Tutorful Risk Assessment
COVID-19 Secure
Our priority is the safety and wellbeing of our team, their loved ones and anyone else that might be affected by what we do during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Which is why we have created this COVID-19 risk assessment to identify risks, or potential risks, so that we can mitigate them and protect our team and others.
As part of this assessment, we’ll evaluate the following things:
● Which activities situations or circumstances could create risks
● Who could be put at risk
● How likely it is that someone could become exposed to the virus
● How the risk can be absolved, reduced or controlled where absolving it isn’t possible
The office space that this assessment evaluates is Tutorful’s responsibility. Our landlord (Regus) are responsible for areas such as:
●Corridors
● Toilets
● Kitchen
● Reception areas
● Lifts
● Stairs
● Exit and entrance points of the building
Tutorful will ensure that their risk assessment of these areas are circulated to our team, along with this risk assessment. It’s our responsibility to act in accordance with all assessments and safety measures to ensure the safety of our team and everyone else in the building.
| What are the hazards? | Who could be at risk? | Control measures | Further actions to consider | Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COVID-19 could be spread or contracted if people don’t wash their hands regularly or sufficiently | Our team. Visitors. Delivery persons. Others in the building. Families/friends/bubbles of those in the office/building, Any other people that may come into contact with people in Tutorful’s office, or our office building. | Follow guidance on hand hygiene. Ensure the provision of soap, hot water (this must be legionella tested) and hygienic hand drying facilities. Provide hand sanitiser. Place instruction posters on hand hygiene in the office. Provide sanitiser stations at multiple points, including and next to frequently touched surfaces, entry and exit points. | Regularly review guidance. Ensure completion of the legionella test. Arrange a replenishment system for hand sanitiser. Ensure hand sanitiser or water and soap available at all required places. | We have confirmation from regus that the water has been legionella tested. The guidance is being reviewed on an ongoing basis. A weekly audit of safety equipment has been implemented to ensure replenishment Hand sanitising stations have been set up, additionally to the sinks, which are equipped with soap and hot water. Posters have been placed around the office to serve as reminders for good hand hygiene. |
| Contracting or spreading COVID-19 in high traffic or ‘pinch’ areas where social distancing could be difficult to maintain | Our team. Visitors. Delivery persons. Others in the building. Families/friends/bubbles of those in the office/building, Any other people that may come into contact with people in Tutorful’s office, or our office building. | Widen ‘pinch’ areas wherever possible Limit the number of people in confined spaces or rooms, where possible Limit risks within shared kitchen area, follow advice set out in Regus’ risk assessment to follow UK guidelines Create a rota system to limit the number of people in the office. Where possible work in in cohorts | Consider moving furniture to create more floor space. Set out furniture in a way that best accommodates social distancing. Identify areas wide enough to accommodate lanes, implement lanes and clearly show areas where extra precaution should be taken due to space available for social distancing. Create a monitoring system to ensure these measures are effective and are being followed. Create a feedback mechanism to enable change where improvements are required. Encourage our team to leave belongings under their desk (in line with DSE and fire safety) to reduce risk of contamination. Ensure a daily cleaning regime, with particular focus on high traffic/high contact areas and surfaces. Identify equipment or surfaces that we may require people to wipe down after each use throughout the day. Place signage in the office, reminding the team of good practices for safe working. | Protective screens are in place between each desks. The whole team will be sent a declaration of commitment to the measures that are in place, which encourages collaborative monitoring and effective reporting of any issues that arise. Shared coat hooks have been removed and staff asked to keep belongings under their desk to avoid people gathering and airborne contact. Ensured there is a daily cleaning regime which includes disinfecting of touch points. The cleaners have confirmed they’re using suitable substances. |
| COVID-19 being spread or contracted through workstations, equipment or surfaces | Our team. Visitors. Delivery persons. Others in the building. Families/friends/bubbles of those in the office/building, Any other people that may come into contact with people in Tutorful’s office, or our office building. | Everyone will be asked to follow the guidance on hand washing and cleanliness. Discourage people from touching their face. Daily cleaning of workstations, equipment and surfaces and touch points - see Regus’ RA. Identify surfaces and equipment that we need to ask people to safely wipe down after each use. Take steps to minimise contact with frequently used areas. Minimise the amount that people need to move around the office to reduce contact with communal/ high contact areas. Wherever possible, avoid equipment sharing. Use electronic, rather than paper documents where possible. Keep surfaces as clear as possible to make thorough cleaning easier. Provide bins with lids that are emptied on a daily basis. Provide areas for each person's personal belongings to be stored. Clean reusable boxes, storage, kitchen equipment etc regularly. Using guidance, create a plan for cleaning and disinfecting to realise should anyone present