23/09/2026
The clocks go back on 25 October, and it always seems to be that first dark, wet evening that catches someone out.
Autumn is a good time to spend 20 minutes having a quick walk around your premises before the weather really turns. It doesn’t need to be a formal inspection – just take a look at your workplace through the eyes of someone arriving or leaving on a dark, wet evening.
Here are a few things we’d be looking out for:
💡 Lighting
Walk around your car park, paths and entrances at the time your staff actually leave, not at midday. Are any bulbs out? Do timers or sensors need adjusting now it’s getting dark earlier? Is there a dark stretch between the door and the car park?
🍂 Wet leaves
Wet leaves can be surprisingly slippery, and they tend to gather in the same places every year, around steps, corners, under trees and near drains. Who is responsible for clearing them, and how often is it checked?
👣 Entrance matting
Most of the water that ends up on your floors arrives on people’s shoes. Check that your mats are big enough for people to take a few steps on, lie flat and aren’t already soaked through. And watch out for curled edges; solving one problem shouldn’t create another trip hazard!
🪜 External steps
Look for worn or loose edges, wobbly handrails and step edges that are difficult to see in poor light. If you keep grit or salt on site, now is a good time to check you’ve got enough and that people know where to find it.
🌧️ Who acts when conditions change?
This is easy to miss.
If it rains heavily, freezes overnight, or a delivery leaves mud across your entrance, who notices and who does something about it?
If the answer is “whoever happens to be there”, it’s worth giving someone responsibility, particularly for early mornings, evenings and weekends.
None of this needs to be complicated.
Twenty minutes, a simple checklist and someone responsible for taking action can prevent an accident before it happens.
And that’s surely 20 minutes well spent. 🍂
If you’d like some help reviewing slips, trips and falls or you’d like us to take a wider look at health and safety in your workplace, just get in touch with the Envesca team. We’re always happy to help.
Sue’s Top Tip
If you use electronic compliance software, create the checklist on your system, assign it to someone to be responsible for completing it, and then set the checklist to automatically send reminders every 2 months
