The HCEOA recommended this week, that all of its member companies begin to use lateral flow testing, as the country continues to make its way out of lockdown measures.

Our industry is preparing to get back into the swing of things too…

At #TeamCES, we have already begun testing our enforcement agents with the lateral flow tests, in a bid to keep them (and everyone they come into contact with) as safe as possible.

The benefits of lateral flow testing include the rapid results they provide (within half an hour) and whilst they aren’t as reliable as the tests which require sending off to the laboratory, they are being used across a range of settings in the UK, including in schools for pupils and staff, and in care homes for residents and carers.

With this knowledge, it makes perfect sense for CES and other companies like ours, to take control of our own safety by ensuring our officers are tested regularly.

By now, we’ve all become quite accustomed to a small stick down the back of the throat and up the nose!

It might not be very pleasant, but it’s absolutely necessary to get us all back to normal.

Commercial visits are under way as we write, whilst residential visits are set to resume in the summer.

Without taking extra precautions like regular testing, we would be neglecting the safety of our High Court and Civil Enforcement Agents, as well as the people we come into contact with on a daily basis.

We are still, of course, following the usual safety measures such as social distancing and wearing PPE, as we have done throughout the pandemic.

It has been suggested in some arenas, that the recommencement of enforcement visits should be one of the last things on the agenda when it comes to getting back to normality…

…that visits from companies like ours pose an unnecessary risk to members of the public.

This is completely untrue, and when we see beer gardens packed to the limit and queues around the block for Primark, it really does come as a smack in the face to some of our clients, who have waited patiently for the chance to get back what they are owed.

At every opportunity, we will make every effort to enforce ethically, safely and with the best interests of everyone at heart.

Lateral flow testing is just one of the tools in our tool box to make this happen.