ID badge protects lone workers

The Identicom from Connexion2 looks just like any other identity badge worn by public service workers, but this badge is packed with the latest in mobile communications technology.

In use at the moment in Stoke-on-Trent, traffic wardens can alert their control centres if they are entering a hazardous zone by pressing a button on their ID badges. Another alarm button can be pressed if the warden needs assistance, which can be immediately dispatched as the badge also contains GPS tracking technology.

A spokesman for Stoke-on-Trent City Council, which is considering equipping all of its wardens with the device, said: “It is widely acknowledged that parking attendants are the council officers most likely to suffer abuse in the course of their jobs. They are the ones who most consistently do get abused – usually verbally, but sometimes physically as well.”

In March John Reid, the former Health Secretary, announced that 100,000 NHS staff who worked alone would be issued with Identicom because of growing violence towards staff.