Return to office working – toolkit and guidance from ICAS

Return to the office

As firms move closer to a potential return to office working, ICAS has put together a toolkit and further guidance to aid the planning process.

Employers are required by law to protect their employees; careful consideration of your operations is therefore required in order to identify the necessary, and important, modifications to the office/ workplace in light of the current pandemic. In these unprecedented times, it is difficult to know where to start – we have therefore produced a suite of documents and resources which can be used to evaluate the risks posed to your employees, and any visitors, to get the process started.

The toolkit includes documents to help keep your employees safe from the risk of COVID-19 when returning to work, ensuring they feel confident that their safety has been considered and the appropriate action has been taken. It includes practical guidance to support firms in some of the main issues we expect them to face when they eventually return to office working.

Given the varying size, location and nature of work carried out by practices, each firm will have differing challenges. The toolkit is therefore not intended to be a bespoke guide – but to provide general assistance and a framework which can be adapted to individual firm circumstances.

The toolkit has been put together using a range of resources and latest advice from organisations including Government, NHS and Public Health Authorities.

Included in the Return to office working toolkit are the following documents:

  1. Return to Office Working Toolkit and Guidance
  2. Step 1 – Health & Safety Inspection Checklist
  3. Step 2 – Health & Safety Risk Assessment
  4. COVID-19 Individual employee risk assessment
  5. COVID-19 Visitor Information & Self Declaration
  6. Flowchart – Who should return and when