Safety Newsletter No: 84 - Britain's Workplaces Are Safer Than Ever – But Don’t Rest on Your Laurels

Good news does not always make headlines, but this is worth sharing. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published its annual statistics on work-related fatal injuries, and the picture is genuinely encouraging. Great Britain remains one of the safest places in the world to go to work – and the latest figures are, provisionally, the best on record.

Even so, 126 families still lost someone last year to an accident that happened at work. So while we can take heart from the long-term trend, the numbers are also a reminder of why health and safety deserves a permanent place on the management agenda, not just a mention at induction.

The key numbers at a glance

• 126 workers were killed in work-related accidents in 2025/26 – down 2 on the previous year, and pandemic years aside, the lowest annual figure ever recorded.

• To put that in context, the figure was 217 twenty years ago and 495 back in 1981.

• The fatal injury rate now stands at just 0.37 deaths per 100,000 workers – down from 2.1 in 1981.  Many people feel this is the more accurate benchmark measure to use.

• 104 members of the public also died in work-related accidents, up 8 on the previous year and now back at pre-pandemic levels.

Where the risks really lie

The overall numbers are low, but they are not evenly spread:

• Construction (25 deaths) and agriculture, forestry and fishing (22 deaths) together account for nearly 40% of all worker fatalities.

• Measured by the working population rate rather than actual death count, the agricultural sector is 21 times riskier than the all-industry average.  Waste and recycling are 10 times riskier.

• Falls from height remain the biggest single killer, causing around a quarter of deaths – as they have almost every year since 2001/02. Being struck by a moving vehicle (24 deaths) or a moving object (21 deaths) follow close behind.

Who is most at risk

• A staggering 93% of those killed were men.  This is largely explained because of the male dominated make-up of higher-risk industries.

• Workers aged 60 and over accounted for a third of deaths, despite being only 12% of the workforce. Those aged 65+ face a fatality rate four times the all-ages average.

• The self-employed made up around a third of deaths while representing only 15% of the working population – their fatality rate runs at roughly three times that of employees.

What this means for employers

If you run an office-based business, your statistical risk of a workplace fatality is mercifully tiny. But the data offers useful prompts for every employer:

Working at height is still the number one killer. Even occasional tasks – changing light fittings, clearing gutters, retrieving stock from mezzanines – need proper risk assessment and equipment.

Older workers need particular thought. With more people working into their late 60s and beyond, risk assessments should reflect an ageing workforce – not to exclude older workers, but to keep them safe.

Vehicles and workplaces are a dangerous mix. Delivery yards, car parks and loading bays deserve the same attention as the shop floor.

Contractors and the self-employed are your problem too. If they are working on your premises, or your project, their safety is part of your duty of care.

The long-term trend proves that good management works – British workplaces have become dramatically safer over four decades. The challenge now is to keep the momentum going as the rate of improvement slows. That starts, as ever, with sensible risk assessment, genuine leadership commitment and a culture where safety is everyone's business.

The full HSE report, "Work-related fatal injuries in Great Britain, 2026", is available at hse.gov.uk/statistics. Figures for 2025/26 are provisional and will be finalised in July 2027.

Your Consultant will be pleased to advise you on any element of the issues arising from this newsletter.