This is an update of the post I wrote on the 30th May 2020. This is a rapidly changing situation, and Government Guidance has been updated since my last post. The rules have changed too.

In this post I provide practical help and guidance for photographers on how to work safely during the Coronavirus pandemic. I tell you what I am doing to work safely, the equipment that I need and how I have adapted my working practises. At the end of this post you will the entire Construction Leadership Coucil Site Operating Procedure, which has been updated to version 4, and is titled “Working Safely during Coronavirus (COVID-19) – Construction & Other Outdoor Work” which makes it an even better fit for photographers.

What is the current position with Coronavirus

As of today, Monday 15th June, the wearing of face coverings on public transport and in hospitals is mandatory.

2m social distancing rules still apply.

Here is my updated advice based on the latest UK Government guidance.

First the quick, basic bottom line.

• Work at home
• Maintain Social Distancing
• Wash your hands
• Equip yourself properly
• Come up with safe working practises

OK – this is what I am doing to keep myself safe.

1 – Work at home if you have Coronavirus symptoms

I am quoting the Government here. If you display any of these three symptoms stay at home

• Fever/ high temperature
• New persistent dry cough
• New loss of taste or smell

It is that simple. Stay at home. If you are alone stay at home for 7 days. If there are others in your house hold you must all stay at home for 14 days.

This is matter of fact and not the subject of interpretation.

Stay at home and do the things that you have not had time to do. And I have enjoyed going back through old photos finding things to edit with my new skills and knowledge.

2 – Work at home whenever you can

Even if you are feeling fine staying at home is the best way to avoid the virus. Obviously as photographers we have to go out to take photos, but other things can be done remotely.

Do online meetings with clients – this technology has transformed many businesses and how they work.

3 – Social distancing

Keep 2 metres away from anyone and everyone. It is that simple. I do not understand how anyone can be within 2m of someone for more than 15 minutes – as in the track and trace contacting.

If am not able to do that, and if there are people who are impacting on my 2m bubble I will immediately remove myself from that situation.

4 – Safe working practices

I wash my hands when I leave the house.

I wear disposable gloves whenever I need to touch anything. I also carry disposable tissues which I use to open doors so I am not touching door handles.

No-one else is touching my camera gear but I will clean it down with diluted Dettol when I get home. The only thing in contact with anything else are the tripod feet. I wipe the feet with the same Dettol, and then leave tripod in the garage, which is fine this time of year.

Hand washing is a problem out and about, so I use anti-bacterial hand gel straight after taking my gloves off. And then I do not touch my face until I have thoroughly washed my hands somewhere.

When I get home I clean the surfaces of my car that I have touched and the wash my hands. I carefully unpack and clean all my gear.

And then I wash my hands again.

If I have used my debit card to buy something I clean that when I get home as well with Dettol.

And then I wash my hands again.

If I am going up ladders/ stairs I wear an additional pair of gloves for just that bit which I take off and put in a bag. If I need them again I put them back on. When I get home I sanitise them and leave them in the garage until needed again.

I tend to walk round with my hands in my pockets anyway so don’t touch things as much as others might.

I also carry disposable pens for the rare times where I have to press lift buttons.

And I have hand sanitiser with me at all times, and anti-bacterial wipes in my car.

I will wear a mask if I feel I need to, but to be honest I do not want to put myself in a position where I need to wear a mask – I prefer eliminating that requirement by just avoiding other people. But I have them with me just in case.

And I am not planning on going on public transport anytime soon either.

5 – PPE

My main photography gear is in a backpack. There is room for these extra items

• Antibacterial hand gel
• Disposable gloves
• Site gloves
• Disposable face masks
• Packs of tissues
• Disposable plastic bags for putting stuff in

6 – Where I am prepared to work

• Outdoors
• Already compliant construction sites
• Empty buildings
• Any other commercial, engineering or industrial facility complying with current Government guidance.

7 – Where I am not prepared to work

• High risk areas such as care and nursing homes – sorry.
• Anywhere indoors where there are other people
• Non compliant construction sites
• Anywhere where social distancing is not taken seriously

Other considerations

A few other things that I thought about whilst writing this.

