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Toolbox-Talk Programme

Document Information

Field Value
Document Reference TBT_PROG_01
Issue Number 3
Issue Date 30 September 2026
Next Review 4 May 2027
Controlled By Jason May (Site Supervisor)
Approved By Aaron Mason, Director

What this is

A 12-month rolling programme of monthly toolbox talks covering AMWS's highest-priority operational risks. Each topic has a short brief, attendance is recorded, and the programme rotates so every operative receives all topics within a year. Maps to SOP 2.2 — Communication, Consultation & Worker Participation, APP_07 / APP_08 hazard registers, and the Achilles UVDB B2.7.6 evidence test.

How this works

  1. Monthly cadence. One TBT per calendar month, delivered by the Site Supervisor (Jason May) or a deputised Team Leader during morning briefings.
  2. Duration. ~10–15 minutes, single-topic and practical.
  3. Attendance. A signed sheet per session, captured against the topic on the attendance template below. The signed sheets are held by Leanne Mason at the Northampton office.
  4. Outputs. Any concerns raised by operatives feed back into APP_21 — NC & Improvement Register or the next standing weekly Director / HSQE compliance call. Whether the route is working is measured quarterly by the HSQE Culture Audit, which asks the workforce directly. The first cycle ran on 22/09/2026.
  5. Annual review. Programme revised each May based on incident trends, audit findings, and any new SOP releases.

Delivery to date

Every talk on the programme to date has been delivered. The signed attendance sheets are held by Leanne Mason in the office and are the record; they are not duplicated on the portal.

Programme — November 2026 to October 2027

The rolling twelve months, set out in full from November 2026.

Month Topic Lead reference Priority driver
November 2026 Lone working & buddy check-in SOP 8.8 RA_HO_04
December 2026 Winter / cold-weather hazards RAMS update · RA_HO_06 Seasonal driver
January 2027 PPE — selection, condition & rejection SOP 8.4 Ties to PPE register sign-off
February 2027 Spill response & environmental controls (annual refresher) SOP 9.3 · SOP 9.4 · POL_HSQE_10 Reinforces the Spring 2026 campaign
March 2027 First aid & emergency response on site SOP 8.3 · APP_16 RIDDOR-pathway awareness
April 2027 Wellbeing & mental health — talking & noticing POL_HSQE_26 Welfare · POL_HSQE_29 Mental Health · MHFA cover (Jason / Leanne) RA_HO_08
May 2027 Excavation safety & buried services (annual refresher) POL_HSQE_06 · POL_HSQE_13 · task risk assessments Highest-consequence event on AMWS work
June 2027 HAVS — hand-arm vibration (annual refresher) SOP 8.10 · SOP 8.7 Runs alongside annual health surveillance
July 2027 COSHH — fuels & chlorine handling (annual refresher) SOP 8.5 · COSHH 04 / 07 / 23 / 24 Daily exposure pathway
August 2027 Manual handling — pipe & aggregate (annual refresher) SOP 8.2 Highest single LTI risk class
September 2027 Driving for work — fatigue & distraction (annual refresher) SOP 8.13 Fleet risk · RA_HO_12 · RA_HO_18
October 2027 Confined space awareness (annual refresher) SOP 8.12 · FORM_PTW_01 Manhole / chamber work pathway

The second half of the cycle repeats the five highest-priority topics on an annual refresher, which is what makes it rolling: every operative receives all of them within twelve months whatever month they join.

Briefs — health and safety

Date Topic Brief Lead
Wk of 12/05/2026 Excavation safety & buried services TBT-2026-05 brief Jason May
Wk of 19/05/2026 HAVS — hand-arm vibration TBT-2026-06 brief Jason May
Wk of 26/05/2026 COSHH — fuels & chlorine handling TBT-2026-07 brief Jason May

These three closed the audit-readiness commitment in the gap-closure tracker ahead of the Achilles UVDB B2 assessment on 3–4 June 2026.

