[laddermonkee]

Under H&S law is still legal to clean windows on your own?

[BDCS]

This might be better on the window forum but I do - why not ?

[capital-services]

To comply with duties towards lone workers under the Health and safety at work act 1974 and the management of health and safety at work regulations 1999.

‘Although there is no general legal prohibition on working alone, the broad duties of the HSW act and MHSW Regulations still apply, these require identifying hazards of the work assessing the risks involved, and putting measures in place to avoid or control the risks’
(HSA1999)

[BDCS]

what about us 'one man bands'

[Gerry Styles]

Follow the principle of HSE1999. do a risk assessment and put it in writing. use ladders safely and dont't take risks. I still see window cleaners with one foot on the ladder and the other on a window ledge.

[cvdewsbury]

private housing no one will bat a lid,housing associations certain offices or groups will stop you working alone especially  from ladders.

[Colin Stokes]

We find that larger companies such as Estate Agents (at least large chains), Managing Agents and Housing Associations allow us lone workers as long as there is a risk assessment provided.  That's a pretty standard form if your self employed but if you employ people as we do then the H&S consultant needed us to show we were supervising/monitoring staff.  This wasnt always possible especially outside office hours.

By accident we met a newish company who provide out of hours telephone cover for Managing Agents - they have just started (I think this week) providing a check in service for those employing staff out of hours where the employee calls in with a password at an appointed time, once that call is 15 mins late they call the employee to check everything OK - if no answer they escalate calls to senior staff/emergency contacts as requested by the company they work for.  As i understand it having this in place means these companies pass the requirements of a risk assessment.

We asked them if they would extend coverage to us and  they have quoted £2 per check in.

We are now requoting for a couple of jobs with this service included in our risk assessment and will wait and see what the response is.

[KLEEN-ZONE]

Try a security company, most have a 24hr control room and have a procedure for check calls along the lines of above. I spent 12 years in the industry and the service was used by doctors & nurses amongst others.