Speak to clients

This is a difficult time for everyone so speak to clients about Coronavirus before committing to anything. This is in everyones interests of course.

Costs

Do you need to reconsider costs for a shoot – it might take more time and you will need to take additional precautions after all for your own and everyone else’s sake.

But only ask for legitimate additional costs.

Time

It might take much longer than the time before Coronavirus – make sure you factor this into our planning.

Insurance

Are you insured? Check with your insurance company to make sure that you are.

Timing

Can you do the work another time and stay at home? It may be that you can, and if so do that. You are eliminating the risk of contracting Coronavirus if you stay at home.

But if you cannot, and there are many perfectly reasonable reasons why not, make sure you follow all current Government Guidance. And I mean current as the situation has evolved rapidly and is changing all the time.

If I am not happy with a situation I am off.

A quick word on construction sites.

For me to work on a construction site it has to be fully compliant with the Construction Leadership Council Site Operating Procedure 4. It if is not then I am not going on it.

Talking of which, here is that very guidance, current a the time of writing.

“Working safely during COVID-19 in construction and other outdoor work

Working Safely during Covid-19 _Outdoors

Working safely during COVID-19 in construction and other outdoor work

Guidance for employers, employees and the self-employed

11 May 2020

Introduction

This document is to help employers, employees and the self-employed in the UK understand how to work safely during theCOVID-19 pandemic, keeping as many people as possible 2metres apart from those they do not live with. We hope it gives you freedom within a practical framework to think about what you need to do to continue, or restart, operations during theCOVID-19 pandemic. We understand how important it is to work safely and support your workers’ health and wellbeing during theCOVID-19 pandemic. The government is clear that workers should not be forced into an unsafe workplace.

This document has been prepared by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) with input from firms, unions, industry bodies and the devolved administrations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and in consultation with Public Health England (PHE) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Public health is devolved in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales; this guidance should be considered alongside local public health and safety requirements and legislation in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. For advice to businesses in other parts of the UK please see guidance set by the Northern Ireland Executive, the Scottish Government, and the Welsh Government.

We expect that this document will be updated over time. This version is up to date as of 11 May 2020. You can check for updates at www.gov.uk/workingsafely. If you have any feedback for us, please email workingsafely@beis.gov.uk.

This document is one of a set of documents about how to work safely in different types of workplace. This one is designed to be relevant for people who work in or run outdoor working environments.

How to use this guidance

This document sets out guidance on how to work safely. It gives practical considerations of how this can be applied in the workplace.

Each business will need to translate this into the specific actions it needs to take, depending on the nature of their business, including the size and type of business, how it is organised, operated, managed and regulated.

This guidance does not supersede any legal obligations relating to health and safety, employment or equalities and it is important that as a business or an employer you continue to comply with your existing obligations, including those relating to individuals with protected characteristics. It contains non-statutory guidance to take into account when complying with these existing obligations. When considering how to apply this guidance, take into account agency workers, contractors and other people, as well as your employees.

To help you decide which actions to take, you need to carry out an appropriate COVID-19 risk assessment, just as you would for other health and safety related hazards. This risk assessment must be done in consultation with unions or workers.

What do we mean by ‘construction and other outdoor work’?

Working outdoors includes many people in construction, energy and utilities, farming and agriculture (including seasonal labour), forestry, waste management, other infrastructure, railway services and street and highway services.

Table of Contents

Introduction

How to use this guidance

1. What do we mean by ‘construction and other outdoor work’?
2. Thinking about risk
3. Who should go to work
4. Social distancing at work
5. Managing your customers, visitors and contractors
6. Cleaning the workplace
7. Personal protective equipment (PPE) and face coverings
8. Managing your workforce
9. Inbound and outbound goods
10. Where to obtain further guidance
11. Appendix

1. Thinking about risk

Objective: That all employers carry out a COVID-19 risk assessment.

Everyone needs to assess and manage the risks ofCOVID-19. As an employer, you also have a legal responsibility to protect workers and others from risk to their health and safety. This means you need to think about the risks they face and do everything reasonably practicable to minimise them, recognising you cannot completely eliminate the risk of COVID-19.

