The Covid-19 pandemic has had a worldwide effect and changed how we lead our daily lives. From the outset of this crisis, the health and safety of our staff and their families has been our priority. We have been and will continue to follow the latest Government guidance to protect our employees, clients and suppliers. We have put in place robust plans, to make all our locations as safe as possible.
We closed our facilities immediately following the Government notification on the 23rd March. We were able to support many of our Office and Technical staff working from home to enable the business to function in a limited capacity and will continue to do so where possible for the foreseeable future until the relevant restrictions are lifted.
The Government views the Water and Wastewater Utility sectors as Critical National Infrastructure to ensure the functioning of the country and deliver the essential services upon which daily life depends. We have been confirmed as a Critical Supplier / Contractor across many of our Water Utility Clients, in particular, Scottish Water where we are providing emergency and reactive maintenance support.
Following a request by our clients to progress critical projects to maintain their assets resilience, RSE have carefully reviewed the current government guidelines, and will be implementing enhanced policies and procedures to manage and mitigate the risks of COVID-19. We plan to commence a phased return to work for limited operations at our facilities and selected sites from Monday 27th April, to support those sites which are classed as a priority to safeguard the supply of Critical National Infrastructure.
To safeguard our employees and to ensure their well-being at work, we have made significant changes across all our facilities and sites. We have carried out Full Risk Assessments and actions undertaken include social distancing where safe and practical, reviewing shift patterns, staggering breaks, provision of relevant PPE and its disposal along with provisions of multiple new hand-washing stations within all our facilities.
Our people will be fully briefed prior to return to work and RSE will ensure full compliance with the new and updated procedures and will continue to work in line with these and adhere to any further updates required if/when Government guidelines change.
We are grateful for the commitment and flexibility of all our employees through this current crisis. We would also like to thank our clients and suppliers for their understanding and assistance, as these are unprecedented and challenging times.
We will update this statement as new information becomes available.
Allan Dallas
Managing Director
