E Stands for Easy: Health & Safety E-Learning for On-Site Staff

Provider of on-site staff, Nick Regnier, explains why ‘e-learning’ has been his favourite lockdown buzzword.

This article was first published in News On The Block magazine, April 2021.

Personally, I am looking forward to reading articles in News on the Block and elsewhere that do not mention the words virus, lockdown or self-isolation. As much as I have kept abreast of the changing coronavirus landscape – mostly to ensure my family and colleagues are safe and stay safe – I am content to repeat the much-repeated phase ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ and read from a broader range of property topics.

I am fascinated by the evolution of language and I have enjoyed using and reading new words and phrases in the last 12 months. Some, I agree, have been overused to the extent that they will make you wince (‘the new normal’, ‘unprecedented’, ‘nice to e-meet you’) and others may make you smile when you hear them in the future (‘you’re on mute’, ‘It’s Blursday’ or ‘next slide please’).

This article is about an important new-ish phrase which I have used daily over the last year: e-learning.

As you will read elsewhere in this special supplement, health and safety compliance is a team effort, and never more so in a block of flats setting with several precious stakeholders under one collective roof. Without a doubt, managerial on-site staff play the role of team captain, and while property managers are in the office or working from home, the estate manager or head concierge is there in the thick of things, no matter what. So it has been surprisingly, until recently, to see a lack of appetite from block management companies to train the site staff to fulfil, competently, the captain’s role.

Cledor has its own training academy which ensures the staff we provide to you are ready for their real-world assignments. During successive lockdowns, the training focus switched from classroom teaching to online learning just as it has done for many parents across the country and indeed the world.

Structured 30-45 minute sessions about coronavirus awareness, fire safety, asbestos awareness, manual handling, DSE, lone working, working at height and more, have enabled site staff to learn flexibly, without interrupting their daily tasks, giving them confidence to spot hazards, mitigate risks, report potential issues with composure, and be ready to spring into action during emergency situations.

Complete with a self-assessment at the end of most sessions (and a certificate provided as proof of success), e-learning for site staff provides property managers and your clients with reassurance that their team captains and all players are ready to win.

Our job, as is the job of all providers of on-site staff, is to support those who are perhaps not entirely au fait with computers and tablets, given that e-learning requires their use. When sourcing new staff for your sites, we unashamedly favour those who are health and safety aware, and those who are willing to learn and use technology. Site staff who embrace technology (and use the same cloud systems that you use) not only enjoy greater satisfaction from their role, they are actively supporting you at a time when you have never been busier.

New health and safety legislation – the Fire Safety and Building Safety Bills – will increase the burden of responsibility on property managers and their on-site teams. Now is the time to train your key people. And e-learning is here to stay.

Nick Regnier is founder and managing director of Cledor.