Preparing your community

So what is Community Resilience? It’s not about doing the work of the emergency services and Local Authorities. It’s about supporting your community by harnessing local resources and expertise to help yourselves in an emergency, in a way that compliments the response of the emergency services.

There are many easy ways to do this, you could join an existing community action group or look to establish something new - such as preparing a Community Emergency Plan with your neighbours.

But why is it important?

• Emergencies happen. Preparing yourself and your family will make it easier to recover from the impacts of an emergency.
• Being aware of the risks you might face and who in your community might need your help, could make your community better prepared to cope with an emergency.
• Local emergency responders will always have to prioritise those in greatest need during an emergency, especially where life is in danger. During these times, you need to know how to help yourself and those around you.

Creating your Community Resilience Plan

1. Decide who (and where) your plan is for
2. Set up a Community Resilience Group and identify a co-ordinator
3. Think about the local skills and resources available
4. Consider how you will share information in an emergency. What about producing a telephone calling tree? Or a contact sheet?
5. Complete the Community Resilience Plan template
6. Consider who requires copies of your Plan - make sure that your local District, Borough, City or County Council has a copy
7. Review your plan and update it regularly

Further information

There are lots of places to go for more information; your local council is a great place to start but you can also check out:

• GOV Community Preparedness Toolkit
• GOV Community Emergency Plan Toolkit (288 KB)
• Staffordshire Smart Alert: https://www.staffordshire.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/wsi/watch-schemes-initiatives/as/staffs/staffordshire-smart-alert/ is just one way you can receive community safety information and engage with local policing.
• Staffordshire Community Safety Partnership: https://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/Community/Communitysafety/home.aspx work together to develop and implement strategies to protect their local communities from crime and help people feel safe. Within Staffordshire, there are 8 local community safety partnerships one for each of the district and borough council areas.
• NextDoor is one way to stay informed about what’s going on in your neighbourhood-whether it’s finding a last-minute babysitter, planning a local event, or sharing safety tips.