Lone Working Policy

Lone Worker Policy

The Parish Council’s Policy

The Council is responsible for the health, safety and welfare at work of its employees, visitors and contractors and safety of those affected by the work, e.g. members of the public.

These responsibilities cannot be transferred to people who work alone. It is the Council’s duty to assess risks to lone workers and take steps to avoid or control risk where necessary.

Employees have responsibilities to take reasonable care of themselves and other people affected by their work and to co-operate with the Council in meeting its legal obligations.

Who Are Lone Workers?

Lone workers are those who work by themselves without close or direct supervision. They are found in a wide range of situations:

• Where only one person works on the premises, such as in an office, home workers.

Assessing the risks

Although there is no general legal prohibition on working alone, the broad duties of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 and Management of Health and Safety of Work Regulations 1999 still apply. These require identifying the hazards of the work, assessing the risks involved and putting measures in place to avoid or control the risks.

Controlling the risk

When risk assessment shows that it is not possible for the work to be done safely by a lone worker, arrangements for providing help or back up should be put in place.

Risk assessment should help decide the right level of supervision. There are some activities which are high risk.

Safe Working Arrangements

Lone workers face particular problems. Some of the issues which need special attention when planning safe working arrangements are as follows:

• Can The Risk Of The Job Be Adequately Controlled By One Person?

Lone workers should not be at more risk than other employees. This may require extra risk-control measures. Precautions should take account of normal work and foreseeable emergencies, for example fire, equipment failure, illness and accidents. Employers should identify situations where people work alone and ask questions.

• Does the workplace present a special risk to the lone worker?
• Is there a safe way in and a way out for one person?
• Is there a risk of violence?
• Are women especially at risk if they work alone?
• Is the Person Medically Fit and Suitable To Work Alone?

Check that lone workers have no medical conditions which make them unsuitable for working alone. Seek medical advice if necessary.

Consider both routine work and foreseeable emergencies which may impose additional physical and mental burdens on the individual.

• What Training Is Required To Ensure Competency In Safety Matters?

Training is particularly important where there is limited supervision to control, guide and help in situations of uncertainty. Training may be critical to avoid panic reactions in unusual situations. Lone workers need to be sufficiently experienced and to understand the risks and precautions fully. Employers should set the limits to what can and cannot be done whilst working alone. They should ensure employees are competent to deal with circumstances which may be new, unusual or beyond the scope of their training.

Emergencies

What Happens If a Person Becomes Ill has an Accident, or There Is an Emergency?

• Lone workers should be capable of responding correctly to emergencies.
• Risk assessment should identify foreseeable events.
• Emergency procedures should be established and employees trained in them. Information about emergency procedures and danger areas should be given to lone workers who visit premises.
• Lone workers should have access to adequate first-aid facilities and mobile workers should carry a first-aid kit suitable for treating minor injuries.

Occasionally risk assessment may indicate that lone workers need training in first aid.

Monitoring and Control measures

Procedures will need to be put in place to monitor lone workers to see they remain safe. These may include:

1. Lone workers, outside normal working hours and in isolated buildings, should telephone a Councillor or another designated person, place of work and expected duration of stay, as they leave the building by writing time span and location on the white board in office.
2. Ensure a working telephone is available.
3. Lone workers should not undertake dangerous work, for example using dangerous chemicals or operating dangerous machinery.
4. When undertaking off site visits, the checklist below must be considered prior to the visit.