There is no doubt that working alone can be risky business. The high-profile cases have highlighted just how fraught with danger a lone worker can be.

Earlier this year, a report concluded that Ashleigh Ewing, a 22-year-old mental health worker, should not have been working alone when a paranoid schizophrenic patient stabbed her to death in Newcastle.

In another case in Scotland, game warden Douglas Armstrong died after crashing his quad bike. It took 52 hours before anyone noticed him missing because there was no system for him to check in at the end of a shift and he didn’t have a mobile phone to call for help.

But perhaps the best known case of a lone worker dying in tragic circumstances is that of real estate agent Suzy Lamplugh, who disappeared in 1986 after going to meet a client in an empty house.

To this day, his body has never been found. But his parents were determined that his death would not be in vain and created the Suzy Lamplugh Trust in his memory, to highlight and minimize the risks employees face when working alone.

At the moment, employers have responsibilities to their workers under the legislation on health and safety at work. And, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) also provides recommendations on the protection of lone workers.

While the HSE acknowledges that working alone is not illegal and is often safe to do so, it also notes: “The law requires employers to carefully consider and then address any risks to the health and safety of individuals working alone. .”

Employers have a duty to assess the risks to lone workers, taking steps to prevent or control them. This could include the implementation of training programs, the selection of safe work equipment, the issuance of personal alarms and periodic reviews of work practices.

In some cases, HSE says, employers may decide that some tasks are too difficult or dangerous to perform alone.

The Suzy Lamplugh Trust notes that while all employees who come into contact with the general public may be at potential risk of violence and assault, she adds: “However, anyone who is alone, without the support and backing of their colleagues He’s more vulnerable than most.”

The charity, founded by Paul and Diana Lamplugh, outlines its policy on lone workers, saying: “Lone workers need systems and procedures that protect their safety. The lack of these can result not only in putting staff in unnecessary danger , and the employer at risk of litigation, but also low morale, lack of motivation, high levels of sick leave, and high staff turnover.These factors have a negative impact on organizational performance as well as individuals. Therefore, the Suzy Lamplugh Trust believes that it pays both employer and employee to get it right.”

So what does it take to get it right? Well, many companies are using personal security alarms to protect their employees and comply with legal requirements to protect lone workers.

Organizations such as the Newcastle NHS Trust, Cambridge University and Parkinsons UK, for example, use the Lookout Call system, which alerts a lone worker’s colleagues if they do not register within a set time.

Women’s Aid Integrated Services explained: “We needed to make sure our workers were as safe as possible during visits. We needed a system that would track where our workers were, trigger an alarm if the worker did not return from a visit, and also allow them to call for help if the need”.

Tens of thousands of lone NHS workers received personal security alarms after former health secretary Alan Johnson pledged to improve staff security.

So while there is no legislation that makes it mandatory to provide personal security alarms to lone workers, many agencies believe they play an important role in keeping employees safe, along with strong lone worker policies.