Personal Safety and Lone Working Guidance

Purpose

The nature of the service being provided by Careline requires some of the staff group to frequently work away from the office unaccompanied. This procedure is designed to minimise the risks to staff while carrying out their duties.

Responsibility

All staff

Process

Legal Duty – The Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 places a general duty upon employers to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all employees and to provide sufficient information, supervision, instruction and training as it is necessary to work with a minimum risk to their health and safety.

The manager will be responsible for overseeing this procedure and monitoring staff compliance with the guidelines. The manager shall also ensure that all staff are adequately trained.

All employees should take reasonable care for their own health and safety and to co-operate with these guidelines.

Preparation before the visit

Staff shall screen the person they are due to visit by contacting the referrer and other agencies on the referral form. Also check the various databases for more information about the person.

If there are any concerns they should be raised with your line manager immediately. After screening staff shall be in a position to make a decision about what form the visit should take e.g. a joint visit with a colleague, referrer or health professional.

The Visit

Where possible all workers should make sure that their visits take place during daylight hours it is obvious however that due to the nature of the service that this would not always be possible. As a safety precaution staff shall have 999, your manager’s and the office number pre-set on the mobile phone.

Reporting Procedures

• All visits are to be recorded on Jontek to ensure that office based staff and the management team are aware of where they are.
• Ensure that they carry their mobile phones and emergency alerts with them.
• Staff to ensure that their personal contact details on the Councils e-hr system is up to date. Which the manager will access if there is a concern regarding a staff member’s welfare.

Personal Safety

Wherever possible it is advisable that staff should enter the room/property behind the client and remain between them and the door. The door should be left open where practicable. Consider also, maintaining a safe distance between them and the client at all times.

Staff shall first introduce themselves by presenting their Camden ID pass. During the meeting it is important to deal professionally with the business at hand, give clear responses to issues and take notes as this helps to reassure the client, prevent triggers of violence and minimise the risk of any conflict.

Conflict Situation

• Whenever staff feel threatened or unsafe they should excuse themselves and leave immediately. ‘Trust your instincts! ‘
• There are no levels of acceptable verbal abuse. ‘What you consider to be abusive is abusive!’
• Exposure to verbal abuse, although not as dangerous as threats or aggressive behaviour, is equally intimidating. Verbal abuse, which will include overtly racist and sexist comments, should be treated the same as other forms of intimidation.
• If faced with verbal abuse, staff should either request the abuser stops, if this is not likely to escalate the confrontation, or leave.
• If faced with an attempted robbery, always hand over the items demanded and, if possible, try to note the description of the individuals involved and, in particular, any distinguishing features.
• When an incident has occurred staff must record it and request your manager takes action, as in the manager’s follow up below.

Handling Conflict

In situations where a client has become agitated and is threatening violence, the following guidelines may be helpful:

• Stand at least two arms lengths away.
• Accept the emotion. Do not retaliate - it is not about you.
• Ask questions and listen to the replies, remaining calm.
• Negotiate and be prepared to compromise.
• Call for help or leave quietly as soon as possible.

There are also some things that you must not do:

• Don’t make threats or lose your temper.
• Don’t be a hero.

Managers’ Follow-up Action

• When there has been an incident, the detail must be carefully recorded together with the manager’s response.
• Where an officer has reported an incident it is the manager’s responsibility to take action.
• Always investigate the incident within a week to ensure that action is taken swiftly.
• Contact the client in question and any other witnesses, to record their comments.
• After investigations inform the staff member involved and the client the decision made and intended actions. Sanctions must be appropriate to the level of threat or abuse.

Actions a Manager may choose to take:

• A warning letter. The minimum action in the circumstances where a minor incident has occurred.       The letter will advise of further action if behaviour does not change.
• Withdrawal of home visits and a monitoring only service will be offered. Future contact by telephone or letter.
• Withdrawal of all personal contact. All future contact by phone or letter.
• Ensure the Jontek record is updated to alert any staff members of concerns or warning regarding this customer
• Legal action either civil or criminal. This includes injunctions and legal undertakings.       In these cases the service would be provided by telephone, post or through a third party such as the client’s Solicitor.
• Possession proceedings.
• Where there is evidence of physical assault, the Council will always take action, supporting the victim in criminal proceedings and civil action.

Meeting Outcomes

It is important to process any work generated during the meeting; take action agreed and write up file notes as soon as practicable.

If there has been an incident, staff should report it to their manager for action and complete an incident report so that future risk assessments are based on up to date information.

Reporting Incidents

Where it is considered the risk to be too great to arrange a meeting, or there has been an incident, staff should accurately describe it for the record together with their manager’s response.

It is vital that staff record all incidents to ensure full and accurate information is available to subsequent users.

All assaults must be recorded as with accidents at work.

Implementation

The successful implementation of this procedure is based on five elements:

• Training all staff in, and following the procedures.
• Recording timely and accurate information.  
• Taking precautions in direct proportion to the perceived risk.
• Taking responsibility for self and for others.
• Managers taking fast and effective action in the event of any incidents.