The NHS Covid-19 smart phone application has gone live in England and Wales from 24th September 2020 to enable QR check-in at venues and sites to help with tracking and tracing people who come into contact with virus carriers.
“We believe the construction industry can lead the way in encouraging the widest possible rollout of this app, which will be vital in our national fight against COVID-19 in the weeks and months ahead,” said Andy Mitchell, industry-side chair of the Construction Leadership Council.
He said: “Construction is uniquely placed in that we have been operating throughout the pandemic using site operating procedures to ensure Covid-secure environments, a model of safety best practice that has been taken up in other sectors and across the world. In addition, as well as employing some 2.3 million people, our industry is highly visible to the public in all parts of England and Wales.
“That’s why we are urging all employers in our sector to ensure QR codes are displayed prominently on sites and in workplaces, and that steps are taken to encourage employees to download the app and use it regularly on a daily basis. Throughout this emergency the construction industry has risen to the challenge of keeping the economy going while protecting the safety of our workforce.
“The NHS Covid-19 app will be another weapon in our armoury to ensure that where coronavirus outbreaks do occur, those who have been exposed are able to contacted and told to isolate, which will be key to suppressing this disease over the next six months.”
However, the NHS Covid-19 app is unlikely to work on smartphones that are more than four or five years old. Users must have a phone capable of supporting either the Android Marshmallow (v6.0) operating system or Apple's iOS 13.5, in order for the Bluetooth tracking to work properly.
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