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Two case studies in health and safety management identified key performance indicators that reflected a company’s overall performance obtained from a full benchmarking audit. An intra‐company benchmarking audit, comparing operational health and safety management performance was completed within 12 semi‐autonomous subsidiaries of a large national food manufacturer. A significant (r = 0.985) positive relationship was obtained between ten operational performance indicators and overall performance. The key factors were found to have a common theme relating to employer‐employee openness in communication on health and safety issues. An inter‐company benchmarking audit comparing strategic health and safety management performance was completed within eight companies in the small, multi‐site retail sector. A significant (r = 0.988) positive relationship was obtained between ten strategic performance indicators and overall performance. The key factors did not have a common theme but there was evidence that integration of health and safety management into long‐term business decision making was a strong factor.

A case study is described in which an audit programme was developed as a measure of health and safety performance. The audit programme was implemented as a safety competition in a UK water utility over a period of three years with the results also used for benchmarking the company’s health and safety management system. The audit programme, which was based on the Health and Safety Executive’s guidance for effective health and safety management, was used to assess; how well health and safety management was understood; how well health and safety procedures were implemented; and accident frequency rates within the company. An important aspect of the audit programme was the inclusion of managers, supervisors, operators and examples of all operational activities in the assessment process. Weaknesses in the company’s health and safety management performance, which were identified in the benchmarking exercise, are discussed.

This paper reports an employee‐management consensus approach for identifying safety initiatives that are both appropriate to the working environment and also perceived to be appropriate by the workforce. Issues affecting the success of employee involvement schemes are discussed and the methods used during the implementation stages of the programme to address them are described. The case study was set in the UK distribution division of an international oil company and was applied to safety issues affecting the division’s tanker drivers. The study used an employee questionnaire to assess drivers’ perceptions of safety management, workplace conditions and safety concerns. Factor analysis and structural equation modelling were used to develop a management/workplace/workforce model to describe the drivers’ working environment. The model was then used to discuss and explain the drivers’ choices of safety initiatives.

A theoretical model, which describes continuous improvement and benchmarking processes, was developed. The model was based on the concepts that improvements in management inputs should produce organizational benefits and that management inputs are limited by budget constraints. The model was developed using health and safety as an example of operational management issues. In this example, organizational benefits related to reductions in the number and costs of accidents and management inputs referred to the provision and costs of accident prevention control measures. The utility of the model was demonstrated with five health and safety scenarios, which tested the model against the continuous improvement philosophy and benchmarking with respect to reducing costs, improving performance, minimising organizational change and assessing performance within different work environments.

Partnership arrangements in industry have increased in interest because of the perceived business benefits that these alliances can bring to organisations. However, it has been claimed that it is important to align organisational cultures in order that these partnership arrangements are successful. This case study reports a benchmark assessment of employee and contractor safety climates in an offshore oil company that operated contractor partnership agreements in the North Sea. The study used a questionnaire in order to assess safety climates in terms of employees’ and contractors’ perceptions of safety management, workplace conditions and safety concerns. Factor analysis and structural equation modelling were used to support the benchmark study in order to compare the employees’ and contractors’ beliefs in the organisation’s health and safety philosophy. The results obtained indicated that safety climates could be aligned in organisations that operate partnership agreements within a recognised health and safety management system. It is suggested that the approach presented is appropriate for benchmarking safety climates before and after partnership arrangements have been established in order to determine the level of cultural alignment that has been achieved.

The School of Training for Trainers is a national programme for training managers, training advisers, training administrators, training officers and training consultants. It is a user‐pays institution, open to training professionals in the private and public sectors. As well as comprising a comprehensive, flexible, modular training programme, it is practical, skills based, and features action method as its basic methodology.

A survey was carried out in 1979 into the loan availability and provision of audiovisual materials in the United Kingdom, whether through the Regional Library Bureaux or through separate co‐operative arrangements such as the Greater London Audio Specialization Scheme. Interlending practices are seen in relation to basic audiovisual provision and demand in public and educational libraries. The effects of inadequate bibliographical control, copyright problems and the practical aspects of the inter/ending of audiovisual materials are discussed. The results of the enquiry indicate limited provision, small demand and a widespread lack of knowledge concerning the existence of audiovisual materials and their availability.

Drawing on empirical research which incorporated biographical interviews with two older male perpetrators, this chapter develops theoretical conceptualisations of the histories, experiences and motives of these men. Four key areas are highlighted, which will be subject to closer scrutiny in relation to extant literature: (i) gender, particularly notions of masculinity, power and entitlement; (ii) attitudes relating to the use of violence both within intimate relationships and generally (iii) critical junctures in the life course which triggered attempts to desist; and (iv) an exploration of maturation and completion of treatment programmes in relation to their use of violence, future risks and efforts towards desistance.

The aim of this article is an analysis of the links between race and psychotic illness, psychiatric diagnosis and treatment, as well as psychiatric, police and prison violence against people with mental health problems. The analysis focuses on Black men who are more frequently diagnosed with schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders and who face more brutal treatment than other people with such diagnoses. We have adopted a multidisciplinary approach which draws insights from psychiatry, psychology, and sociology and challenges the biologistic interpretation of “mental illness.” We take into account the United States and Britain – two countries with large Black minorities and an established tradition of research on these groups. Among the crucial findings of this study are the facts that racial bias and stereotypes heavily influence the way Black men with a diagnosis of psychotic illness are treated by the psychiatric system, police and prison staff, and that the dominant approach to psychosis masks the connections between racism and mental health.