During the height of the pandemic, many people were cautious about using handrails because of concerns about contracting or spreading the virus. However, we want to remind all employees of the importance of using handrails when on stairways. Even falling down a couple of steps can cause serious injuries.

According to RoSPA, “falls on the stairs claim the lives of over 700 people every year in the UK. This is over 17 times more than the number of lives lost on construction sites. There are also over 43,000 people hospitalised ever year due to falls on stairs in the home.” Additionally, stats show that for every hospitalisation due to a fire, there are 235 due to falls.

Don’t let COVID prevent you from keeping yourself safe, please “Get a Grip” and hold the handrails on stairways, using hand sanitiser afterwards to minimise any risk from COVID.

We have created two simple posters to remind those using our locations of the importance of holding handrails. They can be found in the download section of the UK News website:  Get a Grip posters (778 downloads)  Please print and display on noticeboards or in relevant areas.