Safety on the seas

Years of hard work and effort by the Royal Navy’s Safety Centre mean there’s now official accreditation for a key course. Back in 2017, staff at the centre – based at Naval HQ in Portsmouth – introduced the Maritime Human Factors Facilitators Course to ensure a better understanding of human conditions/decision-making. WO2 Wayne Kilby RM subsequently launched a human factors system strategy which has contributed to an improved safety culture across the Royal Navy, reduction in harm to their people and ultimately improved overall Operational Capability.

Since 2020, the course has been bolstered by the input of Dr Anthea Ashford from the Human Factors Group at the Institute of Naval Medicine. She has expanded the course to encompass a wider range of human factors. This revised course was introduced in 2022 and feedback from participants has been extremely positive.

Human factors has been officially recognised in the Fleet Commander’s Mandate for the Navy Safety and Environment Improvement Programme which ultimately led to improved performance of Royal Navy personnel and improved occupational health and safety. Now the course has received accreditation from the CIEHF. Bringing the team behind the course into the Chartered Institute’s broader family will give them access to a library of academic white papers, working groups which share good practice across many industries and the option to advance their own professional development supported by their employer.

CIEHF’s CEO Ben Peachey visited the Naval HQ to meet Wayne and Anthea and present them with the accreditation certificate.

If you’re interested in learning more about CIEHF accreditation for a course, please take a look at this information.