In this episode of Risk! Engineers Talk Governance, due diligence engineers Richard Robinson and Gaye Francis discuss Formal Safety Assessments. 

Key highlights include:

• A Formal Safety Assessment (FSA) is meant to provide a logical and reasoned argument that can withstand legal scrutiny.
• Formal Safety Assessments should identify the critical issues of concern, the current controls in place, and the further practical controls that could be considered, as well as the reasoning for implementing or not implementing those further controls. 
• Many FSAs lack this logical reasoning and instead just list risks and general controls, without clearly connecting them to the specific hazards. 
• Threat barrier diagrams can help provide a logical structure by clearly showing the issues of concern, the controls, and the consequences. 
• Formal Safety Assessments should be concise and focused, not hundreds of pages long, as the key is to present a clear, robust argument. 
• Formal Safety Assessments should also be regularly reviewed and updated to reflect changing context and availability of new controls, rather than just being recycled from previous versions.

For further information on Richard and Gaye’s consulting work with R2A, head to https://www.r2a.com.au, where you’ll also find their booklets (store) and a sign-up for their quarterly newsletter to keep informed of their latest news and events. 

Gaye is also founder of Australian women’s safety workwear company Apto PPE https://www.aptoppe.com.au.