The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) was invited to talk about nuclear safety at a recent Institution of Chemical Engineers Hazards 32 conference.
Nick Shaw, ONR Principal Nuclear Safety Inspector, gave a presentation titled ‘Safety leadership: a nuclear industry perspective’ at the three-day event in Harrogate, Yorkshire.
It was an opportunity to explain the guidance ONR has developed for our specialist inspectors when undertaking assessments of safety leadership.
Our safety leadership guidance was produced with the support of Professor Kevin Kelloway, of St Mary’s University, in Canada, and Dr Jennifer Wong, of the University of Canterbury, in New Zealand.
Nick said: “I was delighted to have the opportunity to present my paper about safety leadership at the conference which is a great opportunity to engage with a wide range of industry stakeholders to enhance nuclear safety.
“Our guidance also provides information about the role of senior leadership in terms of setting safety standards and goals, the management system arrangements for encouraging effective safety leadership behaviours and discouraging poor safety leadership behaviours, and the assessment of safety leadership.”
ONR’s guidance identifies five specific core behaviours of effective safety leadership which are:
- Speaking about safety
- Acting safely at work
- Focusing on maintaining safety standards
- Engaging others in safety initiatives
- Recognising individuals who adhere to safety
Although intended for use by ONR inspectors, the guidance has wider application and has the potential to be of value to other high hazard industries and other regulatory bodies.
ONR’s Safety Leadership Technical Assessment guide is available on our website.