with COVID-19 | Use signage with instructions for had sanitising, reminding people of the guidance and signage reminding people not to touch their face. A daily cleaning regime is in place to thoroughly clean workstations, surfaces and touch points. A strategy for keeping stock maintained in equipment baskets needs to be devised. Equipment will be allocated to each person (eg. laptop stand, keyboard, mouse) to mitigate the risk of equipment sharing. The team will continue to use electronic sharing as a first option, avoiding the sharing of paper documents wherever possible. Communication will be sent to staff explaining that the office must be kept tidy to enable proper cleaning of surfaces. A policy will be created to instruct people on cleaning, disinfecting and safety should someone in the office space present with COVID-19. | Appropriate signage is in place, at different locations within the office. A daily cleaning regime is in place to thoroughly clean workstations, surfaces and touch points. Cleaners have confirmed they’re using suitable substances. 2 stationary baskets with basic supplies in (eg. pens, notepads, batteries, post it-notes) will be provided to reduce the need to move around the office, reduce shared contact and ensure equipment isn’t being shared. Signage is in place, showing that people should use their own equipment, rather than sharing. We have asked everyone to keep their desks and communal areas tidy to enable thorough cleaning. A policy has been sent to everyone ahead of coming back into the office, along with having the option of a 1:1 should they request this, an individual and personal risk assessment, which includes a declaration section. There is a thorough Covid Safe Policy explaining all required safety measures and a Covid Response plan available to everyone. |
| Mental health being affected as a result of isolation or anxiety related to the pandemic | Our team | Provide guides, training and seminars on how to promote own mental health, and that of others. Take individual circumstances into account when returning to the office. Keep people up-to-date on any plans for returning to the office, what could change and any other matters relating COVID-19 to the business. Share the risk assessment with the team for input and implementation support/ reassurance and to help people to prepare for what the office will be like/ how it’s changed, Weekly working hours have been decreased, we will continue to encourage people to take holiday and not to work over their set hours to mitigate fatigue/ burnout. Review this aspect on an ongoing basis. First open the office on a purely optional basis. | Continually encourage managers to maintain the regular contact they’re having with their teams. Set up mental health and stress awareness training on Ihasco. Our Training and Development Lead provided a skills sharing training on stress management. We will review future skills sharing topic benefits and needs. Keep communicating and send out all documentation in relation to the office return. Create a video to educate and prepare people for their return to the office, showing people the measures that are in place for reassurance and preparation purposes. Contract updates have been completed, encouraging holiday, work life balance and staying within weekly working hours is ongoing and will require support from managers. Safely provide a working space for those staff who want/choose to use an office space as part of their working week. | Managers are having regular 1:1s. A stress management training session has been made available to the whole team. A skills sharing session on stress management has also been run internally. Documentation and communication in relation to plans for returning to the office are ongoing, with feedback or questions being welcomed. Ongoing encouragement to use holiday, work only during work hours are ongoing, with an up-coming ‘Burnout Proofing’ session being designed. Whilst still encouraging working from home, providing a safe office working space for team members who wish/choose to use an office space as part of their working week |
| The spread of the virus through lack of/absence of effective social distancing | Our team. Visitors. Delivery persons. Others in the building. Families/friends/bubbles of those in the office/building, Any other people that may come into contact with people in Tutorful’s office, or our office building. | In order to enable social distancing we need to put measures in place, and including spaces within our demised area only, social distancing cannot be effectively maintained in these areas: At desks (protective screens are provided between each desk). Entrance and exit to the office space. Whilst moving around the office space in between desks. Although not in our demise, everyone must be aware of and act in accordance with the landlords risk assessment to ensure safety. | Limit the number of people in the office at any one time. Leave any doors, other than fire doors open for visibility and reduced contact. Circulate the landlords risk assessment, as well as our own, and make people aware of their safety measures. Where appropriate, stagger start-times sufficiently so that the corridors and doorways remain safe and the risk of contact is limited. Our team has flexible working hours, which allows for staggered start times. Continue to hold meetings virtually, wherever possible. Identify any areas where 2m distance can’t be maintained and put extra measures in place (eg. additional cleaning, more signage, screens, reducing the need to access the area). Provide face and hand coverings for people to use at their discretion. Actively seek feedback from the team on the effectiveness of the measures we have in place. | A booking system for ‘in the office’ is in place to ensure a safe number of people are there at any one time and we can track & trace. Our team are asked to confirm they do not have any COVID symptoms before entering the space. Signs are up near doorways and the team have been asked to leave doors, other than fire doors, open where possible. The landlords risk assessment will be circulated to the team. Where suitable, start and finish times have been staggered. Meetings will be virtual where possible. Extra measures are in place at workstations where distancing is not possible and will be cleaned daily - see Regus’ RA for full details. PPE (gloves & face coverings) are provided, included in the inventory and available to people. Where people aren’t exempt, we are encouraging face coverings whilst people move around the office and building. Feedback will actively be sought once people are back in the office |
