Skip to main content
IOSH Magazine: Safety, Health and Wellbeing in the world of work - return to the homepage IOSH Magaazine logo
  • Visit IOSH Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit @ioshmagazine on Twitter
  • Visit IOSH Magazine on LinkedIn
Non-verbal communication
How to build trust
March/April 2023 issue

Main navigation

  • Home
    • Browse previous issues
    • Member accolades
    • Member tributes
  • Health
    • Mental health and wellbeing
      • Bullying
      • Drugs and alcohol
      • Mental health
      • Stress
      • Wellbeing
    • Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
      • Ergonomics
      • Manual handling
      • Vibration
    • Occupational cancer
      • Asbestos
      • Hazardous substances
      • Radiation
  • Safety
    • Incident management
      • Chemicals
      • Electricity
      • Fire
      • First aid
      • Slips and trips
    • Non-health related fatalities
      • Road safety
      • Work at height
    • Risk management
      • Confined spaces
      • Disability
      • Legionella
      • Lifting operations
      • Lone workers
      • Noise
      • Personal protective equipment
      • Violence at work
      • Work equipment
      • Workplace transport
  • Management
    • Human factors
      • Accident reduction
      • Behavioural safety
      • Control of contractors
      • Migrant workers
      • Older workers
      • Reporting
      • Safe systems of work
      • Sickness absence
      • Young workers
    • Leadership and management
      • Employee involvement
      • Management systems
    • Management standards
      • ISO 45001
      • ISO 45003
    • Planning
      • Assurance
      • Compliance
      • Emergency planning
      • Insurance
    • Rehabilitation
      • Personal injury
      • Return to work
    • Strategy
      • Corporate governance
      • Performance/results
      • Regulation/enforcement
      • Reputation
    • Sustainability
      • Human capital and Vision Zero
  • Skills
    • Communication
    • Personal performance
      • Achieving Fellowship
      • Career development
      • Competencies
      • Personal development
      • Professional skills
      • Qualifications
    • Stakeholder management
    • Working with others
      • Leadership
      • Future Leaders
  • Jobs
  • Covid-19
  • Knowledge Bank
    • Back to basics
    • Book club
    • Infographics
    • Podcast
    • Reports
    • Webinars
    • Videos
  • Products & Services
  • Management
    • Human factors
      • Sickness absence
      • Accident reduction
      • Behavioural safety
      • Control of contractors
      • Migrant workers
      • Older workers
      • Reporting
      • Safe systems of work
      • Young workers
    • Leadership and management
      • Employee involvement
      • Leadership
      • Management systems
    • Management standards
      • ISO 45001
      • ISO 45003
    • Planning
      • Assurance
      • Compliance
      • Emergency planning
      • Insurance
    • Strategy
      • Corporate governance
      • Performance/results
      • Regulation/enforcement
      • Reputation
    • Sustainability
      • Human capital and Vision Zero
  • Health
    • COVID-19
    • Mental health and wellbeing
      • Bullying
      • Drugs and alcohol
      • Mental health
      • Stress
      • Wellbeing
    • Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
      • Ergonomics
      • Manual handling
      • Vibration
    • Occupational cancer
      • Asbestos
      • Hazardous substances
      • Radiation
  • Safety
    • Incident management
      • Chemicals
      • Electricity
      • Fire
      • First aid
      • Slips and trips
    • Non-health related fatalities
      • Road safety
      • Work at height
    • Risk management
      • Confined spaces
      • Disability
      • Legionella
      • Lifting operations
      • Lone workers
      • Noise
      • Personal protective equipment
      • Violence at work
      • Work equipment
      • Workplace transport
  • Skills
    • Communication
    • Personal performance
      • Career development
      • Competencies
      • Personal development
      • Qualifications
      • Professional skills
      • Achieving Fellowship
    • Stakeholder management
    • Working with others
      • Leadership
      • Future Leaders
  • Transport and logistics
  • Third sector
  • Retail
  • Mining and quarrying
  • Rail
  • Rehabilitation
    • Personal injury
    • Return to work
  • Utilities
  • Manufacturing and engineering
  • Construction
  • Sector: IOSH Branch
    • Sector: Northern Ireland
    • Sector: Midland
    • Sector: Merseyside
    • Sector: Manchester and North West Districts
    • Sector: Ireland East
    • Sector: Ireland
    • Sector: Edinburgh
    • Sector: Desmond-South Munster
    • Sector: Qatar
    • Sector: Oman
    • Singapore
    • Sector: South Coast
    • Sector: South Wales
    • Sector: Thames Valley
    • Sector: Tyne and Wear
    • Sector: UAE
    • Sector: West of Scotland
    • Sector: Yorkshire
  • Healthcare
  • Sector: Fire
  • Sector: Financial/general services
  • Sector: Energy
  • Education
  • Sector: Communications and media
  • Chemicals
  • Sector: Central government
  • Catering and leisure
  • Agriculture and forestry
  • Sector: Local government
  • Sector: IOSH Group
    • Sector: Financial Services
    • Sector: Sports Grounds and Events
    • Rural industries
    • Sector: railway
    • Public Services
    • Sector: Offshore
    • Sector: Hazardous Industries
    • Sector: Food and Drink
    • Sector: Fire Risk Management
    • Education
    • Construction
    • Sector: Aviation and Aerospace
Quick links:
  • Home
  • Categories
  • Review
Management systems
Management standards
Incident management
Fire