You must make sure that the risk assessment for your business addresses the risks of COVID-19, using this guidance to inform your decisions and control measures. A risk assessment is not about creating huge amounts of paperwork, but rather about identifying sensible measures to control the risks in your workplace. If you have fewer than five workers, or are self-employed, you don’t have to write anything down as part of your risk assessment. Your risk assessment will help you decide whether you have done everything you need to. There are interactive tools available to support you from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) at https://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/assessment.htm.

Employers have a duty to consult their people on health and safety. You can do this by listening and talking to them about the work and how you will manage risks from COVID-19. The people who do the work are often the best people to understand the risks in the workplace and will have a view on how to work safely.

Involving them in making decisions shows that you take their health and safety seriously. You must consult with the health and safety representative selected by a recognised trade union or, if there isn’t one, a representative chosen by workers. As an employer, you cannot decide who the representative will be.

At its most effective, full involvement of your workers creates a culture where relationships between employers and workers are based on collaboration, trust and joint problem solving. As is normal practice, workers should be involved in assessing workplace risks and the development and review of workplace health and safety policies in partnership with the employer.

Employers and workers should always come together to resolve issues. If concerns still cannot be resolved, see below for further steps you can take.

Where the enforcing authority, such as the HSE or your local authority, identifies employers who are not taking action to comply with the relevant public health legislation and guidance to control public health risks, they will consider taking a range of actions to improve control of workplace risks. For example, this would cover employers not taking appropriate action to socially distance, where possible. The actions the HSE can take include the provision of specific advice to employers through to issuing enforcement notices to help secure improvements.

How to raise a concern:

Contact your employee representative. Contact your trade union if you have one. Contact HSE online using our working safely enquiry form. Contact HSE by phone on 0300 790 6787.

1.1 Managing risk

Objective: To reduce risk to the lowest reasonably practicable level by taking preventative measures, in order of priority.

Employers have a duty to reduce workplace risk to the lowest reasonably practicable level by taking preventative measures. Employers must work with any other employers or contractors sharing the workplace so that everybody’s health and safety is protected. In the context of COVID-19 this means working through these steps in order:

In every workplace, increasing the frequency of handwashing and surface cleaning.

Businesses and workplaces should make every reasonable effort to enable working from home as a first option. Where working from home is not possible, workplaces should make every reasonable effort to comply with the social distancing guidelines set out by the government (keeping people 2m apart wherever possible).

Where the social distancing guidelines cannot be followed in full, in relation to a particular activity, businesses should consider whether that activity needs to continue for the business to operate, and if so, take all the mitigating actions possible to reduce the risk of transmission between their staff.

Further mitigating actions include:

• Increasing the frequency of hand washing and surface cleaning.
• Keeping the activity time involved as short as possible.
• Using screens or barriers to separate people from each other.
• Using back-to-back or side-to-side working (rather than face-to-face) whenever possible.
• Reducing the number of people each person has contact with by using ‘fixed teams or partnering’(so each person works with only a few others).
• Finally, if people must work face-to-face for a sustained period with more than a small group of fixed partners, then you will need to assess whether the activity can safely go ahead. No one is obliged to work in an unsafe work environment.
• In your assessment you should have particular regard to whether the people doing the work are especially vulnerable to COVID-19.

The recommendations in the rest of this document are ones you should consider as you go through this process. You could also consider any advice that has been produced specifically for your sector, for example by trade associations or trades unions.

If you have not already done so, you should carry out an assessment of the risks posed by COVID-19 in your workplace as soon as possible. If you are currently operating, you are likely to have gone through a lot of this thinking already. We recommend that you use this document to identify any further improvements you should make.

1.2 Sharing the results of your risk assessment

You should share the results of your risk assessment with your workforce. If possible, you should consider publishing the results on your website (and we would expect all employers with over 50  workers to do so). Below you will find a notice you should display in your workplace to show you have followed this guidance.