| Musculoskeletal disorders as a result of home working/ DSE use for an extended period of time | Our team | Provide DSE training to the team. Continue to take order requests that improve home working stations. Continue to encourage regular breaks. | Arrange and assign DSE training assessment for all of our team. Continue to supply equipment where necessary | DSE training is being made available to the whole team. Equipment has and will be made readily available to the team should they need it. |
| Poor ventilation within the workplace leading to the spreading or contracting of COVID-19 | Visitors. Delivery persons. Others in the building. Families/friends/bubbles of those in the office/building, Any other people that may come into contact with people in Tutorful’s office, or our office building. | Encourage people to open windows as much as is possible. Use of a fresh air ventilation system to circulate fresh air. Leave open all doors, other than fire doors wherever possible. Limit shouting in the office, as it's known to increase risk through airborne spread. | Communicate to everyone in the office, explaining that the Air Conditioning, open windows and open doors (other than fire doors) should be utilised wherever possible. Place sufficient sanitising equipment close to windows to ensure hygiene when using the equipment. | The policy communicates that windows should be open, the AC should be turned on at maximum capacity Although the only door available to us is a fire door, meaning that it will need to be closed, we’re confident that the fresh air ventilation system and open windows will facilitate good ventilation |
| Increased risk or complications to vulnerable workers | Our team. Visitors. Delivery persons. Others in the building. Families/friends/bubbles of those in the office/building, Any other people that may come into contact with people in Tutorful’s office, or our office building. | Consult with each person who’s returning to the office about any vulnerabilities or high risk conditions they might have, focusing on circumstances or situations that mean someone is ‘extremely or moderately clinically vulnerable’. Put appropriate measures in place for individual vulnerabilities. Ensure that, should circumstances change and someone has a new circumstance meaning that they are at higher risk Tutorful is notified. Identify and take appropriate safety measures where someone presents with symptoms of COVID-19, or has a confirmed case. Implement effective safety measures, assessing them against individual needs. | Offer ‘return to the office 1:1s’ to consult with each person about their specific circumstances before they return to the office. Identify vulnerabilities in 1:1s and through individual risk assessments, completed by our team, and ensure effective safety measures are in place in respect of any vulnerabilities or obstacles. Create a clear procedure for notification, should anyone present with COVID-19 or have come into contact with someone who has the virus. Implement a procedure detailing steps to take should someone present with COVID-19, including notifying other team members, notification to the business and safe cleaning procedures/ contamination containment. | 1:1s have been offered with each person, ahead of their return to the office, this will be ongoing for phase 2 & 3 returns Individual risk assessments are to be sent to everyone ahead of their return & extra measures or considerations will be in place where needed. Our Covid Safe Policy clearly details the steps to be taken should someone present with symptoms or have a confirmed case, which compliments governmental guidance. All team members will make sure their contact details are up to date on our HR system (Bob) and have ‘booked’ time in the office through ‘Officely’ our Slack integration booking software when they are in the office to assist with the track and trace system should it be required. |
| COVID-19 being spread or contracted while travelling to work in the office | Our team | Our team has flexible working hours which can be used to avoid travelling at rush hour on public transport reducing the risk of transmission of the virus. Consult with team members about how they will travel to work to consider further measures on a case-by-case basis if needed | Flexible working hours can be used to help stagger starting times. Where possible and appropriate we will look to stagger the starting times of team members on fixed working hours to reduce the risk. Encourage our team to follow government guidance whilst using public transportation | We will remind our team to use flexible working hours to avoid rush hour travelling if they are using public transport to commute to the office. We have included the question ‘how will you travel to and from the office?’ in our team’s individual risk assessment so we can take further measures to protect them if necessary. Our policy will include a link to government guidance on public transport to ensure our team has easy access to this information. We will consider staggering start times of team members on fixed working hours where possible and appropriate. |
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