Business Leaders Health & Safety Forum – Update

2024 must be year of improvement for NZ’s high workplace harm toll, after another year of flatlining safety performance for New Zealand’s workers, businesses and communities, it’s imperative 2024 signals the start of a turnaround.
The business leaders health and safety forum media release is attached below, its worth a quick read.

 

Are People and Vehicles Too Close for Comfort? Managing PME and Pedestrian Separation in NZ Workplaces

Where people and vehicles mix, there’s always a risk — and in workplaces across New Zealand, that mix is more common than many realise. Whether you’re managing a large infrastructure site or running a small retail business with deliveries at the back door, powered mobile equipment (PME) and pedestrian separation is a real safety issue […]

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Beyond the Tick Box: Why Generic Safety Systems Put Your Business at Risk

Across New Zealand, and increasingly here in Taupo, we are seeing the negative effects of “cookie cutter” or “tick and flick” health and safety systems. These are generic, one-size-fits-all packages that claim to offer compliance, but in reality do little to improve safety or meet the intent of the Health and Safety at Work Act […]

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SaferMe Explained

Check out these short video’s, that explain more about SaferMe. If you would like to find out more about SaferMe, and how it can support your H&S objectives, please contact us. https://www.safer.me/en-nz/acc-personal-worker-safety-innovation-project/  

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Hear It from Our Clients

See the impact we've had on businesses and how we could do the same for you.

We can’t speak highly enough of Lake Safety Services and Derek in particular. Rather than applying a cookie-cutter template, Derek took the time to genuinely understand our business and our processes before putting anything together. The result was a health and safety solution that fits like a glove – tailored, practical, and clearly built around how we actually operate, not just a generic checklist. If you’re after a consultancy that treats your business as unique rather than “one of many,” Derek and the team at Lake Safety Services are the ones to call!

Jacques Schoeman

Director

MAD Media Ltd

Highly recommend this health and safety company! They provided top-notch service for our roofing business, ensuring everything was up to standard. Their team was professional, thorough, and easy to work with. We feel confident knowing our safety measures are in excellent hands. Great job.

Laurence
Director

 

Storm Tech Roofing – Hawkes Bay

We are a small yet complex organisation and have been working with Derek for the past year with the goal of creating a robust health and safety system that is maintained through internal ownership and embedded into business as usual. While Derek is knowledgeable, professional, and enthusiastic, his real superpower is working alongside the team to create a system which is tailored and practical, all while growing internal capacity. We would absolutely recommend Derek.

Lake Taupo Hospice

Through Derek, Lakes Safety Services provided an extremely thorough and personalised service to Broadlands School. Derek’s scope was the review the school’s EOTC practices and to make recommednations in changes to policy and day to day management practices including practical EOTC staff documentation. This brief was very well achieved! Derek has also provided great follow up service and a willingness to assist with any future EOTC draft policies before being adopted by the Board.

Graeme Taylor
Principal

Broadlands School

Derek was approachable, experienced, and readily available (at very short notice) for what was required for our H&S work site induction. Highly recommend should your company be in need of a person to tackle H&S matters.

Grace Solomon
Resident Manager

Two Trees Ngā Rākau e Rua – Taupō

Thank you, Derek, for your professional and objective advice. Your insights were incredibly helpful. We also really appreciated your enthusiasm in sharing your social networks and experiences, it was truly inspiring!

Eve Liu

Office Manager

Hauraki Civil Engineering – Rotorua

As a business, we’ve had a fantastic experience working with Lakes Safety Services: professional, reliable, and highly knowledgeable, making every interaction seamless from start to finish.

The commitment to people, safety, clear communication, and attention to detail gives us complete confidence in the services provided.

We highly recommend Lakes Safety Services to any business or individual. They’ve shown us that health and safety doesn’t have to be complicated. Practical approach and expert guidance have made a real difference to our business and our staff.

Mirela Petrar
Operations Manager 

Taupo DeBretts

Derek provided excellent health & safety consultancy. His advice was practical, thorough, well-delivered, and easy to implement. He helped us identify risks we’d overlooked and suggested cost-effective solutions. Recommend for any business needing H&S guidance.

Murray Beadle
General Manager

BFA Business Advisors and Accountants – Taupo

Very knowledgeable and willing to put the effort in upfront to understand our situation. Tailored things to fit our business requirements without creating a pile of confusing admin for us.

Spenser Christiansen
Director 

That Dingo Guy – Manawatu

I got Derek in to update our H&S management system. He was honest and did a great job. Highly recommend.

Mark Bowsher
Station Manager

Whareroa Station – Waikato

Connect with Lakes Safety Services – Practical Support, Real Results

Health and Safety Expertise That Works for Your Business

With over 25 years of real-world experience, Lakes Safety Services provides practical health and safety consultancy, coaching, and support across Taupō and the Central North Island. We specialise in solutions that fit your people, tasks, and risks — not just checklists. From technical systems and governance advice to contractor management and SafePlus assessments, we help you build safer workplaces with confidence.