Book review: Catastrophe and Systemic Change

Open-access content Friday 6th August 2021
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 1 year old.
Authors
Gill Kernick
web_Catastophe_PSD_800x500

Catastrophe and Systemic Change: Learning from the Grenfell Tower Fire and Other Disasters by Gill Kernick

Review undertaken by Duncan Spencer CFIOSH, head of advice and practice, IOSH

So, you think you have a good safety management system? That you have adequately mitigated the safety and occupational health risks in your organisation? Not only that, perhaps you have also met the standards set out in ISO 45001.

The uncomfortable truth is maybe, just maybe, you have been lulled into a false sense of achievement. Have you truly nailed it, or have you inadvertently generated a bureaucracy that veils the truth of the risk that your organisation faces?

'If you truly wish to help your employer to become a learning organisation, you must read this book'

What is undeniable is that the world is changing at an incredible rate. Every day it becomes more volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. Regulatory systems are known to be porous and flawed. Standards can be conflicting and even actively bypassed by invention and innovation. Leadership styles are often out of step with modern reality. Pressure groups, social media and other lobbying activity are becoming more prolific both inside and outside of organisations. The world, your organisation, is in a constant state of flux. What worked yesterday may not be effective today and maybe even be obsolete tomorrow.

This excellent book by Gill Kernick shines a light on all those undercurrents and how, as you read this, they may even be undermining your safety management system. If you truly wish to help your employer to become a learning organisation, you must read this book. If you are interested in how to address low likelihood and high impact risk, you really need to read this book. It’s not strictly about the Grenfell Tower tragedy, it’s about how to identify if your organisation has its own 'Grenfell Tower' in waiting.

You may also be interested in...

EU-OSHA emphasises prevention measures to counter prolonged sitting risks_credit_LightField Studios_shutterstock_1424115872.jpg

 EU-OSHA's prevention measures to counter prolonged sitting risks

Wednesday 28th July 2021
A European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) report exploring the health risks associated with prolonged static sitting at work has outlined a range of measures that employers should include in a prevention strategy to enhance employee protection.
Open-access content
ORR report calls on Network Rail to improve worker safety credit_Edinburghcitymom_shutterstock_1177684528.png

 ORR report calls on Network Rail to improve worker safety

Tuesday 27th July 2021
The Office of Rail and Road’s (ORR) annual report of health and safety on Britain’s railways highlights worker safety as a top priority for Network Rail after the death of three rail employees, including two track workers.
Open-access content
NZ report makes 13 recommendations_credit_Sheryl Watson_shutterstock_1447684043.png

 NZ report makes 13 recommendations to improve transport safety

Monday 26th July 2021
WorkSafe NZ has published a report with 13 recommendations to improve vehicle-related health and safety and actively manage supply chain pressures to minimise vehicle-related risks.
Open-access content
web_residential-apartments_credit_iStock-160051707

 Building Safety Bill: familiar concepts, ‘but much to learn’

Monday 12th July 2021
Two OSH regulatory lawyers explain the key provisions of the new Building Safety Bill in England.
Open-access content
web_Investigative-Interviewing_Book-Jacket_tilt-2

 Book review: Investigative Interviewing

Thursday 1st July 2021
Investigative Interviewing: what it is, where it came from and how to use it, by Andrew J Farrall CMIOSH.
Open-access content
web_p70-71_HIRES_iStock-166150783.png

 Respect among cultures

Thursday 14th January 2021
With a career that has seen him in roles at national and multinational level, Craig Docherty GradIOSH explains why respecting cultural differences – both within and beyond the workplace – is crucial.
Open-access content

Latest from Review

web_People-Power_Book-jacket.png

 People Power: Transform your business in the era of safety and wellbeing

Tuesday 28th June 2022
People Power is very much a book that reflects its time; as its subtitle suggests, this really does feel like 'the era of safety and wellbeing'. In this respect, the author does a fine job of mapping out how the perceived momentousness of this historical milieu might play out in the real-life work environment.
Open-access content
web_PSD-Paperback_Mindshift_Book-Cover (1).png

 Book club: A practical guide for OH on consultation and report writing

Thursday 16th June 2022
The author has written this guide with the aim of filling gaps in knowledge around mental illness in the workplace, and occupational health consultation and report writing.
Open-access content
web_Book-jacket-PSD_Essentials-of-safety-by-Ian-Long.png

