I have been in places where Pink hi-viz vests were used for visitors. Apparently they weren't as "accidently taken away" as much as other colours.

I think that HR and H&S are different disciplines, but there are some overlaps, e.g. bullying. From my experience, H&S reporting to HR does not work very well. H&S is a better fit in Operations, especially if you want to embed H&S into the business, as the normal way of doing things and develop the safety culture/ climate. HR is seen by the business as more of a support function. On a practical level, I find that I get much better buyin when investigating incidents if staff recognise that I am trying to find out what went wrong, so that it can be prevented from happening in the future. I leave HR to do the Just Culture thing and disciplining. Dekker's work is good on this.

I am the HSE Manager of the Institute of Environmental and Scientific Research (ESR). ESR is currently developing a testing method. If anyone is interested, please let me know.

Just as I see HR as a profession, I also see H&S as a profession in its own right. The trouble with having H&S under HR is that H&S needs to be part of core business, how are things are done - not just a supporting service.
Businesses are in it to make money. They shouldn't be looking at an opportunity and then deciding how to make the work safe. They should be looking at an opportunity and deciding how to do the work safely. Good safety = good business. The more H&S is incorporated, the more profit will be made. This is why I think H&S should sit under Operations.