A Guide to Write Safety Meeting Minutes

Safety meetings are usually conducted for the purpose of spreading awareness on safety regarding various subjects. These meetings could include topics such as workplace safety, school safety, driving safety, etc. The circumstances in which they are conducted and their participants, determine the subject of the meeting.

For instance, a meeting on child safety or school safety will include parents and teachers in a school setting. A meeting on workplace safety will include employees of an organization. In any case, the meeting should be conducted in a clear, concise manner, that effectively deals with the subject in question.

There should always be someone to write down the minutes of the meeting. The minutes are an effective way of recording the discussion and can be used for future reference in the next meeting, e.g., to determine the agenda of the next meeting.

A recap of the previous meeting on a similar subject helps in carrying forward the discussion in a strategic manner. Thus, this is applicable even to a safety meeting, where jotting down the minutes of the meeting is imperative. Here are some tips for the same.

The minutes of the safety meeting can serve as proof of all that was discussed, how every participant in the meeting was aware of the discussion, and the precautionary measures that had been asked to follow. Take a look at the process:

• Whether you decide to write the meetings down on a notepad, or type it out on your laptop; ensure that you make a copy of it for future reference.
• Begin by making a note of the date, the location, and the members at the meeting. Also keep a record of who presided over the meeting.

• Ensure that the agenda outlined is recorded in the minutes. If there is no agenda, prepare one before the meeting so that it follows a defined course and does not drift into meaningless discussions.

• The most important details to be included are the topics discussed, objections to any recommendations made by the participants, and the plan of action that has been decided for future purposes. Any doubts regarding the inclusion of any particular details should be discussed with the presiding head of the meeting.

• Since these will just be rough notes, prepare the minutes in a proper format and record them correctly. Do not discard the rough draft, as you may need it for the purposes of reference at any point in time. To stress on this important point again, ensure you maintain a backup of what you have recorded.

• Depending on the policy your organization follows, forward the minutes of the meeting to all the participants for their personal record.