Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Health and Safety Advisors, Operational Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-OHS-053

Before you join: Participants should understand common workplace safety terms and have some exposure to operational activities, safety inspections, incident reporting or work procedures.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Hazard identification and risk assessment (HIRA) determines whether work is adequately controlled before people are exposed to injury, illness, dangerous energy, chemicals, vehicles, fire, ergonomic strain or other sources of harm. Weak assessments often list generic hazards, score risks inconsistently, rely too heavily on procedures and personal protective equipment, or fail to account for non-routine work, contractors and change. The result is an action register that does not direct practical control decisions.

This course develops the judgement and methods needed to identify credible hazards, analyse tasks and processes, rate risk, select controls and document decisions. Participants use Job Safety Analysis, workplace inspection techniques, risk matrices, bow-tie analysis, the hierarchy of controls and management-of-change screening. They examine physical, chemical, biological, ergonomic and psychosocial hazards, alongside high-risk activities such as confined-space entry, hot work, isolation, work at height and mobile plant operations.

Teaching combines short technical briefings with sector-based cases, facilitated group analysis, risk-rating simulations and review of sample HIRA records. Participants work through the evidence needed to support risk decisions, including worker input, safety data sheets, incident records, inspection findings and control verification results. Each participant leaves with a reusable HIRA pack containing a task assessment template, risk register structure, control-selection checklist, review schedule and a workplace action plan.

The course suits safety practitioners, line managers, supervisors, engineers, facilities staff and project personnel who contribute to risk assessments or must act on their findings. It is particularly relevant where assessments need to withstand internal review, client scrutiny, incident investigation or ISO 45001 audit.

What you will be able to do

  • Conduct structured hazard identification using inspections, task observation and process mapping
  • Prepare a Job Safety Analysis that separates task steps, hazards and controls
  • Apply a calibrated risk matrix using likelihood, consequence, exposure and control effectiveness
  • Select risk controls using the hierarchy of controls and residual-risk criteria
  • Analyse threats, barriers and consequences using bow-tie analysis
  • Assess high-risk work involving permits, isolation, work at height and mobile plant
  • Document risk decisions in a traceable HIRA record and action register
  • Develop a workplace HIRA improvement plan with owners, priorities and review triggers

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Greater confidence leading task-based and workplace HIRA discussions
  • A repeatable method for distinguishing hazards from existing controls
  • Stronger judgement when assigning likelihood, consequence and residual-risk ratings
  • Practical language for challenging weak controls and generic risk statements
  • Evidence-based records that support professional safety recommendations

For your organisation

  • More consistent risk assessments across departments, sites and contractors
  • Clearer control priorities before work starts or operational changes proceed
  • Better traceability from identified hazards to assigned corrective actions
  • Reduced reliance on personal protective equipment as the primary control
  • Stronger evidence for ISO 45001 audits, client reviews and incident investigations

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can define a HIRA scope, distinguish core risk terms and set defensible assessment criteria.

  • ISO 45001 risk terminology: hazard, harm, likelihood, consequence and control
  • Distinguishing hazards, exposures, hazardous events, incidents and underlying causes
  • Risk assessment boundaries defined by tasks, locations, people and equipment
  • Reasonably foreseeable conditions, including routine, non-routine and emergency work
  • Worker consultation and contractor input as HIRA information sources
  • Risk acceptance criteria linked to organisational policy and legal duties

Participants can select and apply suitable methods for finding hazards in work activities and processes.

  • Workplace inspections structured with area, equipment, energy and housekeeping prompts
  • Task observation identifies unsafe acts, conditions and exposure routes
  • Job Safety Analysis separates task steps, hazards and controls
  • Process mapping traces handoffs, interfaces, stored energy and waste streams
  • Safety data sheets identify chemical properties, incompatibilities and exposure limits
  • HAZOP guidewords test deviations in process operations and safeguards

Participants can identify major hazard categories and describe credible exposure routes and harm mechanisms.

  • Physical hazards: noise, vibration, radiation, heat, cold and illumination
  • Mechanical hazards from moving parts, vehicles, lifting and falling objects
  • Chemical exposure pathways: inhalation, skin absorption, ingestion and injection
  • Biological agents, sharps, waste handling and infection transmission routes
  • Ergonomic assessments cover force, posture, repetition, duration and recovery
  • Psychosocial hazard indicators include workload, violence, fatigue and role conflict

Participants can rate initial and residual risk using clear descriptors, evidence and escalation thresholds.

  • Five-by-five matrices calibrated using defined likelihood and consequence descriptors
  • Exposure frequency and number of persons refine initial risk ratings
  • Existing control effectiveness tested before assigning residual risk scores
  • Qualitative assessment limits, uncertainty statements and escalation thresholds
  • Bow-tie analysis connects threats, top events, barriers and consequences
  • Risk registers record rationale, assumptions, owners, dates and review triggers

Participants can select practical controls, test their reliability and assign residual-risk accountability.

  • Hierarchy of controls prioritises elimination before substitution, engineering and PPE
  • Control selection considers reliability, human factors and maintenance demands
  • Engineering controls isolate energy, contaminants, movement and work at height
  • Administrative controls define permits, procedures, supervision, training and scheduling
  • Personal protective equipment specified through hazard, fit, compatibility and limitations
  • Residual risk approval assigned to accountable operational decision-makers

Participants can assess key high-risk work activities and identify the controls needed before work begins.

