Safe Inside Rating Scheme

Safe Inside is a self-certification scheme, you will be asked to tick which mitigations you employ and visitors to the site will see the detail you provide. The rating bands are for guidance and general information about how different mitigations help make a place safer. Note - ALL ratings are positive, most sites will not meet any of the criteria. Requirements are cumulative, so a Good rating requires all the Basic elements as well as the good elements. The scale is a guide not rigid, you may miss one element but be doing other higher rated elements. The aim is just to reward places taking sensible precautions.

Explanatory notes are below the scale. Also see the FAQ page and the Science behind the ratings page.

To register your business simply complete the form here

BASIC

  • Windows and/or doors kept open irrespective of weather to allow fresh air to circulate

GOOD

  • Staff told to test if symptomatic and stay off work if testing positive

  • Covid risks & current symptoms communicated to staff

  • Staff receive sick pay while isolating

  • Signs tell customers they are welcome to mask

  • CO2 monitors display air quality to visitors (desirable but not mandatory)

VERY GOOD

  • HEPA or equivalent filters, properly sized for the space, running on full power at all times the premises are in use

  • Staff are provided free masks and wear these automatically when dealing with any customer / patient who is masked

EXCELLENT

  • Staff test daily if symptomatic and only return to work after two consecutive days negative tests

  • Staff test weekly irrespective of symptoms

  • All staff mask whenever in the presence of customers / patients

OUTSTANDING

  • Staff receive full pay up to ten days while testing positive and isolating

  • Staff mask when in any room visited by customers / patients, whether a customer is present or not

  • Windows fully opened and 5 minutes left after room is occupied by unmasked customers or patients - OR

  • Far UV operated in rooms where customers / patients visit (Far UV can also eliminate the need for staff to mask permanently where customers are not present)

Explanatory notes

  • ANY rating is positive! Most organisations will not meet the basic level of safe practice so even just keeping windows open is a big step and massively appreciated.

  • Mask means N95 / FFP2 or N99 / FFP3 respirators only, blue paper surgical masks are designed as a barrier to fluid / droplet spread and have negligible impact on aerosolised pathogens such as Covid. Cloth or fabric masks similarly do not make a meaningful difference to transmission. Masking means wearing a respirator properly at all times.

  • Covid can linger in the air for hours and is not just spread when dealing directly with a customer / patient. Any barrier solution is not effective, it is critical to actually clean the air in each room all the time

  • Hand washing and disinfecting surfaces is good basic hygiene practice that has been in place for a long time and reduces bacterial spread but does not have any effect in reducing Covid transmission. Both were based on droplet theory which was disproved very early in the pandemic.

  • HEPA filters are highly effective at reducing viral load in an inside space but less effective at preventing close contact spread. This is why masking is still critical. While one way masking is effective, if staff do not mask when seeing customers / patients their risk of becoming infected remains high and therefore the risk to other customers also remains higher. If staff mask when seeing all customers then staff infection will be dramatically reduced which then lowers the risk of onward transmission. Other air filter options are equally effective, HEPA is a specific standard and widely used as a placeholder for filters capable of cleaning airborne pathogens.

  • CO2 monitors give an indication of the level of fresh air in the space and give customers confidence that clean air is being taken seriously. If external ventilation is not present but air cleaning is in use the CO2 may remain high despite airborne pathogens being removed, CO2 is only a proxy for air quality and really measures effective ventilation.

  • Far UV is a very fast acting sterilising / disinfecting technology and as such does not need to be run in empty rooms in the same way the air purification does. It is recognised that the cost of this will be prohibitive for most businesses at this time which is why the option of layered protection exists for the highest Inside Safety rating. Note Far UV is not expensive compared to staff absence and is probably the long term solution to life as normal, but it involves more financial outlay upfront.