Villeroy & Boch Group UK Ceramic Operations has once again been recognised by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) for its outstanding commitment to workplace safety.
The company has received the prestigious Order of Distinction for the seventh time, an accolade reserved for organisations that have achieved RoSPA’s Gold Award for health and safety performance over a minimum of 15 consecutive years. This year marks the company’s 22nd consecutive year of demonstrating this level of competence, underlining its long-term commitment to keeping colleagues safe.
RoSPA Awards are regarded as the UK’s longest-running and most respected health and safety awards, attracting nearly 2,000 entries each year from organisations across all sectors. Winners are recognised as global leaders in health and safety practice.
Marie Long, UK Ceramic Operations Health and Safety Manager, said: “This has been very much a team effort and I’d like to thank everyone who has contributed by carrying out essential tasks; our Mental Health Angels, first aiders, fire team, trade union safety reps, hygiene and cleaning teams and each and every one of our employees.
“Our engineering and management teams have continued to make significant improvements to the systems we use to raise and record actions, ensuring issues identified through daily shift reports, site inspections, near-miss reporting and investigations following first aid incidents or accidents are addressed effectively.
“Our people are incredibly important to us. We strongly believe that everyone should be and feel safe while they are at work.
“Every colleague has a responsibility and accountability to look after their own health and safety and that of others by following procedures, applying their training and continuing to make safety our number one priority.”
UK Operations General Manager Mark Barrett said: “It’s an outstanding achievement for the site to meet RoSPA’s high standards for safety in the workplace for the 22nd year in a row.
“The last 12 months have been a challenging year for the business, with the closure of one of our two tunnel kilns reducing production by around 30% and approximately one third of our workforce leaving the business.
“Despite these significant changes, our commitment to health and safety never wavered.”
He added: “I’m incredibly proud that no one allowed our standards to slip. Colleagues pulled together, supporting one another while continuing to carry out their roles safely and professionally.
“That commitment demonstrates the strong safety culture we have built together.”
Now in its 68th year, the RoSPA Awards scheme is open to businesses and organisations of all types and sizes in the UK and internationally.