Status
Our Position & Advice
Assent Workspaces
- Visitors by appointment at any Assent Workspace.
- Staff working remotely,
- No operational issues. ✅
Assent Consultants
- Working OnSite and Remotely,
- No operational issues. ✅
UK Travel
- Travel Permitted. ✅
International Travel
- Travel Restricted subject to country rules. ⚠️
Updates to this Page
| Date | Comment |
| Revised 22nd February 2022 |
From Thursday 24th February 2022
All UK legal restrictions have been removed. While we continue to be vigilant and utilise remote working, our consultants are now able to travel and attend client sites. International Travel is available subject to in-country rules.. |
| Revised 8th December 2021 |
From Monday 13th December 2021
In line with UK Government Guidance, all staff and contractors to work from home if they can. No visitors to be received at Assent sites. International Travel Prohibited.. |
| Revised 6th August 2021 |
PreBooked Visitors Received. International Travel Permitted subject to Government Guidelines. |
| Revised 12th April 2021 |
London Campus open for limited staff. |
| Revised 5th January 2021 | Reviewed. No changes. |
| Revised 16th October 2020 | Remote First Approach. No movement between offices. No UK travel. |
| Revised 23rd September 2020 | Office team to work from home. Consultants to work remotely where possible. OnSite work subject to COVID-Secure controls being in place. |
| Revised 2nd September 2020 | Campus office now open. New on-site procedures. |
| Revised 23rd June 2020 | Remote working remains the preferred delivery method however onsite visits will be facilitated from 6th July 2020, providing appropriate controls are in place client-side. |
| Reviewed 11th May 2020 | We are monitoring updated government guidance for employers. Currently we can provide all our services remotely. There is no change to our policy. |
| Reviewed 17th April 2020 | Assent continues to follow UK Government advice and are operating fully Remotely. Find out more. |
| Revised 24th March 2020 | All Travel prohibited. Remote Working – No Issues. |
| Revised 17th March 2020 | Office staff & Consultants now working remotely. |
| Reviewed 13th March 2020 | Following COBRA Meeting. No Changes. |
| Reviewed 9th March 2020 | No Changes |
| Created 4th March 2020 |
Introduction
This page explains the steps Assent is taking to mitigate the COVID-19 risks to our business and how we are managing the changing threat.
We do not address the details of the Coronavirus here and you should refer to the official advice below.
Official advice from the UK Government and international authorities is constantly changing as the situation develops. Check the following information for the most up-to-date information.:
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- UK Government’s office guidance; https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public,
- NHS Office Guidance: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
- Visit the NHS 111 Online Service if you believe you may have the Coronavirus.
- Call 111 only if you can not cope with symptoms alone.
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On-Site Working Procedure
Our consultants and office team will only work on-site where it is safe to do so. Please inform our office if there are any specific health & safety procedures to follow at your site.
Threats to Assent
The majority of Assent’s services can be provided remotely, however some, including health & safety consultancy, require consultants to travel to client premises, primarily within the UK.
Following UK Government advice, we believe this remains a relatively low risk.
However, if our consultants feel unwell this may affect the delivery of services to some clients and appointments may be delayed.
Our office operations are fully resilient and we have not been impacted by COVID-19 restrictions.
Resilience at Assent
🏢 No reliance on physical locations, 
🏡 Our people can work from home indefinitely,
🌐 Resilient comms incl telephony, email & teleconferencing,
🔐 Secure remote access to data & systems,
👩🏻💻 Our people are cross-trained to cover all roles,
☑️ Our project system & visit notes enable work to be covered by different consultants,
🇬🇧 Our people are in different parts of the UK,
🎟 The service desk is constantly monitored.
Mitigating the Risks to Assent
Assent has implemented and tested business continuity procedures to ensure the company is resilient to business disruptions including COVID-19.
Our back-office staff can work indefinitely from other locations, including their homes, with no material impact to client services and we have already cross-trained each role to cover holiday and sickness absence.
We use cloud technologies to maintain resilient communications (telephony, email & conference facilities) and have secure access to data during a disruption, with no reliance on physical premises.
Our consultants have access to the same resilient technology, and while they do travel to client sites to conduct their work, we believe that any disruption caused by Coronavirus can be easily managed by:
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- Delivering auditing and project work through remote means including conference calls and screen sharing.
- Rescheduling audit programmes and projects until the risk subsides.
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It is our preference to continue to deliver services where possible during any lockdown, or other restrictions, to prevent project delays.
Assent continues to monitor official guidance and if we do implement contingency plans above, our office will be in-touch with you to arrange this and provide any required support.
While an individual consultant falling ill would have an impact on the clients they work with, systems are already in place to enable other Assent consultants to continue the work. This includes:
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- Project management system containing project plans and updates,
- Audit reports and visit notes stored centrally,
- Central Admin calendar recording all appointments.
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In our office areas we are making alcohol-based hand sanitizers available and promoting awareness of hand-washing.
Communications with Assent
We will keep clients and other interested parties up-to-date on our Coronavirus strategy on this page. Please check back for updates.
If a member of Assent staff tests positive for Coronavirus, we will inform those who could be affected as soon as possible.
You can use the normal channels of communication to reach us. We also operate a service desk which will be constantly monitored by our team.
Reporting Site Closure, Illness & Isolation
If someone in your organisation becomes ill with Coronavirus and they could have come into contact with a member of our team please let us know immediately. Contact our office or the Assent Service Desk
Please let us know as soon as possible if your organisation implements Coronavirus plans which could affect your work with Assent, including:
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- closing offices,
- restricting visitors,
- restricting travel.
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Summary
This policy will be kept under constant review in line with government guidance. We intend to maintain normal business operations as much as possible.
