Participants are revising their safety policies and preparing safe systems of work for staff and volunteers who work offsite, alone and outside normal office hours. Groups in Redbridge and Bexley have produced a checklist for workers setting up meetings away from the office. This covers all aspects of the visit including precise directions, safe parking facilities, a centrally held diary, an agreed time to complete the visits and a telephone contact to confirm the safe completion of the visit. Cleaners and caretakers, often ignored or forgotten, have now been included in the safety regime of a large community association on the outskirts of London. Its risk assessment showed a need for training in the safe use of cleaning materials and a new system of supervision to improve communication with staff who work outside core hours.
Stress is one of the biggest problems faced by the voluntary sector.
A squeeze on funding and a growing reliance on the voluntary sector to deliver statutory services more cheaply has piled pressure onto paid and voluntary workers alike. The main causes of stress were reported as excessive workload and long hours. Course participants have returned to their workplaces determined to raise the issue and see it addressed by management committees and trustees. One west London women's organisation listed the physical symptoms of stress and asked staff members to tick each symptom they suffered over a period of a month. This revealed a range of symptoms from headaches to insomnia.