How Do Health and Safety Boards Improve Workplace Safety?

Workplace safety relies on clear communication, shared understanding, and visible standards. While policies and procedures are essential, they are far more effective when they are visible, accessible, and easy to understand. As a result, this is where health and safety boards play a critical role.

So by applying visual management principles, health and safety boards help organisations improve workplace safety. Firstly, by making key information visible at the point of use. Secondly, by supporting safer behaviours, stronger engagement, and continuous improvement.

What Are Health and Safety Boards?

Health and safety boards are visual tools used to communicate essential safety information in the workplace. Rather than relying on documents or digital systems that may not be easily accessed, these boards present information in a clear, structured, and highly visible format.

Therefore, they provide a central point of reference for employees, contractors, and visitors, helping ensure that safety expectations, procedures, and responsibilities are understood and consistently applied.

Why Do Health and Safety Boards Matter in the Workplace?

Above all, effective health and safety communication goes beyond compliance. Well-designed health and safety boards help organisations:

• Improve awareness of workplace risks and controls

• Support compliance with health and safety requirements

• Encourage employee involvement and ownership

• Reduce incidents through better visibility of information

• Reinforce a proactive and positive safety culture

Most importantly, when safety information is visible and regularly reviewed, it becomes part of daily work rather than something only referenced during audits or investigations.

What Should Be Included on a Health and Safety Board?

The content of a health and safety board will vary depending on the environment, but effective boards typically combine essential safety information with dynamic content that supports ongoing improvement.

Common features include:

PPE Information
Clear guidance on PPE requirements helps ensure the correct protection is used in the right areas.

Emergency Information
Health and safety boards commonly display:

• What to do in case of an emergency

• Fire action instructions

• Evacuation plans and muster points

• Site-specific emergency procedures

This information supports fast, confident responses when incidents occur.

Safety Rules and Expectations
Simple, visual safety rules help reinforce safe behaviours and establish consistent standards across the workplace.

Incident Reporting
Clear instructions on how to report incidents and near misses encourage early reporting and learning.

EHS Alerts and Trends
Displaying current EHS alerts and trends highlights recurring issues and helps teams focus their improvement efforts.

EHS QR Codes
QR codes allow quick access to additional resources such as procedures, forms, or training materials without overcrowding the board.

See further gallery examples here

How Health and Safety Management Boards Support Safer Workplaces

In addition to information boards, many organisations use health and safety management boards to actively manage safety performance.

So these boards support daily safety discussions and help teams track actions and progress.

Typical elements include:

Inspections – Planned and Completed
Visible sections showing inspections that are planned and those already completed help maintain accountability.

Task Lists with RAG Status
Short-term and long-term task lists supported by red-amber-green indicators make priorities clear and highlight risks or delays.

Annual Task Tracking
Tracking health and safety tasks over the year helps teams monitor progress and maintain focus on improvement activities.

Escalation Zones
An escalation zone provides a dedicated space to highlight unresolved issues that require management support.

Supporting First Aid and Emergency Readiness

Many health and safety boards also include or are positioned alongside first aid kits. This makes it easy to identify:

• First aid locations

• Emergency contacts

• Responsible personnel

Clear visibility of first aid information improves response times and confidence when incidents occur.

Making Health and Safety Information Visible at the Point of Use

One of the key benefits of effective health and safety boards is their ability to make critical information visible exactly where it is needed. By locating boards near work areas, entrances, and shared spaces — and by integrating emergency procedures, inspection tracking, QR codes, and first aid information — organisations ensure safety guidance is not hidden away.

When information and equipment are visible, accessible, and easy to understand, employees are more confident in how to act, response times improve, and reporting increases. This visibility at the point of use turns health and safety from a passive requirement into an active part of everyday work.

Using Visual Management to Improve Workplace Safety

Visual management focuses on making the right information visible at the right time. When applied to workplace safety:

• Information is easier to understand than written documents

• Consistent layouts reduce confusion across sites

• Visual cues support faster decision-making in emergencies

• Safety becomes part of everyday work

Well-designed health and safety boards are living tools, reviewed and updated regularly to reflect current risks and priorities.

Health and Safety Boards and Continuous Improvement

Health and safety should continually evolve as risks change and lessons are learned. Visual management boards support this by:

• Making safety issues visible

• Encouraging regular review and discussion

• Supporting problem-solving at team level

• Reinforcing accountability

By integrating health and safety boards into daily routines, organisations align safety with continuous improvement — moving from reactive compliance to proactive risk management.

Designing an Effective Health and Safety Board

An effective board is not just about what information is included, but how visible and accessible it is when it’s needed most. Good design focuses on:

• Clear structure and logical layout, so key information is highly visible and easy to locate

• Simple language and visual cues that can be understood at a glance

• Easy accessibility of critical information and equipment, such as emergency instructions, contact details, QR-linked resources, and nearby first aid kits

• Space for updates and changes, ensuring information remains current

• Content tailored to the specific environment, reflecting workplace risks and activities

A well-designed board is easy to maintain and easy to engage with, ensuring it remains effective over time.

Final Thoughts

So, how do health and safety boards improve workplace safety through visual management?
By making safety information visible, accessible, and part of everyday work.

When designed and used effectively, health and safety boards support compliance, encourage engagement, and help organisations continuously improve how they manage risk.