Contingency and emergency planning – a checklist
Contingency and emergency planning – a checklist
Please note that this is general guidance only: you will need to develop detailed plans based on a careful assessment of the situation in your area.
- Take advice (for example from the Environmental Health and Emergency Planning Departments of your local authority, the Fire and Police Services and the Health Service).
- Build your links carefully, well before the event
- Appoint one member of the planning team with the responsibility to develop and test the contingency and emergency plan
- Involve as wide a range of people as possible in preparing the plan (use staff meetings to brainstorm ideas, etc)
- Test the plan to see whether the proposed procedures will work
- Record the plan carefully, make sure that it is up-to-date and that everyone who needs one has a copy (make sure you have back up copies off site)
- Accidents (e.g. nearby motorway or airport)
- Acts of nature (e.g. storm)
- Acts of criminals (e.g. public disturbances)
- Have a proactive risk management programme with risk assessments fully completed and recorded
- Have clear health and safety instructions for staff and participants
- Encourage a safety culture amongst support staff and adult leaders
- Ensure that medical, fire-fighting and security arrangements are in place
- Put a reporting system in place (with frequent reviews) so that problems can be spotted and prompt action taken
- Have a clear contingency and emergency plan and be prepared to implement it
- Management structures which ensure that there is always (24 hours a day during the event) a duty officer who can make decisions
- A clear command and control structure which the duty officer can implement quickly
- Operations centres (one on site, another off it, all with communications and other necessary equipment) for use by the command and control structure
- Methods of raising the alarm on the site
- Communications, both routine and emergency
- Medical care and counselling
- Dealing with hazardous materials
- Fire-fighting
- Site layout
- Emergency security and evacuation arrangements
- Emergency transport
- Liaison with local authorities (with named contacts agreed before the event)
- Media contacts (remembering the requirements of Policy, Organisation and Rules)
- Arrangements for contact with parents/guardians of participants
- Arrangements for follow-up and review after implementation of the plan