TBT-2026-05 — Excavation safety & buried services

Why this matters. Hitting a live cable or service is the single highest-consequence event AMWS encounters daily. Strike-line incidents have triggered HSE prosecution and supply-network downtime. AMWS works to permits and CAT scans.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. Before you dig. Every excavation needs a CAT/genny scan, a service drawing and a permit. No exceptions, even for "small jobs". CAT batteries checked before deployment.
  2. Hand-dig the first 600 mm for any excavation within 1 m of a known service. Power tools start only when services are confirmed clear.
  3. Buried services rule of thumb. If you weren't told what's down there, assume it's there. Stop, escalate, get the drawing.
  4. What to do if you strike. Stop work, evacuate the immediate area, isolate and call the service owner. Don't try to "tidy up" first.
  5. Recent learning. Anglian Water issued a 2025 alert on uncharted private services on heritage estates; treat domestic frontage as service-rich.

Discussion question for the team: "When was the last time we had a near-miss with a service strike, and what did we change after it?"

Reference: SOP 8.11 Work at Height (also relevant for trench-bottom access), POL_HSQE_06 Avoidance of Underground Cables, POL_HSQE_13 Excavation, NRSWA chapter 8.

TBT-2026-06 — HAVS — hand-arm vibration

Why this matters. HAVS is irreversible. Operatives who don't manage exposure now will get tingling, numbness or whitening of fingers years later. AMWS is legally responsible.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. Action / Limit values. HSE Exposure Action Value (EAV) is 2.5 m/s² A(8); Exposure Limit Value (ELV) is 5.0 m/s² A(8). We calculate exposure per tool from the tool data sheet and the time spent on trigger.
  2. Trigger time, not total job time. What counts is fingers-on-vibration. A 2-hour breaker job might only be 25 minutes of trigger time.
  3. Symptoms to flag. Tingling, numbness, white finger after cold weather, loss of grip strength. Tell Jason or Leanne early, not at the next health surveillance.
  4. Controls in order. Eliminate (is breaking it out necessary?), substitute (lower-vibration tool), reduce trigger time (job rotation), anti-vibration gloves last.
  5. Health surveillance. Annual HAVS questionnaire + tier-2 examination if symptoms reported. This is on the Training Matrix.

Discussion question: "Of the tools you used last week, which had the highest vibration rating? Did you know before you picked it up?"

Reference: SOP 8.10 HAVS, Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005, HSE INDG175.

TBT-2026-07 — COSHH — fuels & chlorine handling

Why this matters. Fuels (diesel, petrol, 2-stroke) and chlorine compounds are AMWS's most-handled hazardous substances. They cause harm if mishandled and are the substances that come up first in any HSE / Anglian audit.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. The four fuels we handle. Diesel (COSHH_24), petrol (COSHH_23), 2-stroke (COSHH_22), AdBlue (COSHH_01). Each has a different SDS. Read it and know the symbol.
  2. Chlorine spray & tablets for water-main disinfection. COSHH_04 (spray), COSHH_07 (tablets). PPE is mandatory: chemical gloves, splash goggles, vapour mask if poor ventilation. Never mix with cleaning agents.
  3. Bunding & spill control. Diesel bowsers must be bunded to 110% of capacity. Liquid hazardous waste containers go on hard standing, segregated.
  4. First aid. Eyes flushed for 15 minutes continuously; skin contact wash with soap and water; ingestion do not induce vomiting. Call 999 and quote the chemical.
  5. Storage. Incompatibles separated (fuel away from oxidisers); locked when unattended; signage current.

Discussion question: "If a 25 L can of chlorine spray went over in the back of the van right now, what's the first thing you'd do?"

Reference: SOP 8.5 COSHH, COSHH_01 / 04 / 07 / 22 / 23 / 24 SDSs (van pack), POL_HSQE_08 COSHH.

Briefs — environmental

A focused four-month run on the environmental events most likely to happen on an AMWS working day: a fuel/oil spill, a chlorinated discharge during commissioning, waste mis-segregation on a dig, and pollution of nearby watercourses. Each brief takes 10 minutes at morning brief and needs no slide deck.

