About us > Legionella Control Association

Code of Conduct

About The Code

A RECOMMENDED CODE OF CONDUCT FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS

Background and History

Legislative requirements for the control of legionellosis put the responsibility for compliance clearly with the owner/operator of water systems. Under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations as regards risks from legionellosis, all owner and operators of such systems have a responsibility to ensure that the risk is controlled and kept to an acceptable level. The HSC's Approved Code of Practice and Guidance (L8) stresses that whilst the tasks required to be undertaken to control the risk may be contracted to an external specialist, the owner/operator must take all reasonable care to ensure the competence of the service provider to carry out the work on his behalf.

The two major organisations in the water management industry - The British Association for Chemical Specialities (BACS) and the Water Management Society (WMS) in full consultation with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have formulated and launched a Recommended Code of Conduct for Service Providers. The Code of Conduct Association (CCA) is now completely independent both financially and in terms of management from its founding organisations. Reference to the Code can be found in the document "Legionnaires' disease - The control of legionella bacteria in water systems - Approved Code of Practice and Guidance L8 " released by the HSE in January 2001.

The Legionella Control Association represents a major initiative covering a wide spectrum of services and disciplines designed to assist the industry in its constant aim to improve standards and enhance public perception with respect to the minimisation of legionellosis. A Service Provider is any organisation, individual or sub-contractor who provides services associated with the control of legionellosis in industrial or commercial premises.

All companies registering under the Legionella Control Association indicate their willingness to abide by the conditions of compliance and submit and acceptable Statement of Compliance showing the procedures in place to meet the commitments detailed in the registration document. These cover: allocation of responsibilities; training and competence of personnel; control measures; communication and management; record keeping and reviews. A Certificate of Registration is issued annually, all current certificates show an expiry date. Registered companies are expected to offer a copy of this certificate to all clients along with a Code of Conduct for the control of Legioneilosis. More than 30,000 of these Codes of Conduct have now been circulated to service provider companies and their clients.

Registration is renewed annually, and registered companies are monitored on a regular basis to confirm and their compliance with the Code. This Code of Conduct is intended to give guidance alone, on the standard of service that a Client should expect from those Service Providers who agree to abide by the Code. The responsibility for the prevention and control of legionellosis lies with the Client and the Service Provider.

The guidelines outlined in this document have been designed to help owner/operators select a competent service provider by highlighting critical areas and detailing the commitment that the owner/operator should expect from prospective service providers when making the competence assessment.

The guidelines outlined in this document have been designed to help owner/operators select a competent service provider by highlighting critical areas and detailing the commitment that the owner/operator should expect from prospective service providers when making the competence assessment.

Service Provider Commitments

1. Allocation of responsibilities The service provider will:

  • explain in detail the client's obligations under the legionellosis legislation.
  • identify those services covered by the contract and those which should be provided by the client to meet all current obligations.
  • formalise a written agreement detailing the respective responsibilities for each requirement.

2. Training and competence of personnel The service provider will:

  • arrange formal training programmes for service provider personnel associated with the control of legionella bacteria (See current CCA training matrix as a guide)
  • have a system for assessing the competence of service provider staff, establishing their training needs and ensuring they are kept up to date with current best practice procedures.
  • assist the client to assess training needs of staff and then where requested advise as to how these can be met.

3. Control measures The service provider will:

  • have a management system to assess the requirements and ensure an appropriate programme of control measures is designed, implemented monitored and maintained.
  • have a system for verifying that corrective and preventive actions are implemented

3. Communication and management The service provider will:

  • have management procedures to respond appropriately should the system operating conditions deviate from control criteria
  • agree with the client how the service provider would communicate with the client's nominated personnel in the event of any necessary actions.
  • bring to the client's attention any significant matters affecting the control of legionellosis of which he has become aware, beyond the responsibilities of the contract.

5. Record keeping The service provider will:

  • indicate which records should be kept by both parties and where they will be kept.
  • establish with the client who will be responsible for the maintenance of these records.

6. Reviews The service provider will:

  • establish a programme that will allow both parties to review formally, at least annually, all aspects of the agreement covering system management and the control of legionellosis.

7. Internal Auditing The service provider will:

  • have a management system to ensure that Service Provider compliance with each of these Commitments is self-audited at least once a year and that a formal record is kept
  • establish a corrective action programme so that any non-compliance identified is corrected in a timely manner

8. Distribution of the Code The service provider will:

  • have a management system to ensure all clients to whom services are provided, associated with the control of legionella bacteria, are supplied with a copy of the Code of Conduct and certificate of Registration

Download as PDFDownload Legionella Control Association certificate.pdf

For more information please contact us: Free phone 0800 243 471.

Services Guarantees About us Contact Us News