Risk assessor on a bicycle

I guess the person who got the job heard by telephone on Friday. Those of us who didn’t get the job received a letter in the post Saturday morning. I so loved the idea of working within a twenty mile radius of home.

On Friday I cycled up to the local youth club, clip board and risk assessment checklist on the bicycle pannier. I guess you’d describe the work as “pro bono” – in other words, helping them out for nothing. Something else to go on the CV, but also trying to get people to understand the benefits of a risk assessment, beyond the “elf and safety gone mad” discussions. I really enjoyed the process. I’ve been involved in small parts of so many enormous risk assessments, that to take charge of a small risk assessment from start to finish is really satisfying. And being able to do the job without enlarging my carbon footprint.

I approached one company who do office risk assessments and asked them to consider me on an associate basis to do assessments in my area. They explained this wasn’t the way they worked. I had to be prepared to cover a quarter of England, potentially driving hundreds of miles in a week. I just can’t see the sense.

So what about a campaign for carbon-free risk assessments? There was an interesting article in Health and Safety at Work in January, What’s in store for 2009? which suggested that companies should consider their carbon footprint in preparation for the Carbon Reduction Commitment. This should take account of where the consultants they use travel from. There are more than enough companies within cycling distance of my home. There must be enough work there for one person. I’d be interested to know how far other people travel for such work, and whether, unless it’s a really specialised area, they can justify their carbon footprint?