Minister of State for Small Business, Mr John Perry T.D. Presented Clare County Fire and Rescue Service with a OHSAS 18001:2007 certification for international standards for health and safety. They received the award along with 31 other private and public sector organisations. There to receive the awards were Cllr Joe Arkin (Mayor of Clare), Adrian Kelly (Clare Chief Fire Officer) and Ger Hartnett (Senior Executive Health & Safety Officer, Clare County Council).

Minister Perry while speaking at the event said  “I want to congratulate all recipients of quality awards, and recognise their important investment in standards. Finding a competitive advantage is crucial for businesses both at home and abroad and the impressive organisations here today show that companies believe that standards really do give their business that advantage.”

Clare County Council was also awarded the overall Local Authority Award in the 22nd Annual National Safety Award scheme, just six months ago in an event hosted by the National Irish Safety Organisation and Northern Ireland Safety Group.
Cllr Joe Arkins, Mayor of Clare said it is “critically important for both Fire Service personnel and the general public whom they serve” to provide the highest level of health and safety standards and congratulated the Fire Services for doing just this. “I want to commend all Clare County Fire & Rescue Service personnel for their planning, organisation and hard work in providing a quality, year-round service to those who live in, work in and visit Clare,”

Adrian Kelly, Chief Fire Officer explained “In the Fire Service, the management of Health & Safety of personnel is a top priority for all employees. The certification to OHSAS 18001 by the NSAI is an acknowledgement that the way that we are managing in health and safety is to the highest recognised standards,Our Fire and Rescue Service personnel are among the most highly trained in the country and this accreditation”

Adding: “Our Fire and Rescue Service personnel are among the most highly trained in the country and this accreditation underlines that staff are also committed to implementing the highest standards of health and safety throughout their operations. While we were always satisfied that we were achieving the highest possible standards, securing this accreditation helps us to promote this fact to the wider public throughout County.”

The 2007 Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems sets out a preventative and proactive approach to identifying workplace hazards and assessing and controlling risk and was originally published in 2007 by the National Standards Authority of Ireland.
The event also presented awards to Dulux Paints Ireland Ltd., Dawn Meats, Datapac, Irish Air Corps, Fitzsimons Insulation, ESB Corporate Centre, and Carlow Fire and Rescue Service.

Maurice Buckley, CEO, National Standard Authority of Ireland, said “The small business sector is central to economic recovery, job creation and the further development of the Irish economy. Certification to standards helps businesses to be innovative, allowing SMEs to compete with much larger companies, attract new customers, and access global markets,”