue.

Thanks both. Apologies if I haven't really made clear or explained the main areas I am referring to and perhaps "start from scratch" was not what I should have said but rather "major review"? It is mainly the arrangements section I am referring to. Part 1 - The policy statement of intent requires little change - the key points and goals remain as were . Part 2 - we have seen major structural and organisational changes so that will need revision. It is the length of time passed since any review has taken place; the fact that as I have gained experience in assisting in H and S role, gained further H and S qualifications and knowledge and about to take on further responsibilities that I have identified gaps in arrangements section as did a previous external audit. Any changes will certainly not be made on a whim or run out without consultation - I am a keen advocate of involving managers, key pers, safety reps etc - this and the cascading of info to the workforce is what I need to look at - Intranet fantastic but an aspiration at the moment though it is in our H and S plan. Thanks for comments and advice.

Hello
When I have developed policies etc I make sure that I keep the policy - what managers/company etc very short and then have a guidance note on good practice, how to set up DSE etc. We have a short H&S Policy Statement, 1 longer Policy on arrangements - i.e. Director Responsiblity, Manager Responsibility and then a number of other policies which are relevant to our company such as DSE, Legionella, Manual Handling. Keeping all the guidance out of the policy makes the policy much more user friendly, easier to update and we do not have to consult on the guidance with unions etc (although in practice we would)
With regards to communication when we relaunched our policies and guidance notes we did an hour presentation to all relevant managers, directors etc. We also utilise newsletters, email comms, audits/visits, training etc.
I have also made sure that we have developed a number of documents to assist managers with compliance (they have to do risk assessments etc) including a managers checklist, compliance guide etc.
Hope this helps

I am in the process of reviewing our Health and Safety System (we employ 900 staff and do “interesting” work) so I have some ideas. You have not made it clear whether when you are referring to your H&S Policy, you mean the H&S Policy statement or an overview of the whole H&S system. If you are talking just about the statement you need to make it start –one side of A4 describing your organisations commitment to H&S and why you do it- Moral and economic as well as legal. Get your chief executive to sign it, to demonstrate management buy in.
If you are talking about an overview of your H&S system, HSG 65 is a good start. In this case policy refers to a more comprehensive set of documents. I’d start with an organisation and arrangements document, saying who does what and then produce polices/ procedures to describe how these actions are carried out. You would expect a procedure describing how and when to carry out risks assessments, for example.
I have also produced a Health and Safety Strategy explaining what our overall aim is for H&S; it bridges the gap between the documents mentioned above and the policy statement.
These are separate but linked documents, and due to the work we do rather complicated; for most employers try to keep it as simple as possible.