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The leadership gap | 7 tips for strengthening workplace safety
Written on 24 January 2025
A recent survey by WorkNest has revealed that nearly a quarter (23%) of health and safety professionals believe that a lack of leadership support is the biggest barrier to embedding a strong safety culture in the workplace.
These findings underscore a critical issue: without strong leadership backing, health and safety initiatives may struggle to gain the traction needed to drive meaningful change.
Why leadership matters in safety culture
A strong safety culture isn’t just about compliance or ticking boxes; it’s about embedding the right attitudes, behaviours, and values throughout an organisation. Leadership plays a pivotal role in setting this tone. When leaders fail to actively support health and safety, it can lead to disengagement, apathy, and even risk-taking behaviours among employees.
Nick Wilson, Director of Health & Safety Services at WorkNest, explains: “Investigations into high-profile health and safety disasters have shown that a poor safety culture is often a significant contributing factor. When leaders are disengaged or fail to prioritise safety, this attitude trickles down, undermining the organisation’s ability to maintain a safe working environment. It’s essential that senior leaders not only understand the importance of health and safety but actively demonstrate their commitment to it.”
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Survey findings highlight leadership challenges
Our survey highlights the urgency of addressing this leadership gap. While 23% of respondents identified lack of leadership support as the biggest barrier to building a strong safety culture, other significant challenges included disengaged staff (31%), limited training resources, and resistance to change.
These findings suggest that leadership is the cornerstone of a successful safety culture – when it’s absent, other issues are harder to tackle.
Practical steps for driving safety culture
To address this leadership gap, Health & Safety experts at WorkNest recommend seven practical strategies for health and safety leaders to share with their boards and executives:
Empower the board: Encourage the board to set the direction for effective health and safety management.
Develop a meaningful policy: Create a health and safety policy that is actionable and goes beyond box-ticking.
Lead by example: Ensure board members actively communicate the importance of health and safety throughout the organisation.
Keep safety front and centre: Include health and safety as a regular agenda item in board meetings.
Appoint a champion: Designate a board member to act as a health and safety ‘champion’ within the organisation.
Set clear goals: Establish specific targets to measure the organisation’s progress in improving safety culture.
Invite scrutiny: Engage a non-executive director to independently review and challenge health and safety practices.
The way forward
Leadership support isn’t just a ‘nice to have’; it’s a fundamental requirement for building a strong safety culture.
Organisations that prioritise health and safety at the leadership level can create environments where employees feel valued, engaged, and committed to maintaining high safety standards.
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