News: Peoplesafe chosen by Worcestershire landlords

Two housing associations responsible for thousands of homes in the Worcestershire area are working with Rotherham-based lone worker expert Peoplesafe, to protect frontline staff.

Worcester Community Housing (WCH) and the Rooftop Housing Group have equipped workers with discreet alarms disguised as identity card holders.

The Identicom device allows workers to perform a "safe and well" check and has a "red alert" button which opens an audio channel to Peoplesafe's 24-hour monitoring centre if they are faced with verbal or physical violence. The device has a GPS option allowing the user's location to be instantly pinpointed. The device can also include a "man down" motion sensor which raises the alarm if the Identicom is immobilised or subject to an impact.

WCH, which has a total workforce of 180, has 70 Identicoms in operation. Community wardens, trades operatives, income recovery staff and allocations managers have been issued with the device while pool units are available for office-based staff making occasional unaccompanied visits.

Nina Chinery, Head of Supported Housing, said: "We needed to respond to the concerns of our lone working staff and their unions.

"The Peoplesafe units provide a discreet arrangement which give our staff confidence in that they can call for help, if they need it, at any time of the day or night. Staff feel much safer now knowing they have an immediate ability to access help if they encounter a problem."

With recent expansion of the Rooftop Housing Group, the company had renewed their contract with Peoplesafe and increased the number of devices in operation because of the company's excellent service and the high usage of the devices among their staff.

Ian Johannessen, Managing Director of Peoplesafe in Dinnington, said: "We recognise the important role that housing associations play in our communities. We are very pleased to be working with these two major landlords in the Worcestershire area to provide a technical solution to ensure the safety of their staff and help them meet their employers' duty of care."

Peoplesafe website

Images: peoplesafe.co.uk