safecontractor is a leading third party accreditation scheme which recognises very high standards in health and safety management amongst UK contractors. Signs Express (N & NE Lincs) is principally involved in the business to business sector, specialising in the supply of high quality signs and graphics across all industries. Some of their recent clients have included major players such as; Youngs Seafood, Linden Homes, McCains and Phillips 66. The company's application for safecontractor accreditation was driven by the need for a uniform standard across the business. Signs Express (N & NE Lincs) commercial director, Claire Lindley, commented: 'We recognised the importance of achieving a safecontractor accreditation as health and safety is something we take very seriously. Passing the assessment and being presented with this certificate means all our hard work has paid off and that our customers can be reassured that our work is always carried out with health and safety at the forefront of our minds.' safecontractor accreditation will enhance the company's ability to attract new contracts and its commitment to safety will be viewed positively by its insurers when the company liability policy is up for renewal. safecontractor is applicable to most sectors although it is particularly relevant to food manufacture, property, facilities management, retail and leisure sectors, all of which are big users of contracted services. John Kinge, technical director of safecontractor said, "Major organisations simply cannot afford to run the risk of employing contractors who are not able to prove that they have sound health and safety policies in place. More companies need to understand the importance of adopting good risk management in the way that Signs Express (N & NE Lincs) has done. The firm's high standard has set an example which hopefully will be followed by other companies within the sector. safecontractor plays a vital role in supporting our clients in meeting their compliance needs, whilst working with their contractors as they progress through the accreditation process.' Under the safecontractor scheme, businesses undergo a vetting process which examines health and safety procedures and their track record for safe practice. Those companies meeting the high standard are included on a database, which is accessible to registered users only via a website. Client-organisations who sign up to the scheme can access the database, enabling them to vet potential contractors before they even set foot on site. These clients agree that, as users of the scheme, they will engage only those who have received accreditation. Over one hundred and seventy major nation-wide businesses, from several key sectors, have signed up to use the scheme when selecting contractors for services such as building, cleaning, maintenance, refurbishment or electrical and mechanical work.