This policy procedure sets out how legal compliance is kept under review and how business risks, opportunities and workplace hazards are assessed, rated and controlled.

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Further Reading

Further guidance on legal compliance and risk management:

• Evaluating Compliance with Legal Requirements
• Legal Register and Compliance Obligations
• Risk and Opportunity Management
• Legal and Compliance knowledge base

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Legal Compliance, Risks and Opportunities Policy Procedure Template

The Legal Compliance, Risks and Opportunities Policy Procedure is a Word template that sets out how a business keeps its legal obligations under review and assesses risks and opportunities. It covers legal update sources, SWOT analysis and improvement suggestions, inherent and residual risk ratings, workplace risk assessment and control measures, and worker participation and consultation.

It is written to work with an IMS1 management system, referring to the IMS1 sections on legal compliance, responsibilities, risk management and continual improvement. Title, File Location, Issue No, Issue Date, Controlled By and Approved By fields, an Amendment Record and a Business Use footer classification support document control.

What the Policy Covers

• Amendment record, summary, scope and applicability - the purpose of the policy, its scope of all company activities at all locations, and who it applies to
• Management of legal compliance - regular review of legal compliance at management review, the sources of legislation updates, and where the legislation summary and responsibilities are held
• Assessment of risks and opportunities - SWOT analysis, improvement meetings and suggestions, and rating risks by likelihood and consequence as inherent and residual, with a response for each rating
• Workplace risk assessments - who completes risk assessments, the hierarchy of control measures, the forms and registers used, triggers for a new assessment and areas that may need specific assessment
• Guidance on hazards and risk - definitions of hazard and risk, a step by step approach to assessing risk, inspection and monitoring, and safe systems of work
• Participation and consultation - sharing risk assessment findings, the right to refuse work in serious and imminent danger, the Focus Committee and reporting concerns

Built for Legal and Risk Review

• Legal compliance formally reviewed at management review, held at least annually
• Inherent and residual risk ratings, with a set response for tolerable, moderate and substantial risk
• A hierarchy of risk control measures running from elimination through to personal protective equipment
• Risk assessments triggered by near misses, accidents and planned changes that could bring new hazards
• A Focus Committee of representatives from across the organisation to review health and safety arrangements

Who Needs a Legal Compliance, Risks and Opportunities Policy Procedure?

Businesses with a management system that need a documented way to review legal compliance and assess risks and opportunities. It is used by whoever looks after legal updates and risk, and by the managers who complete risk assessments.

How the Policy Fits Together

Business risks and opportunities are summarised on the F-IMS23 Opportunities Risks Register, and workers can put forward ideas using the F-Q16 Improvement Request. Risk assessments are documented on the F-HS14 Task Risk Assessment Form and F-HS19 Task Review and summarised on the ER14 Hazard Risk Assessment Register or F-HS12 Risk Assessment Register, while the F-Q22 Focus Committee reviews health and safety arrangements.

Using the Policy

Edit the arrangements to match your own, such as the sources you use for legal updates, how often risks are reviewed, who leads on health and safety and the forms you use for risk assessment. Name the person responsible in the Controlled By field, give it top level approval and brief staff on how to raise risks and suggestions.

Related Documents

The GG-1-02 Legal Compliance and Risk Management Guidance and TT-1-02 Legal Compliance and Risk Management Training Talk help explain legal compliance and risk management to managers and staff.