Staying COVID-19 Secure in 2020

We confirm we have complied with the government’s guidance on managing the risk of COVID-19 FIVE STEPS TO SAFER WORKING TOGETHER We have carried out a COVID-19 risk assessment and shared the results with the people who work here We have cleaning, handwashing and hygiene procedures in line with guidance We have taken all reasonable steps to help people work from home We have taken all reasonable steps to maintain a 2m distance in the workplace Where people cannot be 2m apart, we have done everything practical to manage transmission risk Employer Date Your Health and Safety Representative Who to contact: (or the Health and Safety Executive at www.hse.gov.uk or 0300 003 1647 )

2. Who should go to work

Objective: That everyone should work from home, unless they cannot work from home.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Consider who is needed on site, for example, support staff should work from home if at all possible.
• Planning for the minimum number of people needed to be onsite to operate safely and effectively, for example, workers deemed necessary to carry out physical works, supervise work, or conduct work in order to operate safely.
• Monitoring the wellbeing of people who are working from home and helping them stay connected to those operating in an outdoor environment, especially if the majority of their colleagues are on-site.
• Keeping in touch with off-site workers on their working arrangements including their welfare, mental and physical health and personal security.
• Providing equipment for people to work from home safely and effectively, for example, remote access to work systems.

2.1 Protecting people who are at higher risk

Objective: To protect clinically vulnerable and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals.

• Clinically extremely vulnerable individuals (see definition in Appendix) have been strongly advised not to work outside the home.
• Clinically vulnerable individuals, who are at higher risk of severe illness (for example, people with some pre-existing conditions, see definition in Appendix), have been asked to take extra care in observing social distancing and should be helped to work from home, either in their current role or in an alternative role.
• If clinically vulnerable (but not extremely clinically vulnerable) individuals cannot work from home, they should be offered the option of the safest available on-site roles, enabling them to stay 2m away from others. If they have to spend time within 2m of others, you should carefully assess whether this involves an acceptable level of risk. As for any workplace risk you must take into account specific duties to those with protected characteristics, including, for example, expectant mothers who are, as always, entitled to suspension on full pay if suitable roles cannot be found. Particular attention should also be paid to people who live with clinically extremely vulnerable individuals.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Providing support for workers around mental health and wellbeing. This could include advice or telephone support.
• See current guidance for advice on who is in the clinically extremely vulnerable and clinically vulnerable groups.

2.2 People who need to self-isolate

Objective: To make sure individuals who are advised to stay at home under existing government guidance do not physically come to work. This includes individuals who have symptoms of COVID-19 as well as those who live in a household with someone who has symptoms.

Steps that will usually be needed:

Enabling workers to work from home while self-isolating if appropriate.

See current guidance for employees and employers relating to statutory sick pay due to COVID-19.

See current guidance for people who have symptoms and those who live with others who have symptoms.

2.3 Equality in the workplace

Objective: To treat everyone in your workplace equally.

• In applying this guidance, employers should be mindful of the particular needs of different groups of workers or individuals.
• It is breaking the law to discriminate, directly or indirectly, against anyone because of a protected characteristic such as age, sex or disability.
• Employers also have particular responsibilities towards disabled workers and those who are new or expectant mothers.

Steps that will usually be needed:

Understanding and taking into account the particular circumstances of those with different protected characteristics.

Involving and communicating appropriately with workers whose protected characteristics might either expose them to a different degree of risk, or might make any steps you are thinking about inappropriate or challenging for them.

Considering whether you need to put in place any particular measures or adjustments to take account of your duties under the equalities legislation.

Making reasonable adjustments to avoid disabled workers being put at a disadvantage, and assessing the health and safety risks for new or expectant mothers.

Making sure that the steps you take do not have an unjustifiable negative impact on some groups compared to others, for example those with caring responsibilities or those with religious commitments.

3. Social distancing at work

Objective: To maintain 2m social distancing wherever possible, including while arriving at and departing from work, while in work and when travelling between sites.

You must maintain social distancing in the workplace wherever possible.

Where the social distancing guidelines cannot be followed in fulling relation to a particular activity, businesses should consider whether that activity needs to continue for the business to operate, and, if so, take all the mitigating actions possible to reduce the risk of transmission between their staff.

