Agenda item
Emergency Preparedness update
At the January 2018 Audit Advisory committee, it was resolved that an
Emergency Preparedness item be added to the forward plan to be
discussed annually going forward. This report briefly outlines the progress
made since the 2021 report, details the type and number of incidents in
Brent and provides some information around initiatives and programmes
of work under way to enhance our resilience and response arrangements.
Minutes:
Daryl Jooste, Civil Contingencies Manager, introduced a report outlining the progress made since the previous update for the Committee in 2021 around the Council’s emergency preparedness arrangements. The report also detailed the type and number of incidents in Brent along with the initiatives and programmes of work under way to enhance the Council’s resilience and response arrangements.
Members noted that the report had been resubmitted for consideration, following an initial review by the Committee at its meeting on 1 August 2022 as it had not been possible for Daryl Jooste to attend that meeting in order to present the report.
In considering the report the Committee noted:
· The ongoing efforts being made to recruit additional Emergency Response Officers from across the Council in order to support the existing call out rota arrangements. Current numbers of staff on the rota totalled 23, although following a recent recruitment campaign six additional members of staff had now been identified. Members were assured that current levels of staff remained above the minimum level assessed as being required (14) to support the call-out rota.
· The enhanced contact arrangements established to support any emergency response, which had included the option to set up a dedicated emergency helpline during incidents alongside the standard 24/7 in and out of hours contact arrangements.
· The summary of incidents which had involved an emergency planning response since the previous report in 2021, as detailed within section 3.4 of the report.
The Committee was then invited to raise questions on the report, which are summarised below:
· Given the continued impact of climate change and impact being created by incidents linked to adverse weather conditions requiring an emergency response, members were keen to explore the arrangements being developed as part of the Council’s emergency planning response arrangements to address these type of issues. As an example, reference was made to the response that had needed to be provided to the recent wildfires linked to record high temperatures experienced over the summer. In response Daryl Jooste advised that these trends had been recognised, with the additional resilience being built into the emergency response staffing arrangements and other preventative measures therefore key in terms of the ability to respond to these type of incidents over a protracted and longer term period.
· With regards to ongoing collaboration with the emergency services as part of the Council’s emergency planning response arrangements, members sought further details on any issues being experienced as a result of the more limited resources available across each service, particularly in relation to the police. In recognising that any effective emergency planning response would require a joined-up response across a range of partner agencies, members were advised of the current arrangements in place with emergency services to focus on the approach towards dealing with civil emergencies, which included a quarterly liaison meeting with emergency response agencies, including the police. Confirmation was also provided in terms of the specific arrangements involving the police that it would be the on-duty police inspector who was responsible for co-ordinating their emergency response and support at any incident.
· Given the number of incidents identified involving house fires, particularly in relation to Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) members were keen to focus on the action being taken to address these issues and ensure the necessary safety measures were being enforced in relation to the way these types of properties were maintained and managed. In response, members were advised of the ongoing focus needed in terms of enforcement specifically related to unlicensed and unregistered HMOs.
· In terms of specific actions which the Committee could take to continue supporting ongoing resilience efforts, members were encouraged to attend the Member Learning & Development event which had been arranged on 10th October 2022 focussed on the Council’s Emergency Response arrangements and role of partner agencies. Further details on the session would be circulated to all members of the Committee who were also asked to share more widely amongst other councillors.
· As a final issue, details were sought on the welfare support available to those staff involved in co-ordinating and delivering the Council’s emergency response at specific incidents. In response members were advised of the welfare assistance and support available, which included relevant training and the debriefing of staff following each incident along with management support and access to the Employee Assistance Programme.
As no further issues were raised the Chair, on behalf of the Committee, thanked Daryl Jooste and his team for their ongoing work and for the report, and the Committee RESOLVED to note the update provided.
Supporting documents: