PFM_19_5

NEWS
security
Serco Team Committed to Staff Welfare with
Soloprotect
Serco is a service and
outsourcing company and has
been delivering essential
public services for more than 50
years. Serco makes a difference to
the lives of millions of people around
the world.
In 2012 Serco Group plc (Serco),
announced that it had signed a contract
with the UK Border Agency (UKBA) to
deliver the COMPASS project, providing
accommodation, associated services
and transport for asylum applicants in
two regions of the UK.
COMPASS, or 'Commercial and
Operational Managers Procuring of
Asylum Support Services', replaced
more than 20 UKBA contracts for
accommodation and transport of asylum
applicants and their families, improving
service standards whilst delivering
considerable savings to the taxpayer.
Serco is now the
prime contractor for
the North West and
Scotland & Ireland.
Responsibility
includes initial
short-term
accommodation for
asylum applicants;
dispersed
accommodation
after their
application is
processed,
transportation to
and between
accommodation,
and the related
process support to
these operations.
With over 220 lone
workers attached to
the COMPASS
team, it was important Serco
understood their duty of care to their
employees and in Lee Horne - Business
Support and IT Manager; and other
management colleagues responsible for
lone worker safety, Serco had a team
committed to staff welfare.
Using the SoloProtect reports, it
became clear to Lee that Serco were
not utilising the device to its full
potential; staff were not engaged and
the company were in danger of not
getting a return on their investment.
Therefore, with the aim of raising
awareness and lowering the risk of
danger to staff, a project was
established to maximize the use of the
device. It was important for Lee to fully
understand the risks that faced Serco
lone workers, a list including, but not
limited to; working with vulnerable
people, evening or night work and
driver related risk. Subsequently, with a
mix of staff training and on-going
communication, the Serco staff began
to engage; as a result, the intended
device usage increased.
Identicom is designed to look and feel
like a standard identity card, ensuring
it’s close to hand and discreet to use. It
offers protection and is designed to fit a
range of personnel and lone worker
applications; whether primarily facing
'People Risk' (arising from social
interaction - potential verbal abuse and
attack) or 'Environmental Risk'
(potential for incapacitation, commonly
referred to as a 'Man Down'
(incapacitation), due to illness or a
sudden trip or fall).
This coupled with the BS 8484:2016
accreditation and SoloProtect’s elite,
EN50518 compliant, in-house Alarm
Receiving Centre (ARC) provide Serco
with unparalleled lone worker
protection, a view that Lee Horne
strongly agrees with.
‘The safety of our staff, service users
and the public is paramount in what we
do. The SoloProtect device not only
provides a visible deterrent but also
gives staff the re-assurance that, if
there were an incident, they would get
the help that was needed. Our aim is
to ensure our staff get home safe, the
SoloProtect device helps us do that.’
As well as this, SoloProtect provides
Serco’s staff with the knowledge that
they are in safe hands when working
alone. Serco Housing Officer Chris
Mairs believes the device is ‘simple
and effective’ and he feels safer
knowing the device is close at hand.
‘Although I am confident in working
with my Service Users I also
understand the need for protection
around the unknown or hostile
situations, so having the device gives
me peace of mind should I ever need
to use it.’
By encouraging use of the SoloProtect
Identicom device Lee, and other
management colleagues responsible
for lone worker safety, have provided
excellent evidence
of supplying superb
duty of care to
Serco’s lone worker
team. They have
empowered and
duly equipped the
company’s
employees in order
to provide peace of
mind and a secure
working
environment.
Serco’s Identicom
users also deserve
a great deal of
credit for
embracing change
and fully integrating
themselves into
new working
practises.
Lone working
encompasses both social and
environmental risk, it affects all
industries, plus both full and part-time
staff as well as employees at every
level of an organisation. The
SoloProtect lone worker solution is
fully managed, BS8484 and EN50518
approved, and designed to give
employers an easy and effective way
to protect all types of lone worker -
over 200,000 people now use
Identicom as their preferred lone
worker device.
www.SoloProtect.com
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