National Windscreens has been awarded accreditation from Safecontractor for its commitment to achieving excellence in health and safety.
Safecontractor is a leading third party accreditation scheme which recognises very high standards in health and safety management among UK contractors.
National Windscreens, which employs more than 1,000 people, is principally involved in the automotive vehicle glazing sector with a £109 million turnover and boasts many major clients including Tesco Insurance, Lex Autolease and the Home Office.
The company’s application for Safecontractor accreditation was driven by the need for a uniform standard across the business.
Pete Marsden, managing director of National Windscreens, (pictured) says: “Attaining Safecontractor accreditation confirms our commitment to health and safety across all aspects of our business.
“We operate a UK network of 108 fitting centres and 800 mobile units meaning, on average, motorists are never more than 11 miles or 20 minutes away from a National Windscreens technician.
“Having this high number of centres means we need to ensure we have one of the most robust health and safety schemes in place for both our staff and customers. That is why we chose this accreditation which will see both staff and customers receive the same high quality of care.
“National Windscreens already works with some of the biggest brands in the fleet and insurance industry and this accreditation will also further enhance our ability to attract even more of these blue chip clients,” he added.
Safecontractor is applicable to most sectors although it is particularly relevant to food manufacture, property, facilities management, retail and leisure sectors, all of which are big users of contracted services.
John Kinge, technical director of Safecontractor said, "Major organisations simply cannot afford to run the risk of employing contractors who are not able to prove that they have sound health and safety policies in place.
"More companies need to understand the importance of adopting good risk management in the way that National Windscreens has done. The firm’s high standard has set an example which hopefully will be followed by other companies within the sector.
“Safecontractor plays a vital role in supporting our clients in meeting their compliance needs, while working with their contractors as they progress through the accreditation process,” he added.
Under the Safecontractor scheme, businesses undergo a vetting process which examines health and safety procedures and their track record for safe practice. Those companies meeting the high standard are included on a database, which is accessible to registered users only via a website.
Client-organisations who sign up to the scheme can access the database, enabling them to vet potential contractors before they even set foot on site. These clients agree that, as users of the scheme, they will engage only those who have received accreditation.
More than 210 major, nationwide businesses, from several key sectors, have signed up to use the scheme when selecting contractors for services such as building, cleaning, maintenance, refurbishment or electrical and mechanical work.