 Essentials of Safety: Maintaining the Balance

Friday 13th May 2022
As the author says, this book is not a book about safety, it is a book about people. This book looks at the way that people think and act in the context of occupational safety and health.
Open-access content

Latest from Management systems

resized-Ella-Henderson-image-Jan-10-2023-release.png

 Newcastle City Council fined £280k for failing to remove rotten willow tree that crushed six-year-old school girl

Monday 16th January 2023
Newcastle City Council has accepted responsibility for failing to properly manage the risk of a decayed willow tree that collapsed in strong winds and struck several children while they were playing at Gosforth Park First School in Newcastle upon Tyne during the lunchbreak.
Open-access content
web_p62-63_HIRES_Lipsticks.png

 Fashioning safety at L’Oréal

Monday 1st March 2021
Malcolm Staves, corporate health and safety director at L’Oréal, on building and maintaining an all-encompassing safety culture across the giant multinational’s sites.
Open-access content
web_p48-49_HIRES_GettyImages-1225481666_edit.png

 The dangers of poor imitations

Tuesday 12th January 2021
‘Copy and paste’ methodologies, standards, legislation and guidance are too often in use in developing countries – it’s time to challenge this, writes Dr Nnedinma Umeokafor.
Open-access content

Latest from Fire

web_Firefighters-walk-to-their-vehicle_credit_Tupungato_shutterstock_1062933506.png

 Terminal cancer cases in Grenfell firefighters

Friday 20th January 2023
National media reports have revealed that up to a dozen Grenfell firefighters have been diagnosed with terminal cancer
Open-access content
yg

 Appeal success for food firm over ‘excessive’ fine

Tuesday 1st November 2022
Court of Appeal reduces Dub Catering’s £120,000 penalty for firm’s breaches of fire safety law.
Open-access content
web_Fire-extinguisher-in-use_credit_iStock-1327086620.png

 HSE publishes revised construction fire safety guidance

Thursday 1st September 2022
The GB Health and Safety Executive has recently published a revised version of its fire safety in construction (HSG168) document. 
Open-access content

Latest from Incident management

u

 The search for safety hacks

Wednesday 4th January 2023
A ‘hackathon’ to develop better safety management software using AI has helped the Port of Tyne move towards its ambition of achieving zero harm.
Open-access content
web_p56_accident-investigation-interview_CREDIT-ktsimage-iStock-1255205409.png

 How to conduct an effective accident investigation interview

Thursday 1st July 2021
How do you know when someone is lying? Accident investigator Andy Farrall on the tell-tale signs.
Open-access content
web_p52-53_HIRES_GettyImages-859638972_v2.png

 Proportionality - a synoptic view

Wednesday 13th January 2021
Laurence Ball-King GradIOSH discusses what is hindering proportionality in occupational safety and health.
Open-access content

Latest from Management standards

web_Global-business-concept_credit_iStock-1054580514.jpg

 ISO 45001 – five years on

Friday 10th March 2023
The five-year anniversary of ISO 45001: 2018, the first truly international OSH management system standard, is an ideal opportunity to reflect on its impact and plan for a climate-affected future, writes Richard Jones CFIOSH.
Open-access content
web_globe-on-circular-puzzle_iStock-599254724

 ISO certification in a COVID climate

Friday 30th April 2021
Paula Brady of Auva Certification considers whether the pandemic has prompted better methods for auditing management systems.
Open-access content
web_p48-49_HIRES_GettyImages-1225481666_edit.png

 The dangers of poor imitations

Tuesday 12th January 2021
‘Copy and paste’ methodologies, standards, legislation and guidance are too often in use in developing countries – it’s time to challenge this, writes Dr Nnedinma Umeokafor.
Open-access content
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Latest Jobs

Senior Health and Safety Manager

Reading
Up to £65000.00 per annum + Great Car Allowance & Benefits
Reference
5452983

Regional Health and Safety Advisor

Northampton
Up to £53000 per annum + Travel & Excellent Benefits
Reference
5452982

Global Health, Safety and Environment Director

Up to £150000 per annum + Excellent Benefits
Reference
5452980
See all jobs »

Sign up for regular e-alerts

Receive the latest news and features, free to your inbox

Sign up

Subscribe to IOSH magazine

Receive the print edition straight to your door

Subscribe
IOSH Covers
​
FOLLOW US
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
CONTACT US
Contact us
Tel +44 (0)20 7880 6200
​

IOSH

About IOSH
Become a member
IOSH Events
MyIOSH

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to IOSH magazine
Write for IOSH magazine

IOSH Magazine

Health
Safety
Management
Skills
IOSH Jobs

© 2023 IOSH • IOSH is not responsible for the content of external sites

ioshmagazine.com and IOSH Magazine are published by Redactive Media Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part is not allowed without written permission.

Redactive Media Group Ltd, 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