The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 remains the primary piece of legislation covering occupational health and safety in Great Britain. After more than 50 years, the Act itself hasn’t been materially amended – but what counts as compliance has changed significantly.
If you’re relying on an understanding of health and safety law from even a few years ago, you may be missing critical developments that affect your legal duties right now.
This article covers the major 2026 changes affecting workplace health and safety, and explains how the foundational requirements of the 1974 Act apply in today’s regulatory environment.
What’s Changed in 2025–2026?
The Health and Safety at Work Act is a framework (enabling) Act. Rather than being directly amended, it’s designed to evolve through:
- new regulations
- updated guidance
- changing enforcement priorities
- case law interpretation.
This means the same sections of the 1974 Act now cover risks that weren’t contemplated when it was written – including stress, home working, terrorism, and organisational culture.
The bottom line: The law hasn’t changed much, but the practical requirements for compliance have expanded considerably.
Here are the key developments employers need to understand:
1. Building Safety Regulator becomes independent (January 2026)
On 27 January 2026, the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) became a standalone body, separating from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
What this means:
- Stronger, more focused oversight of higher-risk buildings.
- Increased scrutiny on duty holders—particularly in construction and facilities management.
- More robust enforcement of building safety requirements.
If your organisation is involved in constructing, managing or maintaining higher-risk buildings, expect closer regulatory attention and more stringent accountability requirements.
2. Martyn’s Law: New terrorism protection duties (rolling out 2026)
The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 – commonly known as Martyn’s Law – is being implemented in stages through 2026. This is one of the most significant new legal duties affecting workplace safety this year.
Key requirements include:
- Terrorism risk assessments for qualifying premises.
- Staff training on terrorism preparedness.
- Emergency planning and procedures.
This legislation affects a wide range of venues and premises, extending employer responsibilities beyond traditional health and safety into security and emergency response.
3. Mental health enforcement intensifies
While not new legislation, the HSE’s approach to mental health and psychosocial risks has sharpened significantly. Employers must now:
- assess stress, workload, and burnout risks as part of their duty of care
- act on known issues—awareness without action is no longer acceptable
- document their approach to managing psychological risks.
The HSE is actively enforcing these requirements, treating mental health as a core component of employer duties under existing regulations. Organisations that fail to address known stress risks face enforcement action.
4. Employment Rights Act 2025: Implications for wellbeing
The Employment Rights Act 2025 became law in December 2025, with changes rolling out during 2026–2027. While not health and safety legislation directly, it affects:
- working patterns and flexibility
- fatigue management
- broader wellbeing obligations.
Employers should consider how these changes interact with their health and safety management systems.
5. Chemical regulation reforms
The HSE has consulted on reforms to the chemicals regulation framework, with responses published in February 2026. This represents ongoing post-Brexit regulatory divergence.
Organisations working with hazardous substances should monitor these developments and ensure their risk assessments and control measures remain current.
6. Expanded scope of existing duties
Regulatory guidance and enforcement priorities continue to expand the practical scope of employer duties. Current areas of focus include:
- hybrid and remote working risks – home workstation assessments, isolation, work-life boundaries
- asbestos and building safety – heightened requirements, particularly for older buildings
- organisational culture – how safety is embedded, not just documented
- documentation and evidence – more robust risk assessments expected.
The same legal duties that existed in 1974 now require employers to consider a much broader range of workplace risks.
The Foundation: Understanding the 1974 Act
While the regulatory landscape evolves, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 remains the cornerstone of UK workplace safety law. Understanding its core requirements is essential for compliance.
Main duties of employers (Section 2)
Under Section 2 of the Act, every employer must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of all their employees while at work.
To comply with this duty, employers must:
Identify risks: Conduct risk assessments to understand what hazards exist.
Control risks: Implement measures to eliminate or reduce risks to acceptable levels.
Consult with employees: Engage workers or their representatives in health and safety matters.
Provide information and training: Ensure employees understand the risks and how to work safely.
Review and improve: Continuously evaluate and enhance safety measures.
The principle of “reasonably practicable” requires employers to weigh the level of risk against the cost, time and effort needed to control it. Only when controls are grossly disproportionate to the risk can they be considered impracticable.
Personal protective equipment (PPE) should be considered only after other control measures have been implemented—it’s a last line of defence, not a first response.
Duties of employees (Section 7)
Employees also have legal responsibilities under the Act:
- Take reasonable care of their own health and safety.
- Take reasonable care for others who may be affected by their actions or omissions.
- Cooperate with their employer on health and safety matters.
- Not interfere with or misuse anything provided for health and safety purposes.
Health and safety is a shared responsibility. Employers create the systems and provide the resources; employees must engage with them properly.
Obligations for individuals
While the Act doesn’t place general duties on members of the public, individuals can commit offences including:
- obstructing an inspector in the execution of their functions
- failing to comply with a notice served by an inspector
- breaching specific statutory requirements.
Penalties can be severe: unlimited fines, up to two years’ imprisonment, or both. Some offences are strict liability – meaning prosecution can proceed regardless of whether you knew your actions were illegal.
Employers’ civil liability
Beyond criminal prosecution, employers can face civil liability for:
- breach of statutory duty – failing to meet legal requirements
- breach of contractual duty of care – the implied duty owed to employees under employment contracts
- negligence – failing to take reasonable care.
Employees who suffer injury due to their employer’s breach of duty may sue for damages in addition to claiming industrial injuries benefits.
What This Means for Your Organisation
The message for employers in 2026 is clear: compliance is a moving target.
The Health and Safety at Work Act provides the legal framework, but what that framework requires in practice continues to expand. Organisations that haven’t reviewed their approach to certain areas may find themselves non-compliant with current expectations, even if their systems haven’t changed. These include:
- mental health and psychosocial risks
- remote and hybrid working arrangements
- security and terrorism preparedness
- building safety (where applicable)
- documentation and evidence.
Managing compliance effectively
Keeping pace with evolving requirements is challenging, particularly for organisations managing multiple sites, projects or a mobile workforce. This is where effective health and safety management systems – supported by the right tools – become essential.
Modern SHEQ software platforms like m2i.SHEQ help organisations:
- conduct and document risk assessments – including for emerging risks like stress and home working
- track inspections and audits – ensuring nothing is missed across complex operations
- manage incidents – from initial report through investigation to corrective action
- monitor compliance – real-time dashboards showing where attention is needed
- maintain audit trails – evidence that duties are being discharged properly.
When regulations evolve and enforcement intensifies, having robust, documented systems isn’t just good practice – it’s essential protection.
Take action – take a look at m2i.SHEQ
Health and safety compliance in 2026 requires more than policies written years ago. It requires:
- awareness of current requirements and enforcement priorities
- systems that can adapt to evolving risks
- evidence that you’re meeting your duties.
If you’re unsure whether your current approach meets today’s expectations, it may be time to review your health and safety management systems.
Ready to strengthen your approach?
Book a call back to discuss how m2i.SHEQ can help your organisation manage health and safety compliance effectively – both today and as requirements continue to evolve.
measure2improve has been providing SHEQ software solutions for over 25 years, helping organisations across construction, infrastructure, housing and other high-risk sectors meet their legal duties and protect their people.