Picture a busy warehouse. A delivery has arrived, orders need picking and someone takes a familiar shortcut across the yard. A forklift driver brakes sharply. Everyone stops for a moment.
“That was close.”
Nobody is hurt. There is relief, perhaps a nervous laugh, then work starts again. But the shortcut is still there. The next delivery is already on its way.
That moment is an opportunity to make a change. For a smaller business, it could help protect the colleague who knows every customer order, the driver everyone relies on or the owner who cannot easily step away from work.
HSE estimates that 680,000 workers in Great Britain sustained a non-fatal workplace injury in 2024/25, based on Labour Force Survey self-reports. Behind each injury is a person, with a life beyond work, and a team that may suddenly need to manage without them.
Look beyond “nobody was hurt”
HSE defines a near miss as an event that causes no harm but could cause injury or ill health. Its guidance says the investigation should reflect the potential consequences and likelihood of recurrence.
A tool falling beside someone’s feet deserves attention even if they walk away unharmed. So does a vehicle narrowly missing a pedestrian.
Ask: what stopped this becoming an injury? Was it a working safeguard, or did someone simply move out of the way in time?
The business consequences can also last beyond the incident. Someone is recovering at home, colleagues are covering their work and customers are waiting. HSE estimates that workplace injuries and new cases of work-related ill health cost employers £4.3 billion in 2023/24. That figure covers much more than emergency disruption, but it shows why prevention belongs in business planning.
Make speaking up worth the effort
Return to the warehouse example. Telling the worker to “watch where you’re going” may miss why people cross there. Perhaps the marked walkway is blocked by stock, or the layout makes the shortcut the easiest route.
Speak to the driver and the people picking orders. Walk the route with them. Ask what happens when the yard gets busy.
Make reporting straightforward: who should someone tell, and what information do they need? A worker should not have to search for a form while a dangerous situation continues.
Then explain what changed. HSE’s learning guidance emphasises putting lessons into practice and communicating them. If people hear nothing after reporting a concern, they may question whether it was worth raising.
Five practical actions to take
- Make the immediate situation safe. If danger remains, stop the affected activity where safe to do so and alert the responsible person. Do not wait for paperwork or attempt repairs beyond your competence.
- Capture what happened. Record the location, task, people involved and what could have happened. A photograph may help, provided it can be taken safely.
- Find out why. Look at the layout, equipment, instructions and pressures around the job. Ask the people doing the work which precautions are difficult to follow.
- Give the improvement an owner. “We’ll sort it” is easy to forget. Record who will act, by when and any precautions needed in the meantime.
- Check it during normal work. Is the walkway still clear during the next delivery? Are people using it? A change needs to work when the workplace is busy.
Measure what changes
More reports may mean people feel more confident speaking up. No reports may mean concerns are going unheard.
Look at repeated problems, overdue actions and whether improvements have worked. Start your next team discussion with a simple question: “What nearly went wrong this week?”
Listen to the answer and follow through. That is how a close call becomes useful learning, helping protect your people and keep essential work running safely.
About WT Consultancy
WT Consultancy (SW) Ltd supports businesses across Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset with practical health and safety advice. We help employers review risks, learn from incidents and put workable arrangements in place.
Find out more about our health and safety consultancy.
