BS 8454:2006

This standard BS 8454:2006 Code of practice for the delivery of training and education for work at height and rescue is classified in these ICS categories:

• 13.340.20 Head protective equipment
• 13.100 Occupational safety. Industrial hygiene

This British Standard gives recommendations and guidance on the delivery of training and education for work at height, including rescue.

The standard is applicable to training for work which falls within the scope of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The standard is applicable to training for work at height in an industrial context, including work at height in factories and in the construction, civil engineering and cleaning sectors.

NOTE The Work at Height Regulations 2005 specifically exclude “the provision of instruction or leadership to one or more persons in connection with their engagement in caving or climbing by way of sport, recreation, team building or similar activities”.

The standard is not applicable to the provision of training for low level work at height, such as the use of small stepladders or “hop-ups” in retail environments or libraries. It is also not applicable to training which consists of just the provision of simple instruction or product familiarization or site induction.

It is applicable to all training and education for work at height, including training involving practical experience of a work method or experience of exposure to height. This also includes “train-the-trainer” type situations in which an employer engages a training provider, or employs a trainer, to deliver training for a single specific task, or on a specific product, to some of their employees who then in turn provide training to other employees.

The standard is intended for use by all organizations and individuals providing such training and/or education, including organizations which provide such training to their own employees.

The standard is applicable to all locations where such training is provided, whether at a dedicated training facility or at other training sites.

The standard is intended to apply to course-based training and education. It is not intended to apply to the provision by an employer of ongoing experience-based training and education in the workplace, where the subject matter of the training being provided is the job itself, for example as provided by an apprenticeship.

This standard does not give a detailed specification of course content.