As I have been a teacher and now a science technician and so I have a lot to do with health and safety.  I understand the need to health and safety, especially in a science laboratory.  Even though I understand the need I still don’t like it.  A lot of health and safety is just about making sure the school isn’t sued if a pupil decided to misbehave and do something stupid.

Health and safety in the school really annoyed me the other day.  I rely on the Internet connection to get emails and download things teacher want.  Unfortunately the Internet connection is very slow and unreliable.  I would have thought that as we are a technology college that we would have a connection similar to what a business would have like SDSL and a really reliable wireless coverage.  Every 5 minutes I lose wireless connection and I am not able to have a wired connection as they build all the sockets into the other side of the room.  I would drape the wire across the floor, but health and safety says it’s a tripping hazard.  I decided that I would get it sorted by my self by installing a wire from the socket, through the ceiling and down the wall near my computer. 

I wandered down to the network office to see if I could get a 10m long Cat 5 cable.  I thought they were going to give it me, until I said I was putting it thought the ceiling.  They looked shocked and told me that health and safety would not allow me to go up a ladder to do it.  Not because they were concerned I could hurt my self by falling off a ladder, but because if I did fall off a ladder I could sue them.  That about sums up Health and safety for me.