TBT-2026-03 — Diesel & hydraulic spills

Why this matters. A bowser fill that goes over, a perished plant hose or a knocked-over jerry can all happen. Diesel reaching a road drain is a chargeable Environment Agency incident. The response in the first five minutes decides how far it goes.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. Spill kit location. Every van carries one. Know where yours is before you need it: granular absorbent, oil-only socks, drain mat, yellow hazardous-waste bag.
  2. The 5-step response: STOPS. Stop the source. Think (drains or watercourse nearby?). cOntain (drain mat down first, then socks). Pick up with granular absorbent. Signal Jason, and the EA hotline 0800 80 70 60 if a drain or watercourse was reached.
  3. What goes in the yellow bag. Used absorbent + contaminated PPE. Never general waste, never the spoil heap.
  4. Prevention. Refuel at least 10 m from drains and watercourses; bowsers bunded to 110%.

Discussion question: "Where's your spill kit right now, and is it complete?"

Reference: SOP 9.3 Land & Water Protection, COSHH_24 BP Diesel, POL_HSQE_10 Environmental.

TBT-2026-04 — Chlorine discharge control

Why this matters. Disinfecting a new main is routine. Tipping the chlorinated flush water into the wrong place is a notifiable pollution incident. Free chlorine above 0.1 mg/L kills fish and invertebrates. Anglian and Severn Trent both expect AMWS to control this.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. The risk is the flush water. The end of every disinfection cycle leaves chlorinated water that has to go somewhere.
  2. Test before you tip. Every discharge gets a DPD residual-chlorine test. Foul sewer (with consent): below 0.5 mg/L. To ground (10 m+ from any watercourse or borehole): below 0.1 mg/L. If above, dechlorinate with a vitamin-C or thiosulphate tablet and re-test.
  3. Never direct to surface drain, ditch, brook or river. Three legal routes only: foul sewer with consent, ground at safe residual, or tanker off.
  4. If it goes wrong. Stop the source, dam with sandbags, call EA 0800 80 70 60 and Jason. Note volume, residual, receiving water and time.

Discussion question: "Last commissioning job — where did the flush water actually go, and did we test it?"

Reference: SOP 9.3 Land & Water, MS 3.6 Disinfection, COSHH_07 Hy-Ram Chlorine Tablets, POL_HSQE_10.

TBT-2026-05-env — Waste segregation on excavation jobs

Why this matters. Spoil that is mixed wrong becomes someone else's problem. Asbestos cement in general spoil turns a routine job into a hazardous-waste consignment. Duty of Care under EPA 1990 makes AMWS responsible cradle-to-grave, and Waste Transfer Notes are the paper trail.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. The four streams on a typical dig. Clean inert spoil → reuse or permitted inert tip (WTN). Contaminated ground → tested first, then permitted hazardous tip (HWCN). Asbestos cement → double-bagged, licensed asbestos carrier only (HWCN). General arisings (PE offcuts, packaging) → correct bin, never the spoil heap.
  2. Asbestos cement pipe. Assume any pre-1985 cement-bonded pipe is AC. Wet to suppress dust; double-bag offcuts in 1000-gauge polythene; consignment note. RA_06 covers the full controls. Do not shortcut them.
  3. Paperwork. WTN for every load (kept 2 years); HWCN for hazardous (kept 3 years). Carrier licence + destination permit checked before the lorry leaves. Leanne holds the folder.
  4. What an EA inspector asks first. "Show me the WTN for the last load." Be ready.

Discussion question: "Of the last five loads sent off site, can you name the carrier and the destination?"

Reference: SOP 9.4 Waste Management, SOP 9.5 Hazardous Waste, RA_06, POL_HSQE_10, EPA 1990 s.34.

TBT-2026-06-env — Working near watercourses & site drainage

Why this matters. A brook, ditch or road gully next to a dig puts AMWS one careless act away from polluting a watercourse. Sediment, paint, washwater and fuel are all reportable if they reach surface water. Most jobs have a drain or ditch within 10 m, so assume there is one until you have checked.

