Lone working risk assessment
A lone working risk assessment should decide whether each task can safely be done without direct support, then address the consequences of delayed assistance. Location, travel, violence, medical vulnerability, machinery, work at height, communication coverage and out-of-hours access can change the answer. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require a suitable and sufficient assessment and effective arrangements for control. Consult the lone worker and test the proposed contact method from the places where it must work. Set check-in times according to risk, not convenience, and name the person who will act on a missed call. The escalation plan needs current location details and a realistic response, not a voicemail inbox that nobody monitors.
- ✓Hazards and controls drawn from HSE guidance
- ✓Scored 5x5 risk matrix
- ✓Editable Word and PDF
In short
A risk assessment identifies what could cause harm in your work, who could be harmed and how, and what you do to control the risk. Every employer must make a suitable and sufficient assessment; with five or more employees the significant findings must be recorded.
What it must include
- ✓The hazards in the activity or workplace
- ✓Who might be harmed and how
- ✓Existing controls and further action needed
- ✓Risk rating (e.g. 5x5 likelihood x severity)
- ✓Who does what by when
- ✓Review date and when to review sooner
You stay the duty holder: review the document for your site before work starts. SitePaper is a drafting tool, not a consultancy.