The Work at Height Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005

Special provision in relation to caving and climbing

14A

• (1) Paragraph (2) applies in relation to the application of these Regulations to work concerning 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.

• (2) Where this paragraph applies, an employer, self-employed person or other person shall be taken to have complied with the caving and climbing requirements, if, by alternative means to any requirement of those requirements, he maintains in relation to a person at such work as is referred to in paragraph (1) a level of safety equivalent to that required by those requirements.

• (3) For the purposes of paragraph (2), in determining whether an equivalent level of safety is maintained, regard shall be had to—

• (a) the nature of the activity;

• (b) any publicly available and generally accepted procedures for the activity; and

• (c) any other relevant circumstances.

• (4) In this regulation—

• “caving” includes the exploration of parts of mines which are no longer worked;

• “climbing” means climbing, traversing, abseiling or scrambling over natural terrain or man-made structures; and

• “the caving and climbing requirements” means regulation 8(d)(ii), so far as it relates to paragraph 1 in Part 3 of Schedule 6, and that paragraph.

Exemption by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland

Exemption by the Secretary of State for Defence

Amendment of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999

Repeal of section 25 of the Factories Act (Northern Ireland) 1965

Revocations

Dock Operations

8A

In relation to work at height where people are engaged in dock operations, every employer shall ensure that Schedule 10 is complied with.

Fragile surfaces

Falling objects

Danger areas

Inspection of work equipment

Inspection of places of work at height

Duties of persons at work

Special provision in relation to caving and climbing

Exemption by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland

Exemption by the Secretary of State for Defence

Amendment of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999

Repeal of section 25 of the Factories Act (Northern Ireland) 1965

Revocations

SCHEDULE10 — REQUIREMENTS FOR WORK IN DOCKS

1

In relation to work at height where people are engaged in dock operations, there shall be secure and adequate guardrails at the following places—

• (a) every break, dangerous corner and other dangerous part or edge of a dock, wharf, quay or jetty; and

• (b) every open side of a gangway, footway over a bridge, caisson or dock gate,

except in so far as the provision of such guardrails is impracticable because of the nature of the work carried out there and the work is in progress.

2

In this Schedule—

• “dock gate” means any lock gate or other gate which can close off the entrance to the dock or part of the dock from the sea or other waterway but does not include any gate on land which controls access by vehicles or pedestrians;

• “dock operations” means—the loading or unloading of goods on or from a ship at dock premises;the embarking or disembarking of passengers on or from a ship at dock premises;any activity incidental to the activities in sub-paragraph (a) or (b) which takes place on dock premises, including any of the following—the fuelling and provisioning of a ship;the mooring of a ship;the storing, sorting, inspecting, checking, weighing or handling of goods;the movement of goods, passengers or vehicles;the use of welfare amenities in relation to the activities in sub-paragraph (a), (b) or (c)(i) to (iv);attending dock premises for the purposes of the activities in sub-paragraph (a), (b) or (c)(i) to (v); orthe embarking or disembarking on or from a ship of its crew at dock premises,

but does not include—

• (d) the loading or unloading of goods or embarking or disembarking of persons on or from a pleasure craft or any activity incidental to those activities; or

• (e) beach landing operations wholly carried out by serving members of Her Majesty’s Forces or visiting forces within the meaning of the provisions of Part 1 of the Visiting Forces Act 1952 or a combination of both;

• “dock premises” means any dock, wharf, quay, jetty or other place at which ships load or unload goods or embark or disembark passengers, together with neighbouring land or water which is used or occupied, or intended to be used or occupied, for those or incidental activities, and any part of a ship when used for those or incidental activities;

• “freight container” means a container as defined in regulation 2 of the Freight Containers (Safety Convention) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992;

• “goods” includes—animals;pallets and freight containers;waste;solid ballast;vehicles which are being transported as cargo;

• “pleasure craft” means any description of vessel when used solely for sport or recreation, other than for carrying fare paying passengers;

• “ship” includes all vessels and hovercraft which operate on water or land and water;

• “vehicle” includes all lift trucks, locomotives and rolling stock, and trailers and semi-trailers and other mechanical plant which moves on wheels, tracks, skids or any combination thereof;

• “vessel” means any description of craft used for the transport of goods or passengers or the storage of goods or the accommodation of passengers on water, whether used in navigation or not;

• “welfare amenities” means—sanitary conveniences;baths and shower baths;washing facilities;a supply of wholesome drinking water;a supply of protective clothing, that is to say, clothing suitable for the protection of the wearer in refrigerated spaces or against dirt from handling dirty goods or against inclement weather;accommodation and facilities for changing into clothing worn during working hours and for storing and drying clothing;canteens, or accommodation and facilities (including facilities for heating food and boiling water) for workers employed at dock premises to eat meals provided by themselves;shelters for use during inclement weather.