Checklist 1 Describe Your Business
Follow the Questions Through and Start to Collate Any Documents for Your Evidence File
1. Name of the business
2. Legal structure (include a copy of any legal documents)
3. Are there Shareholders? If so, how many?
4. What type of industry sector is your main one? Try to be as specific as possible, rather than just “service” or “engineering”.
5. What do you actually make, or provide as a service? List the full range of products or services and include any promotional or guidance literature you have.
6. How long has the business been established?
7. How is the business organised? Include a simple Flow Chart to show how work tasks or projects move through the system. It is useful to think about the following questions:
• is work activity based on just one site or several different locations?
• Are some staff working from home for some or all of the time?
• is work carried out on other people’s premises?
• how many buildings make up the business at each site?
• do staff have to travel between buildings/ sites/ clients for work purposes? If so, how is this organised?
• do products have to be transferred between sites or buildings?
8. Do customers come onto your site/premises?
If so, is it free or controlled access during business hours? Include any points you think are relevant to health and safety risks in your business. Include a copy of the Visitor’s Book or other records if you have them
9. What have been the most significant changes in the way the business is organised since it started?
10. How many people work for you in total, either as employees or on another basis?
full time permanent | part time permanent |
full time temporary | part time temporary |
on specified short term contract | some form of ‘work experience’ |
free-lance/ self-employed | voluntary other (please specify) |
11. What are the main lines of authority and responsibility between people in the business? Include an Organisation Chart if you have one.