Preparing for emergencies

The council has a generic Major Emergency Plan which has the flexibility needed to respond to the effects of any major emergency.  It is supported by various additional plans which concentrate on specific known threats which require a specialised response, such as the setting up of rest centres to support people who may have had to be evacuated from their homes because of an incident.

Plans are developed in conjunction with other local authorities, the emergency services, the NHS and Environment Agency, utility and transport providers and the voluntary sector.  The duties and activities laid down in them are carried out mainly by council staff, often doing their normal jobs but under exceptional circumstances.

Emergency Planning is based on the assessment of a wide range of perceived risks.  This task is carried out on a county-wide basis by a sub-group of the Kent Resilience Forum, a multi-agency Group set up under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and consisting of representatives of local authorities, the emergency services, the NHS, the Environment Agency, utility and transport companies and the voluntary sector.  The result of the assessment is published on the Kent County Council website in the form of the Kent Community Risk Register. 

To support the response, key personnel are given appropriate training, and exercises are held on a regular basis both to test the plans and to provide experience to those who would be involved in the response to a real emergency.