Health and Safety Champion of the Year Award

Sponsored by: APS

Finalists:

Heathrow Terminal 5 has almost become a byword for good safety practice, so it is fitting that its health and safety director should be championed with this award

Clive Johnson, Heathrow Terminal 5

Clive Johnson was the first person on record to specify full collective protection for scaffolding erectors at T5, thereby being instrumental in achieving the enviable reputation of T5 as one of the safest sites in the country. Johnson also formed SA-FE group ,(Safe Access-Fall Elimination) bringing together the scaffolding system manufacturers capable of developing and achieving best practice in erection methodology and training. His influence extends beyond the UK: Johnsons reputation for health and safety work has led to him making presentations at the Health & Safety Congress, held in Chicago, and at the Scaffold Industry Association of Canada where he presented fall prevention methodology to its members for the first time.

Richard Rook, Laing ORourke

Rook holds full responsibility for the day-to-day leadership of health and safety within Laing ORourke, and his success can be measured by the extent to which he has driven change through one of Europes largest contractors. Rook has greatly improved understanding among project teams about the positive impact that good design and engineering can have on health and safety. Thanks largely to Rook, Laing ORourke is constantly seeking innovative ways of reducing the numbers of people physically present on its sites and thereby reducing exposure to construction risks wherever possible. Similarly, Rook and his team have driven forward training and developed company processes to ensure that ownership and responsibility for health and safety rests with those at the very top - project leaders, managers and supervisors.

Nick Bradbury, Cementation Foundations Skanska

In some companies, giving the operations director responsibility for health and safety rather than having a dedicated professional in the role could be taken as a sign that safety is not the priority it should be. Not so at Cementation Foundations Skanska. Bradbury is extremely knowledgeable of piling construction, highly respected and quietly determined; and his dual position means he presides over operations, balancing business need and operational necessity with a desire to see his workforce go back to their families unharmed. Nick is a true safety champion in his desire to drive the companys safety performance to continually improve.

Roger Coonie, Church Conservation

Roger Coonie runs Church Conservation, a specialist steeplejack firm providing services in church lightning conductor engineering, stonemasonry, carving, and other construction services. He shows a strong personal commitment to and safety in his niche but potentially dangerous sector, and has undertaken work towards producing a comprehensive health and safety plan for steeplejacks, at risk as they are of falling from considerable heights. Coonie, the immediate past president of ATLAS, the Association of Technical Lighting and Access Specialists, has also worked through the association to ensure the availability of training courses for apprentice steeplejack and lightning conductor engineers which leads to NVQ accreditation.

Ian Whittingham, Skanska

Former construction worker Ian Whittingham lost the use of his legs in a site accident, and has since dedicated his life to communicating to others the importance of safety on site. His journey has now taken him into an educational role where he is delivering the health and safety message in a number of different environments, including universities, and travels the length and breadth of the country raising awareness wherever he can. Whittingham is without doubt among the most effective communicators in construction health and safety.