Changes to key L8 guidance discussed

The event was hosted by Immerse Training, and delegates’ views on various issues, including the non-definitive terminology, and their general concerns regarding Legionella management and competence, were recorded, along with the impact that the proposed changes will have on people who manage water systems.

  Following an independent review of health and safety legislation published on 28 November 2011, headed by Professor Ragnar Löfstedt, director of the King’s Centre for Risk Management at King’s College London, the Professor reported that, overall, a wide range of stakeholders supported the principles of Approved Codes of Practice (or ACoPs), seeing them as a vital part of the system that formed a key link between goal setting legislation and guidance, although many also said they felt there was room for improvement. The Government accepted this recommendation, and asked the HSE to review its ACoPs accordingly. All but Part 2 of the Technical Guidance were published late last year. Now, after a critical review of the Legionella ACoP and technical guidance, some parts have been assigned ACoP status to clarify legal requirements where there is an accepted industry method of compliance. Some text has changed from ACoP to guidance status. These changes do not impact on practical compliance requirements. Terminology has been simplified where possible. There are limited references to guidance published by external organisations, because these may quickly become outdated, and ‘web searches’ are now a more usual method of researching up-todate guidance. In addition to the revision of the ACoP, related Legionella guidance has been revised, updated, consolidated, and simplified as part of HSE’s review of external guidance.

The impact of the changes