Mitigating actions include:

• Further increasing the frequency of hand washing and surface cleaning.
• Keeping the activity time involved as short as possible.
• Using back-to-back or side-to-side working (rather than face-to-face) whenever possible.
• Reducing the number of people each person has contact with by using ‘fixed teams or partnering’ (so each person works with only a few others).
• Social distancing applies to all parts of a business, not just the place where people spend most of their time, but also entrances and exits, break rooms, canteens and similar settings. These are often the most challenging areas to maintain social distancing.

3.1 Coming to work and leaving work

Objective: To maintain social distancing wherever possible, on arrival and departure and to ensure handwashing upon arrival.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Staggering arrival and departure times at work to reduce crowding into and out of the workplace, taking account of the impact on those with protected characteristics.
• Providing additional parking or facilities such as bike-racks to help people walk, run, or cycle to work where possible.
• Limiting passengers in corporate vehicles, for example, work minibuses. This could include leaving seats empty.
• Reducing congestion, for example, by having more entry points to the workplace.
• Using markings and introducing one-way flow at entry and exit points.
• Providing handwashing facilities, or hand sanitizer where not possible, at entry and exit points.
• Providing alternatives to touch-based security devices such as keypads.
• Defining process alternatives for entry/exit points where appropriate, for example, deactivating pass readers at turnstiles in favour of showing a pass to security personnel at a distance.

3.2 Moving around buildings and worksites

Objective: To maintain social distancing wherever possible, while people travel through the workplace.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Reducing movement by discouraging non-essential trips within buildings and sites. For example, restricting access to some areas, encouraging use of telephones where permitted, and cleaning them between use.
• Reducing job rotation and equipment rotation, for example, single tasks for the day.
• Implementing one-way systems where possible on walkways around the workplace.
• Using signage such as ground markings or being creative with other objects to mark out 2m to allow controlled flows of people moving throughout the site.
• Reducing occupancy of vehicles used for onsite travel, for example, shuttle buses, and when needed, social distancing measures should be followed within the vehicles.
• Separating sites into working zones to keep different groups of workers physically separated as much as practical.
• Planning site access and ‘area of safety’ points to enable social distancing.
• Reducing the number of people in attendance at site inductions and consider holding them outdoors wherever possible with social distancing.
• Regulating use of high traffic areas including corridors, lifts, turnstiles and walkways to maintain social distancing.

3.3 Making the main workplace safe for people who work statically

Objective: To maintain social distancing between people who work in one place.

• It is recognised that in outdoor workplaces it might be rare to have a fixed or static place of work. However, there may be some situations where this is the case.
• For people who work in one place, workstations should allow them to maintain social distancing wherever possible.
• Workstations should be assigned to an individual as much as possible. If they need to be shared, they should be shared by the smallest possible number of people.
• If it is not possible to keep workstations 2m apart then businesses should consider whether that activity needs to continue for the business to operate, and if so take all mitigating actions possible to reduce the risk of transmission.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Changing layouts to allow people to work further apart from each other.
• Only where it is not possible to move workstations further apart, arranging people to work side by side or facing away from each other rather than face-to-face.
• Only where it is not possible to move workstations further apart, using screens to separate people from each other.
• Using a consistent pairing system if people have to work in close proximity, for example, during two-person working, lifting or maintenance activities that cannot be redesigned.

3.4 Meetings

Social distancing during meetings outdoors

Objective: To reduce or eliminate transmission due to face-to-face meetings and maintain social distancing in meetings.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Using remote working tools to avoid in-person meetings.
• Only absolutely necessary participants should attend meetings and should maintain 2m separation throughout.
• Avoiding transmission during meetings, for example, avoid sharing pens and or other objects.
• Providing hand sanitiser in meeting rooms.
• Holding meetings outdoors or in well-ventilated rooms whenever possible.
• For areas where regular meetings take place, use floor signage to help people maintain social distancing.

Objective: To maintain social distancing while using common areas.

