Lone working policy template

Overview

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, every employer and employee has rights and responsibilities, to ensure the provision of a safe working environment supported by safe systems of working.

[Company] is committed to providing a safe working environment as far as reasonably practical that meets the needs of its staff and volunteers. Consideration shall therefore be given to the health and safety implications in respect of lone working.

This document explains how [Company] will protect their staff as far as is reasonably practicable from the risks of lone working. While [Company] will endeavour to reduce any instances of Lone Working where practicable, working alone is not in itself against the law and it will often be safe to do so. The law requires employers to consider carefully, and then deal with any health and safety risks for people working alone.

Scope

All workers of [Company].

This policy applies to all situations involving Lone Workers arising in connection with their duties and work activities.

Principles

Definition of Lone Working

Individuals are alone at work when they are on their own, they cannot be seen or heard by another worker, cannot expect a visit from another worker for some time and/or where assistance is not readily available when needed. Therefore, lone workers are those who work by themselves without close or direct supervision. This includes establishments where:

• Only one person works on the premises
• One person works separately from others
• One person works outside normal hours

Responsibilities

Line Managers

• Ensure that workers comply with this policy
• Ensure their workers work in a safe environment
• Ensure that workers do not suffer from undue stress as a consequence of lone working
• Limit lone working as much as practicable so that it is not a routine occurrence
• If lone working is unavoidable, efforts should be made to eliminate or reduce hazards starting with a process of reassessment of the task.
• Coordinate the risk assessment in consultation with the Compliance Department, and work with staff to achieve good solutions
• Regularly re-assess risks, reporting the time and dates of monitoring and any changes to the Compliance Department

Individual Employees

• Take reasonable care of their own health and safety whilst undertaking lone working
• Report their movements to another member of staff / designated associate

If a member of staff feels that they are putting themselves at risk through lone working, they should discuss the situation with their line manager.

Monitoring

Anyone who is lone working shall be provided with a communication link to another member of staff, by camera, lone working alarm or by phone.

Office based staff

• Whenever staff work within the office they should try to ensure that there are other members of the organisation in the building.
• If there is a change to a member of staffs day, they must inform the manager of their expected arrival
• If a member of staff has not arrived by the stated time, a phone call will be made to contact that member of staff

Staff working out of normal hours

All staff working out of normal expected hours shall:

• Contact a designated associate and leave the following information:
  • Name
  • Location
  • Expected time of arrival on site
  • Contact telephone number
• On arrival on site, contact their designated associate with the following information:
  • The expected length of time on site
• On arriving at a different location, contact their designated associate with the following information:
  • They have arrived at a new location; give another expected length of time on site. The process will then recommence until such time as the lone worker completes all works. The procedure ensures that the line manager is aware of the staff members movements during their period of lone working.
• On leaving the site, contact their designated associate with the following information:
  • Time of leaving the site

All delegated associates must be made aware of the line manager’s number. In the event that the employee does not telephone their designated associate after an outreach, the associate must contact the line manager. The line manager will endeavour to contact the employee however if there is no response, a follow up.

Risk assessments

Risk assessments must be carried out for and by all individuals whose working practice makes them vulnerable and recommendations should be made to eliminate or reduce the risk as far as possible. Where individuals work alone in buildings, managers should complete the relevant lone workers checklist.

Risk assessments for site based lone workers must include:

• Safe entry and exit
• Location, e.g. remoteness
• Safety of equipment for individual use
• Channels of communication in an emergency
• Site security
• Security arrangements i.e. alarm systems and response to personal alarms
• Level and adequacy of on-site supervision

Risk assessments for mobile lone workers must include:

• Premises risk assessment where applicable
• Reporting and recording arrangements
• Communication and traceability
• Personal safety and security

Following completion of risk assessment, consideration must be given to any appropriate action that is required.

Training

Staff working for [Company] should know that their safety comes first. They should be aware of how to deal with situations in which they feel at risk or unsafe. Managers must therefore ensure that all lone workers training needs are assessed and that they receive appropriate training.