  • Permit-to-work interfaces for confined spaces, hot work and isolation
  • Lockout-tagout verifies zero energy before maintenance and cleaning tasks
  • Work-at-height assessments address access, anchors, rescue and dropped objects
  • Manual handling assessments use load, task, individual and environment factors
  • Mobile plant segregation manages pedestrians, reversing, loading and visibility
  • Contractor risk controls align induction, competence, supervision and permit requirements

Participants can reassess risks arising from change, emergency scenarios and shared work interfaces.

  • Management of change screens new equipment, materials, processes and staffing
  • Pre-startup reviews verify safeguards, documents, competence and emergency readiness
  • Emergency scenarios assess fire, release, spill, rescue and evacuation risks
  • Contractor interfaces identify shared hazards, conflicting controls and responsibility gaps
  • Procurement specifications include safety requirements, guarding, certification and maintainability
  • Change records trigger reassessment, communication, authorisation and implementation checks

Participants can connect HIRA records with legal duties, worker participation and ISO 45001 requirements.

  • ISO 45001 clauses connect hazard identification with operational planning
  • Legal registers distinguish statutory duties, codes, permits and client requirements
  • Due diligence evidence links risk decisions, consultation and corrective action
  • Worker participation requirements documented through consultation records and feedback loops
  • Environmental aspects considered where work hazards create releases or waste
  • Audit trails retain versions, approvals, inspections and control verification evidence

Participants can maintain HIRA records, track corrective actions and verify continuing control effectiveness.

  • Risk register fields capture hazards, ratings, controls, owners and dates
  • Action plans specify corrective measures, priorities, resources and completion evidence
  • Leading indicators measure inspections, observations, overdue actions and training completion
  • Incident investigations use five whys and causal factor analysis
  • Control verification tests implementation, condition, use and continuing effectiveness
  • Review frequencies respond to incidents, changes, findings and exposure data

Participants can organise a repeatable HIRA workflow and prepare an action plan for workplace use.

  • HIRA workflow integrates scope, identification, assessment, controls and review
  • Risk workshop roles assign challenge, evidence gathering and decision recording
  • Risk communication converts technical ratings into clear work instructions
  • Supervisor briefings address changed controls, stop-work authority and escalation
  • Personal action plans prioritise one workplace assessment and implementation steps
  • Peer review strengthens HIRA quality through evidence, challenge and revision

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Job Safety Analysis template
  2. HIRA risk register template
  3. Risk matrix rating guide
  4. Hierarchy of controls checklist
  5. Control verification checklist
  6. Workplace HIRA action plan

Who should attend

  • Health and Safety Advisors — need defensible methods for leading and reviewing HIRAs
  • Operational Managers — must assign controls, resources and accountable owners
  • Supervisors and Team Leaders — translate assessment findings into safe work instructions
  • Engineers and Maintenance Personnel — assess equipment, isolation and process-related hazards
  • Facilities and Project Managers — control contractor, construction and workplace risks
  • Environmental Health and Safety Coordinators — maintain registers, actions and review records

Skills and tools covered

Hazard identificationRisk ratingControl selectionJob Safety AnalysisBow-tie analysisRisk register management

Tools and standards

ISO 45001, Job Safety Analysis, Bow-tie analysis, HAZOP

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to establish each method, followed by case work based on operational, maintenance, construction, office and service settings. Participants analyse task descriptions, inspection findings, incident information and sample risk records in small groups. Facilitated simulations test risk ratings, control choices and escalation decisions where evidence is incomplete. Instructor feedback focuses on the quality of hazard statements, risk rationale, control selection and recordkeeping. The course closes with individual application planning for a priority workplace assessment.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should understand common workplace safety terms and have some exposure to operational activities, safety inspections, incident reporting or work procedures. Experience contributing to a risk assessment, toolbox talk or permit process is useful but not essential. The course assumes participants can read workplace procedures and discuss work tasks with colleagues. Prior certification in occupational health and safety, auditing, engineering or ISO 45001 is not required. No mathematical background is needed; risk scoring uses practical qualitative methods rather than statistical modelling.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should be familiar with workplace activities and basic safety terminology. Previous formal safety training or ISO 45001 knowledge is not required.

Bring a laptop if available, plus an anonymised risk assessment, procedure or task description from your workplace. These materials are useful for application planning but are not mandatory.

It suits people who prepare, review, approve or act on workplace risk assessments. This includes safety staff, operational managers, supervisors, engineers, project staff and facilities personnel.

A general safety course introduces duties, hazards and safe behaviour. This course concentrates on the HIRA process: identifying hazards, rating risk, selecting controls, documenting decisions and reviewing effectiveness.

Participants can use the supplied templates to assess a task, area, change or contractor activity. The action plan identifies a priority assessment and the evidence, people and approvals needed to complete it.

The course provides about 32.5 contact hours across five training days, normally 08:30-16:30. Time is divided among ten modules, instructor input, case analysis, group discussion, simulations and application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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