3.5 Common areas

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Staggering break times to reduce pressure on break rooms or places to eat.
• Using safe outdoor areas for breaks.
• Creating additional space by using other parts of the workplace freed up by remote working.
• Reconfiguring seating and tables to maintain spacing and reduce face-to-face interactions.

3.6 Accidents, security and other incidents

Objective: To prioritise safety during incidents.

In an emergency, for example, an accident, fire or break-in, people do not have to stay 2m apart if it would be unsafe.

People involved in the provision of assistance to others should pay particular attention to sanitation measures immediately afterwards including washing hands.

4. Managing your customers, visitors and contractors

4.1 Manage contacts

Objective: To minimise the number of unnecessary visits to the worksite.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Where site visits are required, site guidance on social distancing and hygiene should be explained to visitors on or before arrival.
• Encouraging visits via remote connection/working where this is an option.
• Limiting the number of visitors at any one time.
• Determining if schedules for essential services and contractor visits can be revised to reduce interaction and overlap between people.
• Maintaining a record of all visitors, if this is practical. Visitor signing in

4.2 Providing and explaining available guidance

Objective: To make sure people understand what they need to do to maintain safety. Ensuring public notices are visible and help inform workers, customers, visitors, contractors and the public to maintain social distancing whilst near the workplace.

There is a high likelihood in some areas that working outdoors will draw the attention of the public. Visible signage may be used to inform the public of the type of work that is being performed.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Providing signage to inform the public on what work you are doing.
• Providing signage at entrances to the worksite to remind the public and workers to maintain social distancing.
• Providing signage on rights of way that cross your workplace to remind the public to maintain social distancing.
• Establishing host responsibilities relating to C OVID-19 and providing any necessary training for people who act as hosts for visitors.
• Uniform signage for workers to provide clear messaging

5. Cleaning the workplace

5.1 Before reopening

Objective: To make sure that any site or location that has been closed or partially operated is clean and ready to restart, including:

• Conducting a risk assessment for all sites, or part of sites, that have been closed, before restarting work.
• Carrying out cleaning procedures and providing hand sanitiser, before restarting work.

5.2 Keeping your workplace clean

Objective: To keep the workplace clean and prevent transmission by touching contaminated surfaces.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Frequent cleaning of work areas and equipment between uses, using your usual cleaning products.
• Frequent cleaning of objects and surfaces that are touched regularly, such as buckets, site equipment and control panels, and making sure there are adequate disposal arrangements.
• Clearing workspaces and removing waste and belongings from the work area at the end of a shift.
• Sanitisation of all hand tools, controls, machinery and equipment after use.
• If you are cleaning after a known or suspected case ofCOVID-19 then you should refer to the specific guidance.

5.3 Hygiene – handwashing, sanitation facilities and toilets

Objective: To help everyone keep good hygiene through the working day.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Providing additional handwashing facilities, for example, pop-ups, particularly on a large site or where there are significant numbers of personnel on site.
• Using signs and posters to build awareness of good handwashing technique, the need to increase handwashing frequency, avoid touching your face and to cough or sneeze into a tissue which is binned safely, or into your arm if a tissue is not available.
• Providing regular reminders and signage to maintain hygiene standards.
• Providing hand sanitisers in multiple locations in addition to washrooms.
• Setting clear use and cleaning guidance for toilets to ensure they are kept clean and social distancing is achieved as much as possible.
• Enhancing cleaning for busy areas. Special care should be taken for cleaning of portable toilets. Providing more waste facilities and more frequent rubbish collection. Providing hand drying facilities – either paper towels or electrical dryers.

5.4 Changing rooms and showers

Objective: To minimise the risk of transmission in changing rooms and showers.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Where shower and changing facilities are required, setting clear use and cleaning guidance for showers, lockers and changing rooms to ensure they are kept clean and clear of personal items and that social distancing is achieved as much as possible.
• Introducing enhanced cleaning of all facilities regularly during the day and at the end of the day.