Talking points (10 minutes):

  1. Identify before you start. Every job: walk the site and mark every drain, gully, ditch, brook within 10 m.
  2. Sediment control. A hessian sock or drain guard around any nearby gully or grate catches silt before it travels. Bunds and screens for stockpiles in wet weather.
  3. Washwater discipline. Saw water, concrete washout, paint cleanup, line-paint rinse → contained pit lined with poly. Solidified waste leaves as inert/hazardous. Never to a drain, ditch or watercourse.
  4. If something gets in. Stop the source, dam with sandbags or sock, call Jason and EA 0800 80 70 60. Note volume, receiving water and time.

Discussion question: "Last job by a brook or ditch — what did we do to protect it?"

Reference: SOP 9.3 Land & Water Protection, POL_HSQE_10 Environmental, Water Resources Act 1991 s.85.

One-pager comms

Each of the four Spring 2026 briefs has a single-page A4 communication held under local-docs/communications/tbt-onepagers/:

  • TBT One-Pager — March 2026 — Diesel & Fuel Spills
  • TBT One-Pager — April 2026 — Disinfection Water & Chlorine Discharge
  • TBT One-Pager — May 2026 — Waste on Site
  • TBT One-Pager — June 2026 — Watercourses & Drains

These are designed for noticeboard / van-pack / WhatsApp Works distribution: large title, "Why this matters" callout, six plain-English bullets and a discussion prompt. Issued to operatives alongside the verbal TBT delivery.

Attendance record template

Each delivered session is logged on this format:

# TBT-<YYYY>-<MM> — <Topic> — <DD Month YYYY>

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **Topic** | <e.g. Excavation safety & buried services> |
| **Date / time** | DD/MM/YYYY · HH:MM |
| **Lead** | <Jason May / Team Leader> |
| **Duration** | <minutes> |
| **Location** | <site / yard / virtual> |
| **Reference doc(s)** | SOP / POL / RA refs |

## Attendees (signed)

| Name | Role | Signature | Comments / questions |
|------|------|-----------|----------------------|
| … | … | … | … |

## Issues raised / actions

| # | Issue | Owner | Action | Due |
|---|-------|-------|--------|-----|
| 1 | … | … | … | … |

---
*Signed sheets held by Leanne Mason at the Northampton office. Cross-ref: SOP 2.2.*

What the programme produces

A planned twelve-month set of briefings, a signed attendance record for each session, topics drawn from the hazards on APP_07 and APP_08, and a route for anything raised at a briefing to reach APP_21. This is how SOP 2.2 worker consultation is delivered on site.

Back to Communications · SOP 2.2 · APP_07 Hazards

Every entry links to the live controlled page. The list is checked at the monthly Onyx site visit.

Audit trail

Issue Date Approved By Summary
3 30/09/2026 Aaron Mason, Director Programme re-based to run November 2026 – October 2027. The twelve months now run forward from November rather than from March, and the five highest-priority topics repeat as annual refreshers in the second half of the cycle so the rotation completes within twelve months for a starter joining in any month. What was delivered March – September 2026 is recorded separately above the programme. Three reference corrections applied at the same time: the excavation topic cited SOP 8.11 Work at Height and now cites POL_HSQE_06, POL_HSQE_13 and the task risk assessments; the attendance filing location is stated as the arrangement in use rather than a repository path; and the withdrawn H&S Culture Survey reference is replaced by APP_27, which replaced it on 22/09/2026. No topic was removed.
2 09/09/2026 Aaron Mason, Director Audit trail established, and a cross-reference pass applied. The trail above is reconstructed from the issue dates held in APP_24 and the record of when each version was published; earlier entries are stated at the level the evidence supports. At this issue a Related documents section was added so the thread into the rest of the IMS can be followed in either direction. No change to the substance of the document.
1 04/05/2026 Aaron Mason, Director Initial issue — rolling toolbox talk programme.