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The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981 set out employers' legal duties on first aid at work. A new ACoP published in 1997 sets out minimum first-aid requirements, but no longer specifies the ratio of first aiders to employees. Instead, employers are expected to work out how many first aiders there should be in a particular workplace after doing an assessment of first-aid needs.

The ACoP says the number of first aiders will depend on the level of risk in the workplace, and in some situations (low-risk workplaces or small companies) an employer can simply have an "appointed person" to be responsible for first-aid arrangements. The appointed person must not give first aid, but the HSE guidance recommends that employers consider emergency first-aid training for appointed persons.

First aiders must hold valid certificates from an organisation approved by the HSE and need to attend a refresher course every three years. Employers might also need to provide additional training, such as working in confined spaces or with certain chemicals.

The employer must tell workers what provisions have been made for first aid, and there must also be a record book for incidents where first aid has been administered. On shared sites, the HSE suggests that one employer should take overall responsibility for first aid, and it strongly advises that this should be spelled out in a written agreement (First aid at work. The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981. Approved Code of Practice and guidance. ISBN 0 7176 1050 0).

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