5.5 Handling equipment, materials, waste, and onsite vehicles

Objective: To reduce transmission through contact with objects that come into the workplace and vehicles at the worksite.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Cleaning procedures for the parts of shared equipment you touch after each use, thinking about equipment, tools and vehicles, for example, pallet trucks and forklift trucks.
• Encouraging increased handwashing and introducing more handwashing facilities for workers handling goods and merchandise or providing hand sanitiser where this is not practical.
• Regular cleaning of vehicles that workers may take home.
• Regular cleaning of reusable delivery boxes.

6. Personal protective equipment (PPE) and face coverings

PPE protects the user against health or safety risks at work. It can include items such as safety helmets, gloves, eye protection, high-visibility clothing, safety footwear and safety harnesses. It also includes respiratory protective equipment, such as face masks.

Where you are already using PPE in your work activity to protect against non-COVID-19 risks, you should continue to do so.

At the start of this document we described the steps you need to take to manage COVID-19 risk in the workplace. This includes working from home and staying 2m away from each other in the workplace if at all possible. When managing the risk of COVID-19, additional PPE beyond what you usually wear is not beneficial. This is because COVID-19 is a different type of risk to the risks you normally face in a workplace, and needs to be managed through social distancing, hygiene and fixed teams or partnering, not through the use of PPE.

The exception is clinical settings, like a hospital, or a small handful of other roles for which Public Health England advises use of PPE. For example, first responders and immigration enforcement officers. If you are in one of these groups you should refer to the advice at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus¬covid-19-personal-protective-equipment-ppe-plan/covid-19¬personal-protective-equipment-ppe-plan

and

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-decontamination-in-non-healthcare-settings/covid-19¬decontamination-in-non-healthcare-settings

Workplaces should not encourage the precautionary use of extra PPE to protect against COVID-19 outside clinical settings or when responding to a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19.

Unless you are in a situation where the risk of COVID-19 transmission is very high, your risk assessment should reflect the fact that the role of PPE in providing additional protection is extremely limited. However, if your risk assessment does show that PPE is required, then you must provide this PPPE free of charge to workers who need it. Any PPE provided must fit properly .

6.1 Face coverings

There are some circumstances when wearing a face covering may be marginally beneficial as a precautionary measure. The evidence suggests that wearing a face covering does not protect you, but it may protect others if you are infected but have not developed symptoms. A face covering can be very simple and may be worn in enclosed spaces where social distancing isn’t possible. It just needs to cover your mouth and nose. It is not the same as a face mask, such as the surgical masks or respirators used by health and care workers. Similarly, face coverings are not the same as the PPE used to manage risks like dust and spray in an industrial context. Supplies of PPE, including face masks, must continue to be reserved for those who need them to protect against risks in their workplace, such as health and care workers, and those in industrial settings like those exposed to dust hazards. It is important to know that the evidence of the benefit of using a face covering to protect others is weak and the effect is likely to be small, therefore face coverings are not a replacement for the other ways of managing risk, including minimising time spent in contact, using fixed teams and partnering for close-up work, and increasing hand and surface washing. These other measures remain the best ways of managing risk in the workplace and government would therefore not expect to see employers relying on face coverings as risk management for the purpose of their health and safety assessments. Wearing a face covering is optional and is not required by law, including in the workplace. If you choose to wear one, it is important to use face coverings properly and wash your hands before putting them on and taking them off. You should be prepared to remove your face covering if asked to do so by police officers and staff for the purposes of identification. Employers should support their workers in using face coverings safely if they choose to wear one. This means telling workers:

• Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water for20 seconds or use hand sanitiser before putting a face covering on, and after removing it.
• When wearing a face covering, avoid touching your face or face covering, as you could contaminate them with germs from your hands.
• Change your face covering if it becomes damp or if you’ve touched it.
• Continue to wash your hands regularly.
• Change and wash your face covering daily.
• If the material is washable, wash in line with manufacturer’s instructions. If it’s not washable, dispose of it carefully in your usual waste.
• Practise social distancing wherever possible.

You can make face-coverings at home and can find guidance on how to do this and use them safely on GOV.UK.

