Hybred Consultancy: Getting Brighton’s businesses back open

Are you confident your business is COVID-19 Secure? Do you have the time or headspace to really think about how to achieve and maintain the government’s required health and safety standard? 

The cross-sector experts at Hybred Consultancy do, and with specialists in health and safety, HR, entertainment and events, the Brighton-based team has come together to enable organisations of all sizes to trade safely and confidently in the wake of COVID-19.

From major theatre companies to local beauty salons, already the team has been working with businesses across the region and beyond, like digital media agency, Propellernet; visual engineers, Bild Studios; and, the latest in COVID-19 Secure entertainment, Drive-In Cinema with Luna Cinema and @TheDriveIn.

So, this month, we’ve been speaking to Becky Stevens, Hybred Consultancy’s Managing Director and Senior Health and Safety Consultant, to find out what steps businesses should be taking as lockdown continues to ease, and where Hybred comes in.

Guidance for businesses looking to operate keeps changing. What advice do you have for companies looking to re-open premises?

Carry out a risk assessment and ensure it’s kept up-to-date. While government advice keeps changing and sometimes has felt unclear, the Health and Safety Executive has been completely consistent regarding the assessments — every business intending to re-open post-lockdown needs one. We can complete a detailed risk assessment with you, and a number of our health and safety packages include automatic updates to that document as guidance changes, so you can stop worrying about every single Downing Street briefing.

Many businesses are facing reduced demand and are uncertain about bringing staff back from furlough. What are the options?

From reduced hours, to redundancies, to maximising your company’s use of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme through flexible furlough, there are so many options. And timing is key, as the decisions you make now will have major cash flow implications in the coming months. That’s why we’ve developed a number of dedicated HR packages, delivered by Hybred’s HR consultant, Jo Prior, with 14 years of experience in employment law and HR.

You’re speaking to businesses of all sizes and across all sectors right now, are there any common themes other companies should be thinking about?

Absolutely. As well as thinking about how best to retain their workforce financially, many companies are unsure of their health and safety obligations for those staff continuing to work from home. There are also considerations around building resilience within the team and supporting staff who are nervous about returning to the workplace while the pandemic is ongoing and are unable to work remotely.

These all sound like expensive issues to manage.

Every business is different, but communication can be key and solutions don’t necessarily need to cost a lot — checking in with your employees and being open to their concerns is often step one. HR and health and safety are new areas for many small businesses, who may never even have carried out a risk assessment. There will be additional costs involved which may feel difficult to justify when budgets are tight but it’s important for the safety of your staff and customers to do everything reasonably practicable to keep them safe — it can even be an obligation required by your insurance policy. And if that feels like too much to handle on your own, we have a whole range of H&S and HR packages available to support different businesses, budgets and requirements.

Your background is in major events, like Brighton Pride and the Rugby World Cup. What is Hybred doing for the events, entertainment and leisure industries?

With the continuing relaxation of social distancing and people desperate

to do things, we’re getting lots of enquiries. From one-off events, to corporate conferencing, to nationwide tours, we can support these industries with everything from detailed risk assessments to bolt-on services such as event & project management, supply of onsite COVID-19 secure safety managers and staff training. We’ve also introduced a complementary creative service to help new ventures looking to launch — we have specialists in web design, marketing, PR, social media and film who can help companies get their message out quickly and effectively.

And how’s business for you?

Like so many people in events, the Hybred team was in a position where work was drying up, with festival cancellations and little certainty about the future for the industry. I’m so pleased to have found an outlet for all my health and safety experience in these challenging times and to be able to see companies re-opening their doors that I — and the wider Hybred team — have worked with.

How can companies find out more about the services Hybred offers?

We’ve got lots of information on our website hybredconsultancy.com, or you can give us a call on 01273 053533. We’ve also launched a series of free health, safety and HR webinars, to inform and educate businesses who want to be COVID-19 Secure. Our next live session will focus on the role health & safety will play in a COVID-19 secure event. Taking place on July 22, you can sign up for free right here.