HSE ALERT: Update to the Controlling Noise at Work Guidance

The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 came into force on 6 April 2006 and apply to all industry sectors in Great Britain. The aim of the Noise Regulations is to ensure that workers' hearing is protected from excessive noise in the workplace, however as with all regulation documents, some of the wording may be difficult to interpret. As such, the HSE produced the “Controlling Noise at Work Guidance” (L108), which includes the Control of Noise at Work Regulations alongside guidance on what it means.

On 21^st October 2021, the HSE released the third edition of L108, Controlling Noise at Work Guidance, to emphasise that the priority is for control of exposure and risk.

Whilst the content of the guidance document remains largely unchanged, it is worth noting that there are minor changes to the noise regulations (Regulation 2(1), 3(3) and 7(4)).

The HSE explain that “the guide has been updated in keeping with changes to related legislation, technical advances and experience”, however they also confirm, “the HSE’s policy on the control of noise has not changed.”

What does this mean for construction site managers?

What employers and duty holders should take away from this update, is the importance to undertake a suitable and sufficient risk assessment of noise. This requires more than just a measurement of noise; it is important to identify where there may be a risk of noise, who is likely to be affected, what the exposure levels are likely to be and what measures can be put in place to reduce and manage the noise effectively (eg. engineering controls, administrative controls, health surveillance etc.).

More Information

Visit the HSE’s newly designed ‘Noise at Work – Advice and Guidance’ page

Download a copy of L108, Controlling Noise at Work Guidance

Order a copy of The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005

View RVT’s Soundex Noise Control Solutions

Learn more about Practical examples of noise control as detailed in Part 3 of L108