Does anyone know of either a decision model or industry guidance to how many H&S persons an organsiation should have. The management regs only alude to having competent advice and wondered if there was anything for a high hazard organisation. My current employer has two qualified H&S persons with additional assistance from safety reps. Whilst I can produce an assessment, it would helpful if there is something out.

This is really the how long is piece of string question!

• It depends on the sector- purely office based business need fewer H&S bods than something like constructions or manufacturing etc
• The risks that you manage-hazardous substances, radioactivity, mobile workforce,  young people on site, vulnerable people on site etc
• How much H&S knowledge exists within the organisation already and how mature this knowledge is: you can be a well-established business where everybody knows what to do and how to do and one H&S competent person can just monitor the system or you might need an army of people to look after each department.

I have never heard of any magic formula to establish what is “right” for any particular organisation. I don’t even know how you could score each organisation.  

http://forum.iosh.co.uk/posts/t122303-Ratio-of-Safety-Managers-to-Headcount

http://forum.iosh.co.uk/posts/t115712-HandS-Professionals-to-Staff-Ratio

http://forum.iosh.co.uk/posts/t105397-Safety-officers-professional-ratio-to-workers-on-site

http://forum.iosh.co.uk/posts/t84403-Ratio-of-employees-per-HandS-professional

Technically a company doesn't require any H&S Managers, Officers, Advisors etc. They can either out-source it all or in a blue sky scenario all the Managers / Supervisors would be competent to do it as part of their day to day roles.