Lord Young’s report on Britain’s health and safety legislation is due to be unveiled at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham next week, and early reports suggest that prime minister, David Cameron, is preparing to tear up ‘mad’ legislation in a bonfire of ‘elf ‘n’ safety’ red tape.

Amid the chorus of cheers from critics and Daily Mail readers the land over, there’ll be a much smaller sound of resigned, long-suffering sighs from those committed public sector staff who have responsibility for ensuring local events and practices are safe for those taking part.

I’m no advocate for the bureaucracy, red tape and jobs worthiness that can surround health and safety legislation. In fact, I’m sure many in public health would themselves welcome a lighter touch system, but to the coalition government, can we please avoid stereotyping council officials as killjoys who love nothing more than causing the cancellation of much-loved local events?

If nothing else, this kind of criticism is demotivating at a time when many staff in the public sector are already subject to financial hardship and lurking uncertainty over jobs, pay and benefits, mostly resulting from cuts.

Yes, we get that we all have to share in the pain, but precious goodwill, morale and discretionary effort evaporate in the heat of media reports which take the worst examples of health and safety ‘gone mad’ and make them sound like an everyday occurrence.

In Teignbridge, as with many councils, our approach is one of pragmatic enabling, balancing protection of public and personal safety with a healthy dose of common sense, risk management, flexibility and local understanding.

We’ve worked with councils across Devon to produce a Safer business pack, offering a practical guide to local businesses to help them apply good health and safety practices in a measured way.

Perhaps the real problem with health and safety is the emergence of ‘no-win, no-fee’ solicitors and resulting overblown insurance premiums. In that respect, there’s much to welcome in Lord Young’s report, and the sighs from public health officials might just turn to relief if his Recommendation to implement Jackson LJ’s Review of civil litigation costs, the thrust of which is to dissuade the taking out of speculative law suits, is carried out, along with curbs on the way no-win, no fee’ cases recover legal fees from defendants.

With the party conference season upon us and the CSR hot on its heels, let’s work together across all levels of government and minimise risks of falling-out and undermining morale in pursuit of a hot headline.

Nicola Bulbeck is joint chief executive of Teignbridge andTorridge DCs