7. Managing your workforce

7.1 Shift patterns and working groups

Objective: To change the way work is organised to create distinct groups and reduce the number of contacts each worker has.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• As far as possible, where people are split into teams or shift groups, fixing these teams or shift groups so that where contact is unavoidable, this happens between the same people.
• Identifying areas where people have to directly pass things to each other, such as shared tools, materials or job instructions, and finding ways to remove direct contact, for example, by using drop-off points or transfer zones.
• For those workers who are required to travel and stay away from home in onsite accommodation, creating fixed groups of workers so that where contact is unavoidable, this happens between the same people.
• Minimising worker congregation at bottlenecks such as timeclocks, entrances and exits and maintaining social distancing during shift handovers.

7.2 Work-related travel

7.2.1 Cars, accommodation and visits

Objective: To avoid unnecessary work travel and keep people safe when they do need to travel between locations.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Seating arrangements to maximise distance between workers
• Minimising non-essential travel – consider remote options first.
• Minimising the number of people travelling together in any one vehicle, using fixed travel partners, increasing ventilation when possible and avoiding sitting face-to-face.
• Cleaning shared vehicles between shifts or on handover.
• Where workers are required to stay away from their home, centrally logging the stay and making sure any overnight accommodation meets social distancing guidelines.

7.2 Work-related travel

7.2.2 Deliveries to other sites

Objective: To help workers delivering to other sites such as markets or customers’ premises to maintain social distancing and hygiene practices.

Putting in place procedures to minimise person-to-person contact during deliveries to other sites.

Maintaining consistent pairing where two-person deliveries are required.

Minimising contact during payments and exchange of documentation, for example, by using electronic payment methods and electronically signed and exchanged documents.

7.3 Communications and training

7.3.1 Returning to work

Objective: To make sure all workers understand COVID-19 related safety procedures.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Providing clear, consistent and regular communication to improve understanding and consistency of ways of working.
• Engaging with workers and worker representatives through existing communication routes to explain and agree any changes in working arrangements.
• Developing communication and training materials for workers prior to returning to site, especially around new procedures for arrival at work.

7.3 Communications and training

7.3.2 Ongoing communications and signage

Objective: To make sure all workers on site are kept up to date with how safety measures are being implemented or updated.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Ongoing engagement with workers (including through trades unions or employee representative groups) to monitor and understand any unforeseen impacts of changes to working environments.
• Awareness and focus on the importance of mental health at times of uncertainty. The government has published guidance on the mental health and wellbeing aspects of coronavirus (COVID-19).
• Using simple, clear messaging to explain guidelines using images and clear language, with consideration of groups for which English may not be their first language.
• Using visual communications, for example, whiteboards or signage, to explain safe working practices around the working site to reduce the need for face-to-face communications.
• Communicating approaches and operational procedures to suppliers, customers or trade bodies to help their adoption and to share experience.

8. Inbound and outbound goods

Objective: To maintain social distancing and avoid surface transmission when goods enter and leave the site especially in high volume situations, for example, builders’ yards or despatch areas.

Steps that will usually be needed:

• Revising pick-up and drop-off collection points, procedures, signage and markings.
• Minimising unnecessary contact at gatehouse security, yard and warehouse, for example, non-contact deliveries where the nature of the product allows for use of electronic pre-booking.
• Considering methods to reduce frequency of deliveries, for example by ordering larger quantities less often.
• Where possible and safe, having single workers load or unload vehicles.
• Where possible, using the same pairs of people for loads where more than one is needed.
• Enabling drivers to access welfare facilities when required, consistent with other guidance.
• Encouraging drivers to stay in their vehicles where this does not compromise their safety and existing safe working practice, such as preventing drive-aways.

Where to obtain further guidance

COVID-19: what you need to do

Support for businesses and employers during coronavirus (COVID-19)

General guidance for employees during coronavirus (COVID-19)

COVID-19: HSE guidance on gloves

COVID-19: HSE guidance on mask fittings

COVID-19: Department of Health & Social Care guidance on masks

Make sure you keep going back to this website as the guidance changes as the science and medical knowledge develop.

Summary

Please check the latest Government guidance.

Thanks for reading this and stay safe.

Rick McEvoy MCIOB, ABIPP

#photography #photographers #coronavirus