Looking after the welfare of the 24 staff who maintain the electricity network that keeps the power flowing to Shetland's 14,000 homes and businesses is the job of Rosie Doull, SSEN's Internal Resource Manager on the island.

Shetland has a population of 23,000, a climate noticeably different from the UK mainland (wind speeds of up to 70-80mph are not uncommon) and a landscape which is at the same time both breathtaking and logistically challenging, so it needs an electricity network that is robust, resilient and ready to withstand not just a tough winter, but challenging conditions all year round.

Rosie and her colleagues on Shetland are part of the country's army of critical workers keeping Britain going during the coronavirus pandemic, and looking after the poles, wires, cables and substations on the island suddenly became very different after 23 March, the night when the Government's new guidelines were announced.

She said:

"The big change for everyone is that we're all now based at home as part of the social distancing measures.

"Across SSEN we're prioritising operational activities to focus on critical work that ensures a safe, reliable and resilient supply of electricity to our customers, including high priority maintenance and responding to faults,with everyone now heading to the jobs straight from home.

"The depot is where we're all used to seeing each other at thestart of the working day, having a cuppa and a catch-up, and so being based in the house is such a massive change."

As well as being based at home, there are other changes to the way teams are working, as Rosie explains:

"All travel is now on a 'one person, one vehicle' basis unless it's an emergency and there's no possible alternative. We've also got signs for the teams to take with them on jobs to let the public know it's critical work and to respect the social distancing guidelines."

Living and working in an island community has brought another set of challenges at this already challenging time, as Rosie explains the wider coronavirus strategy has seen transport links between Shetland to the mainland reduced:

"SSEN has been great with our team up here, they realise that our situation is a lot different compared to the mainland, and so they've arranged for extra supplies to be shipped up to us. But still, with the general transport links being cut back, it's made us even more focussed on our day-to-day stock levels."

SSEN recognises that the coronavirus can have a major impact on colleagues' mental health, and the company has a number of different ways it can help, which is something that Rosie really appreciates in her role:

"It's at times like this that we have to be even more aware of not just our own mental health, but also look out for our colleagues as well, and keeping in touch with our video conferences and the depot WhatsApp group has really helped.

Away from work, Rosie is supporting Shetland Scrubs, which is making scrubs for NHS frontline workers on the island, allowing them to leave their scrubs at work to be washed at the end of the day, minimising the risk of any further contamination as they head home.

"This is another great example of how a community can pull together," said Rosie.