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The Identicom: making sure you never walk alone

The dangers and problems faced by Lone Workers have recently been illustrated by some high profile incidents. More workers are finding themselves on the receiving end of verbal or even physical abuse, and, research has shown, such abuse can seriously damage a person’s wellbeing and state of mind. Helping prevent such abuse and capturing evidence of such incidences has, until now, been extremely difficult.

Every employer and employee has responsibilities and rights under the Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) (1974) to ensure the provision of a safe working environment, supported by safe systems of working. Thankfully there are many flexible solutions on the market, enabling employers to fulfil their duty of care without being overly restrictive or intrusive with their employee.

Below is a case studies for one of these solutions, the Initial Attendo Identicom Badge.

Belle Isle Tenant Management is an organisation run and managed by the tenants; they currently manage over 2,000 properties on behalf of Leeds City Council and employ 36 members of staff. When Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation (BITMO) began managing the estate, the Board of Directors took a decision to directly employ staff, as opposed to taken them secondment. BITMO also made a commitment to residents to maintain a highly trained and motivated workforce. In order to fulfil this commitment, staff must have the right tools to carry out their job.

Whilst training is one aspect, staff must also feel secure and confident in carrying out their duties; staff safety and well being is paramount to the organisation. At a quarterly Health & Safety review meeting, it became clear that although BITMO had procedures in place for lone working, these measures were not particularly effective and were insufficient to meet the needs of those it affected. Following consultation with staff it became apparent that what the lone workers wanted was a discreet system which would allow them to alert the office when they felt under threat, or were actually being subjected to physical or verbal abuse.

Members of the senior management team attended the CIH Harrogate Conference in June and, whilst there, they visited the Initial Attendo stand. The Initial Attendo Identicom badge system was on display and the management team were so impressed with the system they arranged a meeting with the team behind the badge. A decision was soon made to purchase the units and the badge was introduced to staff prior to its implementation. Once the badges were ready a training session was arranged with Initial Attendo, this was followed up by a further session for those staff that were not present.

Cath Gill, board community co-ordinator at Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation, said:
“Despite initial teething problems, staff forgetting to log off, setting the alert off accidentally, the system is running well. The positive side of this is that we know that the system works! We were alerted promptly and efficiently and were obviously relieved to learn that the alerts were not in fact real incidents, but, the point is that they could have been. This has had a positive effect on staff who feel more secure knowing that help is at hand very quickly should the need arise”

Comments from staff

“ This is a positive move by the Organisation, I certainly feel more secure”
? Keith Wigglesworth, Tenant Liaison Officer.

“It’s reassuring to know that should I need it help is at hand, especially as my work involves working alone in the evening on the estate”
? Lilian Richards, Estate Caretaker

“I like the fact that it is not obvious that the badge is an alert system, it certainly makes you feel more secure and confident knowing that help is just the touch of a button away”
? Paul Serle, Senior Estate Management Officer.

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