Northern Ireland’s fishing fleet is set to benefit from a new project assessing vessels’ safety management systems.
The Fishing First Safety Management project is run by The Seafarers’ Charity and aims to make fishing safer for all by ensuring vessels operate legally with decent living and working conditions.
Led by Anglo-North Irish Fish Producers’ Organisation (ANIFPO) and Northern Ireland Fish Producers’ Organisation (NIFPO), the project will audit up to 30 systems as well as focus on supply chain transparency and the development of a new process to manage crew grievances.
It follows a similar successful iteration in 2021 in the southwest of England which audited the safety management systems of 50 vessels.
Fishing remains one of the most dangerous jobs in the UK. Alan McCulla OBE, chief executive of ANIFPO said: “We want to take action to improve the welfare and working conditions of our crew, many of whom are migrant workers.”
“We recognise we need to make it easier to hear from them about any concerns and that this can help us to respond and ensure a safe and decent working environment for everyone,” he added.
Fishing First Safety Management is a bespoke tool which uses the SafetyFolder to build an onboard safety management system which can then be audited. The bespoke nature of the service makes it suitable for all vessel sizes and gear types.
Funding for the project has been provided by ANIFPO, NIFPO, Kilkeel Seafoods, Fishmongers’ Company’s Fisheries Charitable Trust and the Seafood Ethical Action Alliance although The Seafarers’ Charity underwrote the cost of delivering this project prior to full funding being confirmed.
