Health & Safety Mindset – Rewiring the way we think about Health & Safety
- Case Study

Background

M&J Evans Construction engaged Find Your Mindset to address persistent non-conformances in their operations.

We designed two tailored sessions, one for management and one for operatives, aimed at nurturing a positive health and safety mindset within the organisation.

The sessions focused on leadership, conflict resolution, and promoting open communication to encourage a more health & safety-conscious environment.

 

The challenges of building the sessions

Repeat major non-conformances in one of their regions:

These non-conformances were influenced by decision-making by both operatives and management.

Disciplinary actions and re-inductions failed to address the issues:

The underlying causes of the non-conformances were not being addressed by traditional methods.

The need to create two training sessions tailored to different levels of the organisation:

The sessions needed to complement each other and create a strong team ethos around the company's values.

The need to help learners build a positive mindset towards health and safety:

This was required from both a management and operative perspective.

 

What was Find Your Mindset’s vision for the sessions?

Find Your Mindset envisioned sessions that would:

Empower individuals and organisations to move beyond a purely compliance-driven approach to health and safety:

The emphasis on understanding the "why" behind behaviours and exploring the psychology of risk perception to build a more proactive and positive safety culture.

Provide practical tools and strategies for effective health and safety leadership:

By exploring various leadership styles, the sessions aimed to help participants identify and develop their own leadership approach to promote a safety-conscious environment.

 

 

Facilitate open communication and constructive dialogue around health and safety:

The inclusion of tools like the SCARF model (threat/reward model) to focus on addressing non-conformance through understanding and communication rather than solely relying on rules and penalties.

Challenge common assumptions and promote critical thinking:

By questioning the notion of health and safety as "common sense," the sessions sought to encourage participants to examine their own biases and develop a more informed perspective.

 

How was the session built?

The sessions were built around a long-form conversation where learners could speak freely without fear of judgement or consequence. This approach aimed to address the challenge of repeat major non-conformances influenced by operative and management decision-making, which disciplinary actions and re-inductions had failed to tackle.

The content of the conversation focused on:

• Leadership

• Conflict resolution

• Building a positive mindset towards health and safety

 

How were the sessions received?

This approach was piloted and, due to its success, was rolled out across all M&J regions nationally.

 

Conclusions & prospects

The success of the sessions has led to potential requirement of an ongoing programme. M&J have reported a positive impact on the attendees and the organisation as a whole. This positive reception is attributed to several factors:

Effective Content and Delivery:

The success stems from the course's comprehensive content and engaging delivery. The highlight of the course's focus on shifting mindsets, exploring leadership styles, and providing practical tools like the SCARF model, which resonated with attendees.

Meeting a Need:

The demand for further sessions indicates a strong need within the organisation for the knowledge and skills addressed in the course. This suggests that the organisation has recognised a gap in their health and safety culture and leadership capabilities that the sessions effectively introduced.

Positive Outcomes:

The initial sessions led to observable positive outcomes. These outcomes included improved safety behaviours, a decrease in incidents, and a more positive attitude towards health and safety among employees.