Working at height
Falls from roofs, scaffolds, ladders, openings or other elevated work can cause fatal or life-changing harm.
Māori-owned H&S consultancy for SMEs · Auckland
Safer work.
Stronger business.
Practical health and safety, ISO and contractor assurance for small and medium-sized New Zealand businesses—without corporate-sized paperwork.
ISO readinessHSWA practical supportTōtika preparation
01
See the real risksStart with the work, the people and the evidence.
02
Set clear prioritiesKnow what matters now and what can wait.
03
Build useful systemsCreate controls your team can actually follow.
Health and safety support for SMEs
Right-sized systems, clear priorities and practical improvements your team can actually maintain.
Critical health & safety risks
The risks that can cause the greatest harm.
WorkSafe says businesses should focus on critical risks first. These are risks that could result in death, a notifiable injury or illness, a notifiable incident, or a recognised occupational disease. The exact risks are different for every business, so they must be identified from the work actually being done.
Important change from 1 April 2027
WorkSafe advises that small PCBUs with fewer than 20 workers will be required to manage critical risks and prioritise them. Larger PCBUs must manage both critical and other risks, while giving critical risks the highest priority.
Vehicles and mobile plant
Forklifts, trucks, excavators and moving equipment can strike, crush or trap workers and other people.
Machinery and stored energy
Unguarded machinery, unexpected start-up and uncontrolled hydraulic, electrical or mechanical energy can be catastrophic.
Hazardous substances and asbestos
Acute exposure, fire, explosion and long-term occupational disease can arise when substances, dust or asbestos are not controlled.
Electricity
Contact with live services, overhead lines, damaged equipment or poorly isolated systems can result in electrocution or fire.
Confined spaces
Toxic atmospheres, low oxygen, engulfment and difficult rescue can turn one entry into multiple casualties.
Falling objects and structural failure
Unsecured loads, lifting work, excavations, demolition and unstable structures can expose several people at once.
Work-related health exposure
Silica, fumes, noise and other chronic exposures can cause serious disease even when the harm is not immediately visible.
These are common examples, not a complete list. Your critical risks depend on your activities, workplace and industry. Source: WorkSafe New Zealand — How to manage work risks.
Do you know your top critical risks and controls? Auditsure can review your operations, involve your workers, identify control gaps and help you verify that the controls are working.
Request a critical-risk reviewSME health and safety services
Clear advice.
Useful evidence.
No theatre.
You may not need a full-time H&S manager. Auditsure gives SMEs access to experienced support for a defined review, a client requirement, an active project or ongoing advice at a level that fits the business.
Health and Safety Consultant Auckland
Practical H&S advice, systems and project support for Auckland businesses.
View SME service →Critical-Risk Assessment for Small Businesses
Identify the risks capable of causing the greatest harm and verify the controls.
View SME service →ISO 45001 Gap Analysis and Internal Audits
Understand your ISO 45001 position and prepare credible evidence for certification.
View SME service →Tōtika and Contractor Prequalification Support
Turn prequalification questions into an organised, evidence-backed submission.
View SME service →Site Safety Audits Auckland
Independent site inspections that identify what is working and what needs action.
View SME service →Hazardous Substance Management NZ
Inventories, SDS records, storage controls and emergency arrangements that work together.
View SME service →Contractor Safety Management NZ
Select, coordinate and monitor contractors without losing sight of overlapping PCBU duties.
View SME service →Māori Health and Safety Consultancy
A people-centred approach informed by Te Whare Tapa Whā and grounded in HSWA.
View SME service →SSSP Development Auckland
Site-specific safety plans that reflect the actual project, contractors and critical risks.
View SME service →Farm Safety Systems Waikato
Practical farm safety systems focused on vehicles, machinery, people and seasonal work.
View SME service →Marae Health and Safety Plans
Practical safety planning for marae, events, volunteers, contractors and whānau.
View SME service →Asbestos Awareness Training Auckland
Help workers recognise suspected asbestos, avoid disturbance and follow the correct escalation process.
View SME service →Critical Risk Awareness Training
Help workers recognise serious-harm risks, understand critical controls and speak up when a control is missing.
View SME service →Our point of difference
Health and safety is about people — not only paperwork.
Our work is informed by Te Whare Tapa Whā: a Māori model of wellbeing that recognises the connection between physical safety, mental and emotional wellbeing, whānau, and values or purpose.
It strengthens the way we listen, consult and design practical systems. It supports legal compliance; it never replaces it.
Work with AuditsureTAHA TINANA
Physical
Safe work, healthy bodies and effective risk controls.
TAHA HINENGARO
Mental
Psychological wellbeing, trust and the confidence to speak up.
TAHA WHĀNAU
Connection
Worker participation, relationships and the people who depend on us.
TAHA WAIRUA
Values
Purpose, leadership, respect and doing what is right.
Experience that travels to site
Led by John Kerr
John brings more than 20 years of health and safety experience across construction, mining, infrastructure, hospitals, high-risk work, hazardous substances and asbestos operations in New Zealand and Australia.
His background spans frontline supervision, advisory work, auditing, incident management and practical system development. As an ISO lead auditor, John understands the standard. As a contractor and business owner, he understands the pressure to get the work done.
Who we help
Construction & tradesInfrastructure & propertyMāori businessesCommunity organisationsSMEs & contractorsProject managers
A straightforward process
From uncertainty
to a clear plan.
1
Listen
We talk through the work, your goals and the pressure points.
2
Review
We look at the workplace, your documents and your evidence.
3
Prioritise
You get a plain-language action plan ranked by risk and effort.
4
Improve
We can help close the gaps and keep the system alive.
Latest SME guidance
What the 1 April 2027 critical-risk changes mean for small PCBUs
A plain-language guide to the new priority, what counts as a critical risk and five practical steps SMEs can take before the law changes.
Let’s make the next step clear
Tell us what you’re working through.
Start with a no-pressure conversation with John. We’ll help you work out what support is useful — and what you may not need.
Contact John Kerr
021 222 5246safety1stconsultants@gmail.comAvailable for project support, one-off reviews and ongoing advisory work.