For staff at Rother and Wealden’s shared environmental health service, RIAMS is a key resource. As such, there are two councils, offices and websites. The benefit of the RIAMS website, given our circumstances, is that it allows us to store our documents online, making them easily accessible to all colleagues in both offices, on site or working at home. The folder system is simple to set up, and files can be uploaded by browsing and/or dropping. 

For each subject, we have a folder that holds the procedures, template forms and letters for that subject (see below). During a recent audit, this proved an invaluable resource, as documents could be retrieved quickly. For example, the Rother and Wealden policy folder contained these food policy documents:

To view the document, the auditors could click on the filename and the Word version would appear, with an option to download. The other documents required were readily available in other folders.

RIAMS also holds notice templates, forms and guidance notes for a variety of EH subjects. The notice templates have been especially useful as these can be modified with logos and addresses ready for use. The guidance notes are detailed and contain helpful references. To distinguish them from your own service, they are presented in black folders.

RIAMS is a library and a resource. As a shared service, the RIAMS website holds our policies and procedures, which everyone can access without the need for VPN authorisation.

With thanks to Una Kane, Environmental Health Manager

Does this sound like something you might be interested in?

RIAMS Libraries provides up-to-date, easy-to-access procedures and guidance that support housing and environmental health practitioners across all specialisms to work smarter, to network and share good practice. Contact us for more information, and join the conversation for free on RIAMS Communities.