Legal & Compliance Library

Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005

Requires employers to assess and control risks from exposure to noise at work, providing hearing protection where needed.

Scope

Exposure levels, not just loud environments

The regulations set specific exposure action and limit values for noise, rather than relying on a general sense of whether a workplace 'feels loud'.

Measured levels, not impressions

Duty

Applies wherever noise exposure is a factor

Employers whose work activities expose employees to noise — machinery, tools, industrial processes — fall within scope once exposure approaches the action values.

Exposure, the trigger

Practice

Recorded as a hazard, reviewed like any other

Noise-related risk can already be recorded as a hazard within a general Risk Assessment, reviewed and tracked the same way any other hazard is.

Recorded, not overlooked

This page is an educational, plain-English summary — it is not legal advice and must not be relied on as a substitute for the legislation itself or advice from a competent person. Always refer to the official source for the authoritative text.

What it covers

These regulations set exposure action and limit values, requiring employers to assess noise risk, reduce exposure at source where possible, and provide hearing protection and health surveillance where relevant.

Who it applies to

Employers whose work activities expose employees to noise (e.g. machinery, tools, industrial processes).

How SafetyOps supports compliance

Noise-related risk can be recorded as a hazard within a general Risk Assessment today; no dedicated noise-exposure module exists in SafetyOps yet.

Explore the related module →

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