Give Foot Injuries the Boot on National Feet Week
Feet: they’re the foundation of our mobility and wellbeing. However, they often don’t receive the recognition they deserve. On National Feet Week, we’re here to change that. Kicking off on the 17th April, we’re inviting you to mark the date with top tips on keeping your feet healthy with proper footwear, protective equipment and foot care advice. Go on - put your feet up and take a read.
Feet are taken for granted - sad, but true. Suffering from an ankle or foot injury at work can have a massive impact on your daily life, and if not treated properly can result in permanent damage or weakness in some areas. National Feet Week is all about driving change in this area, reminding us of the importance of our feet and what we can do to protect them.
Giving Foot Injuries the Boot
We’ve all dropped something on our feet - ouch. However, for our partners in the construction industry, there’s more to worry about than a stubbed toe. Here are some facts that show what we’re talking about:
Serious workplace foot injuries receive compensation claims ranging from £9,600 and £500,000 in a worst case scenario
Foot injuries are one of the top 3 most common workplace injuries in 20 cities across Great Britain
7.3 million working days were lost last year due to musculoskeletal disorders, with many directly linked to foot health
Foot injuries are no joke. But how can you make sure you’re taking the right steps to protect your feet and prevent injury? Let’s take a closer look…
Top Products & Tips for Healthy Feet
When you’re working on a busy construction site, you can expect your feet to bear the brunt of the working day - the distance you cover, the tools you carry - and the many objects which are likely to fall and land on your foot. Take our advice: don’t discover foot safety and care by accident. If you’re overseeing a site, we have some products that aren’t just nice-to-have - they’re essential.1. Find the Footwear
- When you’re working on a busy construction site, you can expect your feet to bear the brunt of the working day - the distance you cover, the tools you carry - and the many objects which are likely to fall and land on your foot. Take our advice: don’t discover foot safety and care by accident. If you’re overseeing a site, we have some products that aren’t just nice-to-have - they’re essential.
Safety Chukka S3 SRC Boots - Black
Protective toecap and midsole, Utah is lightweight and ideal for price-sensitive contracts it features a shock absorbing dual density PVC outsole.
Rockfall Flint Non-Metallic S3 HRO SRC Safety Boots - Honey
100% non-metallic, with a protective toecap and midsole, Flint is comfortable and lightweight, it's developed with specialist comfort materials including a shock absorbing dual density EVA nitrile rubber outsole and Activ-Step® PU anti-fatigue comfort footbed.
2. Consider Material Handling
We’ve all been there: carrying a box of heavy tools, when one of them falls out and lands squarely on your toe. Whilst footwear is a primary line of defence, there are other ways to prevent that from happening in the first place: safe material handling. Introducing the Wheelbarrow: it’s a classic for a reason.
Constructed using a steel frame and pan along with a solid tyre, there’s more to wheelbarrows than the mere convenience they offer. These products allow you to carry heavy objects safely, minimising the risks of injury to both your feet and your back. If you haven’t got one, now’s the time.
3. Safety Through Signage
In many cases, ensuring foot protection on construction sites involves more than proper footwear. If you haven’t equipped your site with foot safety signage, you’re missing a vital opportunity to nip these incidents in the bud before they arise.
Signage is a vital step in any worksite safety plan, and should fully account for foot safety. That means warning your workers that safety footwear must be worn, or that outside footwear should be removed. Prevention starts with awareness, and signs are the perfect place to start.
4. Think About Comfort
When thinking about foot protection, comfort is essential - not just for making our working day easier, but also for making it safer for everyone involved. If you have a pre-existing foot condition such as plantar fasciitis, achilles tendonitis or pronation/supination instabilities, wearing uncomfortable, unsuitable footwear can make those problems significantly worse.
If you do suffer from a pre-existing condition, don’t panic - there are solutions for that, just like the Activ-Step 3Feet Work Footbeds. Specifically designed for industrial workplaces and equipped with anti-static stitching and tape for product assurance, these footbeds are multi-layered and can be built up to offer tailored arch support based on your foot type.
5. Making Foot Care a Priority
We’ve already covered some safety essentials when it comes to protecting our feet. However, genuinely looking after our feet requires ongoing work, and there are a few ways that you can do that, namely hygienic maintenance and proper safety consultations. Keep reading to see what we mean…
The Importance of Foot Hygiene
If your footwear smells particularly unpleasant, it could be a sign of a foot condition - alternatively, it could be a sign that your boots aren’t getting the hygienic maintenance they need. If this applies to you, consider treating your footwear with our Footwear Odour Eliminator
A fully sanitising spray, this handy solution combines cleaning and air-freshening properties. Be sure to use it at both the start and end of each day to give your feet the protection they need.
Working with a Safety Expert
- Last but not least, let’s look at the importance of creating a culture of safety in your workplace. While appropriate PPE and safe material handling solutions are essential, these offer little value without proper training and processes to support them.
- That’s where experts like Bryson come in. Simply get in touch with one of our experts to discover how we can provide a safe footwear solution that’s personalised to the unique demands of your worksite. We’re only a call away!