COVID-19 Risk Assessment

Bentley Motors has published its COVID-19 risk assessment, demonstrating that the company fully complies with Government guidance on managing the risk of COVID-19.

The Government condition falls into five distinct categories: requiring a respective risk assessment, with the results communicated; clear cleaning, handwashing and hygiene procedures in place; facilitating home working where feasible; maintaining social distancing on site; and a management plan to mitigate the transmission risk.

The risk assessment, performed by a cross-functional team and under the instruction of Bentley’s Health and Safety department, highlighted the need for a redesigned manufacturing facility.

This allows two-metre distance between workers and one-way movement paths and traffic flows. The washrooms across site have also been reconfigured to reduce the number of people being able to use them. 

In the summer of 2020, facemasks were made compulsory in all factory and office areas, while Bentley is maintaining a work from home policy for those who are able to.

The robust measures ensure Bentley staff stay as safe as possible at all times. There is also an enhanced cleaning routine and clear guidance to the workforce on limiting the risk of infection on areas such as meeting governance, site access and travel.

In relevant office areas and catering facilities where distancing is more challenging, plastic partitions - designed and manufactured by Bentley workers – offer segregation between colleagues in addition to control measures limiting capacity, staggered times and distanced seating.

There are also stringent measures to control the population density on site at any one time with all entry and exit points reviewed and reconfigured to disperse the volume of people.

Following an extended winter shutdown and a comprehensive review and extension of COVID-19 health and safety measures, Bentley has increased its rapid antigen testing programme four-fold to ensure all colleagues returning to site are tested and COVID-safe.   

Furthermore, a new site risk assessment app for all colleagues, designed, developed and deployed by Bentley’s own digital team, has been launched. This encourages extra vigilance especially in light of new COVID variants, details the thorough safety measures, including home self-assessment before the working day starts, and acts as a two-way dialogue between colleagues and health and safety representatives to heighten wellbeing around site.

In parallel, Bentley’s critical role providing support to the local community continues with colleagues requested to help with the vaccine deployment within Cheshire and local care programmes plus the donation of laptops to schools. 

Bentley is also taking steps to help alleviate - where possible - childcare and home-schooling challenges that follow the recent closure of schools in the UK and the wider impact of lockdown on personal wellbeing.