Emergency Planning

   

Emergency Planning in Blaenau Gwent

The wide range of services the Authority provides on a day-to-day basis, together with the expertise and local knowledge of staff, means that it is well placed to support the response to an emergency.

Local authority emergency planning

• puts in place plans and procedures to enable it to respond, as effectively as possible, to an emergency should one occur, and
• makes sure that these plans and procedures fit in with those of all the other response agencies, such as the Emergency Services, hospitals, utility companies, voluntary agencies and armed forces.

Services & facilities Blaenau Gwent may be called upon to provide

• Social care & counselling
• Care centres
• Media briefing centres
• Public information centres
• Emergency feeding
• Temporary accommodation
• Emergency works & repairs
• Communications support
• Temporary mortuaries
• Transport
• Co-ordination of the recovery phase
• Resources

The Emergency Planning Team

The Emergency Planning Team is part of the Environment Directorate and currently based in Abertillery. It is funded partly by direct grant from the Cabinet Office and partly by the Authority.

The Team work closely with all Directorates in the Authority, neighbouring local authorities, the emergency & health services, utility companies and voluntary organisations to ensure the provision of effective and efficient arrangements to protect communities and the environment in Blaenau Gwent, both prior to and during emergencies.

Services the Emergency Planning Team can provide:

• collaborating on the publication of the Gwent Major Emergency Arrangements, which sets out what each agency is responsible for in an emergency;
• developing and reviewing emergency planning arrangements with those agencies;
• maintaining contacts with other agencies that could assist in an emergency;
• writing emergency plans to help local authority Directorates meet their emergency roles;
• working with voluntary agencies & utility companies towards co-ordination of responses;
• writing joint agency plans to cope with known natural and man-made hazards;
• training and exercise events for local authorities and other agencies;
• ensuring the reliability of a back-up communications network and emergency centre facility.

If you have any questions or would like further information on the work of the Team please contact the Emergency Planning Manager.