Industry News | Jul 25, 2025 | No Comments |
Accident Prevention Strategy needed
Call for National Accident Prevention Strategy
If you have ever found yourself muttering about health and safety gone mad, this might be the moment to reflect on the fact that increasing numbers of people are dying through accidents.
20,000 people in the UK are killed this way each year, and half of these fatalities occur in the home.
Inexplicably, the government’s 10 year health plan, with its emphasis on prevention rather than sickness, completely overlooks the role of accident prevention.
House of Lords supports RoSPA demand
Peers are demanding the government take urgent action to tackle the shocking rise in accidents across the country, following a debate in the House of Lords on the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents’ (RoSPA) call for a National Accident Prevention Strategy.
The recently published RoSPA report Safer Lives, Stronger Nation, revealed the true extent of accidents in the UK, the tragic human impact and the cost to the NHS and the wider UK economy.
Key findings of the report
• Over 20,000 people – more than the capacity of the 02 Arena – die of accidents in the UK each year.
• The per capita rate of accidental deaths has increased by 42% since 2013.
• Over half of fatal accidents happen in the home.
Accidents impact on the health service
There are estimated to be over 800,000 accident-related admissions in the UK each year, and more than 7 million accident-related A&E attendances.
Accident-related hospital admissions in England have increased by 29% since 2002/03.
Accidents cost the NHS millions of bed days and £6 billion in direct treatment costs annually. This does not include any ongoing costs for rehabilitation following accidents, which would make the figure much higher.
Accidents are an economic crisis too
In addition, the UK economy loses another £6 billion annually through lost productivity and working days. Over 10 times as many working days are lost to accidents as strikes.
Yet government action to tackle this growing public health emergency and economic crisis is fragmented, inconsistent and lacking coordination between different departments and offices such as the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
No accident prevention in the 10 year plan
That accident prevention does not have the urgent priority such important work requires is apparent in the new NHS 10 Year Plan. Despite the enormous pressure avoidable accidents currently place on the NHS, the plan’s focus on the move from ‘sickness to prevention’ overlooks accident prevention, even though the cost of treating accidents is comparable to that of treating conditions related to obesity (estimated at £6.5 billion) and over twice that of treating conditions related to smoking (estimated at £2.5 billion).
Lords debate highlights need for an accident prevention strategy
Introducing the debate, Baroness Crawley of Edgbaston, RoSPA Vice President, said the 42% rise in deaths from accidents is ‘not just a statistic – it is a crisis: a national failure of co-ordination, leadership and investment.’
The debate explored many timely reasons why a national accident prevention strategy is required, including:
• The Get Britain Working white paper and the need to ensure people entering or returning to work are in a safe environment
• Links between accidents and health inequalities, demonstrated by the disproportionate impact of accidents on people from deprived backgrounds
• Emerging issues such as driverless cars, AI and climate change
• Growing evidence of the effectiveness of 20mph zones and segregated cycle lanes
• Building regulations in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire
Viscount Younger of Leckie commented
Noting that RoSPA’s report shows that
‘you are substantially more likely to suffer a serious accident today than you were 20 years ago’[…]‘accident prevention should be a key facet at the heart of our regulatory system and considered to be an integral feature of so many aspects of the way in which we lead our lives, at home and in the workplace’ […] ‘more cross-government work is required, with clear responsibilities for safety.’
Government response from Baroness Sherlock, Work and Pensions Minister
Responding on behalf of the government, Baroness Sherlock, Work and Pensions Minister, praised the RoSPA report and said that:
‘We are committed to working across government to ensure that our approach to accident prevention or incident prevention is coherent, proportionate and responsive to the needs of people across the country’.
Following the debate, Steve Cole, RoSPA Policy Director, said:
‘This debate is an important step in RoSPA’s fight to reverse the UK’s alarming rise in accident rates, and we are grateful to the House of Lords’ for raising the profile of this crucial topic. While government’s warm words are very welcome, the sheer scale of the crisis caused by years of insufficient and uncoordinated accident prevention work means there is not a moment to waste, so we look forward to working with them to transform their commitment into real action to save lives across the UK.’
You can see the full RoSPA report here (external link will open in a new browser tab or window)
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