HEALTH AND SAFETY FOR LONE WORKERS

Pentreath Ltd is committed to achieving a working environment which provides equality of opportunity and freedom from unlawful discrimination on the grounds of race, sex, pregnancy and maternity, marital or civil partnership status, gender reassignment, disability, religion or beliefs, age or sexual orientation.

Introduction

This Policy should be read in conjunction with the Pentreath Pink Diary and Health and Safety Policy, of which it forms a part.  All staff are covered by the Policy.

Situations in which potential risks and dangers to lone staff can arise are many and varied and include:

• Personal accident or violent attack
• Vehicle accident / breakdown
• Unaccompanied site visits
• Visits to potentially dangerous sites

This Policy is intended as a guide for all staff in any of these situations, and for their managers, to help them to devise safe systems of work, taking into account any restraints or requirements of their particular duties.

Responsibility

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) employers are responsible for the health and safety of their employees and those affected by their work.  This applies no less to those who work alone.  Pentreath must therefore monitor the work of the solitary worker, as far as is reasonably practicable.  There should also be an awareness of special risks, for example the additional risks that may be faced by someone working alone.

Communication

It is crucial that communication between lone staff and their line managers is good, so that those responsible are always aware of where each individual is, and when they are to be expected at their next place of work or at home.  This is most effectively done by keeping a regularly update Outlook Calendar. In this way, if there is an occurrence where a staff member is unable to communicate the problem, the line manager is quickly aware that something is not right. (see Pink Diary Policy)

Working Practice

The following checklist should be undertaken before any lone working occurs.

• Have you:

1. Received training in strategies for the prevention of violence?
2. Been briefed about the areas where they work, or will work?
3. Been made aware of attitudes, traits or mannerisms that can annoy trainees?
4. Been given all the information about the client from the relevant agencies?
5. Previewed all case files?
6. Left an itinerary?
7. Made plans to keep in contact with colleagues / line manager?

• No home visits will be carried out without a Risk Assessment having been carried out by the referring clinician as part of the referral process.

• No home visits will be carried out after 5.00 pm, unless approved by the line manager and the Chief Executive.

• Pentreath is not an emergency clinical service.  Any urgent concerns regarding clients’ health must be referred to clinicians and/or GPs, and Pentreath staff must withdraw. Failure to comply with these Procedures could result in disciplinary action.

• All staff must record their daily activity within their Outlook Diary and any changes must be regularly updated, each diary entry should contain the full name of the client, their address and a contact telephone number. This diary should then be shared with the holders of the Pink Diary so that at any given time the employee’s location can be established.

• Staff who work unsociable hours, or who remain at work beyond normal working hours, particularly alone, are at greater risk, either from intruders or personal accident when there is no help available.  For this reason, sensible precautions need to be taken, ie. the locking of doors when in a building alone.  The employee must seek authorisation to work after 5.00 pm from their Line manager and pass this on to the holder of the Pink Diary.

• Any person undertaking work placement is at special risk when they attend other premises, which are not under the jurisdiction of the Pentreath Health and Safety Policy.  People in such circumstances should therefore take special care.

• In particular, if health and safety systems are not in place, the advisor should seriously consider whether their and their clients’, personal health or safety will be at risk if they enter the site.

• All staff will obey the safety regulations and any instructions given to them by people who have responsibility for health and safety, when they are on other premises.
• When attending a site which requires protective clothing to be worn, ie. safety boots, goggles, etc, all staff will ensure that they are supplied with, and that they wear, all necessary protection.  If the protective clothing is not available for any reason, they must under no circumstances enter the site.

• Pentreath gives authority to its staff to decide not to work on other premises if they feel that they are at risk by doing so, or that their health and safety is in some way compromised.

General precautions

• Be aware of body language, signs of anger, tension, stress, or nervousness, adopting a hostile or aggressive stance.  Bear in mind that you may be sending out body language messages.
• Avoid invading other people’s personal space or touching them.
• If anything happens, your voice is your best defence – shout a positive command – “STOP”.
• Have your mobile phone with you but keep it out of sight and with a contact number pre-programmed for emergency use. (See Pink Diary Policy).

Mobile telephones will be carried by advisors who are considered to be at special risk, for any reason, to allow them to summon assistance or to report progress.

Violence to staff should be considered as a serious, if unusual event. (See Untoward Violence Incident Policy).

Training

It is the responsibility of line managers to ensure that all staff who may be required to work alone will, as part of their induction, learn how to identify potential risks, and will be familiarised with the content and intent of this Policy.  Staff who are already at work at the time of adoption of this Policy will receive training on it from their line manager.