Quick answer
Assess whether the task can be done safely alone before relying on a phone, app or check-in arrangement. Consider the work, location, people, foreseeable problems and how help would reach the worker. Agree suitable controls, supervision and a clear response to missed contact, then test the arrangements.
Working alone changes how quickly help may arrive
A lone worker may face the same hazard as a team, but have less immediate support if something goes wrong. Being a lone worker does not necessarily mean being in an empty building: someone working without close or direct supervision can still need these arrangements.
HSE’s employer overview says health and safety risks must be managed before people work alone. In Northern Ireland, HSENI’s lone-working guidance provides the separate local starting point.
1. Decide whether the task is suitable for lone work
HSE’s lone-work risk guidance covers the task, violence, isolation and other factors affecting access to help. Some high-risk activities require other people or additional arrangements; do not assume a general lone-working policy authorises every task.
| Area | What to establish |
|---|---|
| Task | What could go wrong, and can one person control it safely? |
| Location | How will help find and reach the worker, including access restrictions or poor signal? |
| People | What instruction, experience and relevant support does the worker need? |
| Unexpected events | What happens after equipment failure, confrontation, injury or a change of plan? |
| Other premises | Who provides information about site risks and coordinates the arrangements? |
Involve the worker. Discuss relevant needs without making a diagnosis or assuming that a particular health condition automatically permits or prevents lone work.
2. Set task limits, training and supervision
Specify the work allowed, when the worker must seek advice and what must wait for assistance. Explain emergency procedures and how to stop or change the work safely if an essential control is unavailable.
HSE’s training and supervision guidance recommends risk-based support and clear limits. New workers, unfamiliar tasks and higher-risk circumstances can call for closer supervision. Check that people understand any technical monitoring system before relying on it.
3. Agree contact and what happens when it is missed
A check-in is useful only when someone receives it and knows how to act. Choose contact arrangements from the assessment rather than copying a universal interval.
- Name the contact person and cover for absence.
- Record the worker’s location, expected activity and relevant changes.
- Agree when and how contact will happen, including loss of signal or device failure.
- Define what the contact person does after a missed check or an alarm.
- Make emergency access and the end-of-task confirmation clear.
HSE advises regular testing of monitoring and emergency procedures. A successful message test does not by itself establish that the task is suitable for lone work.
Hypothetical example: an early cleaning shift
A cleaner works before the main team arrives. The assessment identifies access arrangements, the tasks allowed and how a supervisor will know the worker has arrived and finished. The supervisor has cover, a way to confirm the location and an agreed escalation process.
During a test, the main contact cannot reach the cleaner in part of the building. The manager changes the communication arrangement and reviews the work before relying on the system. The test has exposed a practical weakness that a written check-in schedule alone would not show.
4. Test the whole response and review changes
Test how an alarm or missed contact leads to action, not only whether a device switches on. Check contact availability, access information and whether the response is workable at the relevant time of day.
Review the assessment after a change in work, location, staffing, equipment or an incident showing a gap. HSENI’s guidance also emphasises assessment, controls, instruction and review. Keep workers informed of changed arrangements.
Common mistakes in lone-working arrangements
- Buying an app before assessing the task. Monitoring cannot make unsuitable work safe on its own.
- No owner for a missed check. Assign a person, cover and response.
- A fixed interval treated as universal law. Match contact to the assessed risks.
- Assuming signal and access are reliable. Test them where the work takes place.
- Leaving a change of plan unreported. The contact needs current location and activity information.
- A blanket rule about who can work alone. Assess the person, task and support needed rather than relying on assumptions.
Next steps
- Identify the lone tasks and involve the workers.
- Confirm suitability, controls and limits before work starts.
- Agree contact, cover and missed-contact escalation.
- Test the full response and review it when circumstances change.
Plan lone-worker contact and monitoring — Official guidance on training, supervision and testing the contact arrangements.
Relevant next resource
Level 3 Health & Safety in the Workplace
The verified Level 3 workplace course supports managers learning about risk assessment, supervision and safe systems; lone-task arrangements still need their own assessment.
From £43.50 GBP
Available
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