1 Tamworth Castle & Stores Emergency / Disaster Plan Copy
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Tamworth Castle & Stores Emergency / Disaster Plan Copy Number: [ 1 ] [Master copy] of [ 8 ] Responsibility of: Heritage & Visitor Services Manager & Collections Officer To be kept at: HOLLOWAY LODGE, TAMWORTH CASTLE Other Copies held by : Security Manager (TBC) // Fire & Rescue Service // at other Castle sites Introduction Definition of an Emergency? 1. Collections Link defines an emergency as: “an incident that becomes out of control threatening human safety, and damages or threatens to damage, facilities and resources 1 essential to the running of an organisation” . 2. This plan is concerned with Emergencies and Disasters: a. A Routine Event is not serious and can be dealt with without causing any immediate harm or disruption. b. An Incident has potentially serious consequences but which may be controlled at local level without the full mobilisation of resources. c. An Emergency is a serious event that demands immediate remedy or action and may require the full mobilisation of your own resources and those of the emergency services. d. A Disaster is a cataclysmic event on a regional, national or global scale about which you can do nothing. 3. The Fire and Rescue Service define an emergency as “ An event or situation that causes or is likely to cause: a) one or more individuals to die, be seriously injured or become seriously ill, or b) serious harm to the environment (including the life and health of plants and animals)” They also have a statutory duty to limit damage i.e. assist with salvage. 4. The most serious threats arise from fire or flood, which can emanate from various sources. Other threats arise from terrorism, vandalism, IT/power failure, theft, gas leaks or infestation. 5. This plan is not to be evoked unless a situation arises which can only be defined as an emergency or a disaster above. 1 www.collectionslink.org.uk/plan_for_emergencies , accessed 30/04/2009 \\svr02\shared$\Community&Environment\Communities Planning & 1 Partnerships\Castle\Collections\Accreditation\Emergency Plan 2014 Purpose 6. Successful emergency planning can prevent or reduce the risk of an emergency damaging a museum, its staff, visitors, buildings and their collections. It can also prepare staff to react appropriately and to recover from it in the medium and longer term. 7. In a widespread emergency museums are not as high a priority as hospitals and transport systems for example. Therefore this plan enables Tamworth Castle to independently respond to an emergency. 8. This plan provides a structured approach for minimising the risk of an emergency, as defined above, and allows staff to respond quickly and effectively should such an incident take place. 9. This plan outlines Tamworth Castle’s response to an emergency. It acts as a manual of information and a framework for action which can be referred to in an emergency. It outlines the most significant risks to Tamworth Castle, its related buildings below the motte, and its stores, and the procedures and guidelines to be followed in an emergency, useful contacts and salvage procedures to be followed. 10. The production of an emergency plan is a requirement of the Accreditation Scheme. Scope 11. The plan includes: a. Arrangements for staff and visitors as the first priority. b. Arrangements for collections and buildings. 12. The plan also includes the Fire Evacuation arrangements and the Bomb Threat procedures for the safety of visitors and staff in an emergency at Tamworth Castle outlined in more detail in Appendix 1 (Tamworth Castle document, also on the Tamworth Borough Council S\drive). 13. The plan is applicable to all situations that can be defined as an emergency or disaster in accordance with paragraph 2. 14. The plan covers all buildings utilised by Tamworth Castle to display or store objects and archives. This includes: Tamworth Castle, Holloway Lodge, Tamworth Castle Stables, and the main reserve collections store at No 44 Sandyway, Amington Industrial Estate West, Tamworth. Circulation of the Plan 15. Copies of the plan are held in the following locations in the following buildings: a. Castle – Copy 2 Staff room. Copy 3 Emergency Grab box in alarm cupboard. b. Holloway Lodge – Copy 1 (Master). Copy 4 Emergency Grab box in alarm cupboard. c. Town Hall – Copy 5 Emergency Grab box in the entrance hall. d. Unit 44 Amington Store – Copy 6 in the office. \\svr02\shared$\Community&Environment\Communities Planning & 2 Partnerships\Castle\Collections\Accreditation\Emergency Plan 2014 e. Security Manager, Marmion House, Tamworth Borough Council offices – Copy 7. f. Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Services (Glascote Heath station) with a digital copy available to other locations through the on-board fire appliance facilities – Copy 8. 16. An electronic copy is stored on the TBC S\drive as per the footer below. 17. Each member of contracted staff has a copy of the basic summary page 18. A pack detailing each role within the Emergency Management Team is included within the Grab Boxes. The first person on site will take the role of Emergency Response Co-ordinator. The other roles will be delegated in sequence to staff and role packs provided, or roles delegated as staff arrive on site out of hours. 19. Secure copies of the building plans and priority lists are included. 20. Everyone who uses the building is informed of procedures to follow in the event of discovering an incident, including contractors and re-enactors, and all contractors, visitors and volunteers are required to sign in and out, and contractors are provided with a copy of the Contractor Fire Safety information. Review Date 21. This plan is version 4, reviewed in October 2014 as an update. 22. As a minimum the emergency plan is to be reviewed every two years. Therefore the next date for review will be October 2016, or after any activation of the plan in the interim period, or major changes. 23. However the emergency plan is seen as a flexible document. The plan will be tested regularly through simulations and reviewed and updated as and when necessary. 24. All entries in the Emergency Plan such as telephone numbers, addresses will be checked for accuracy, and all copies of the Manual brought together and checked for consistency. This is done annually, the next check date is October 2015. 25. Before issue of future versions (versions 5, 6 etc), previous copies will be recalled in order to ensure that only one version of the plan is in circulation at any one time. The review will be conducted by the Collections Officer. 26. Any suggestions for the improvement of the plan will be welcomed and should be directed to the Collections Officer. Authorisation and Responsibility 27. The Collections Officer, in association with the Heritage and Visitor Services Manager, is responsible for devising the Emergency Plan. 28. The Collections Officer is responsible for testing the efficiency of the plan and reviewing, amending and maintaining it as required. \\svr02\shared$\Community&Environment\Communities Planning & 3 Partnerships\Castle\Collections\Accreditation\Emergency Plan 2014 29. The Collections Officer is also responsible for devising and delivering appropriate training to all members of staff and volunteers, to ensure that everyone understands their role in an emergency. 30. All members of staff and volunteers are responsible for adhering to procedures outlined in the plan in an emergency. 31. All members of staff and volunteers are responsible for ensuring that they fully understand their role in an emergency, if not they must inform their line manager or the Collections Officer who will ensure that training is provided. 32. The Heritage and Visitor Services Manager is responsible for ensuring that Tamworth Castle meets its obligations for the safety of visitors, staff and collections or resources in their care. Training 33. Emergency Management Team (EMT) members will receive training in the contents and purpose of the plan within the first two months after issue, and annually thereafter. 34. Tamworth Castle staff and volunteers will receive basic training in what to do in the event of an emergency thereafter. This basic training will be extended to new personnel as necessary. The responsibility for organising training will be the Collections Officer. 35. Building evacuation for the staff and public is practiced annually. Risk Assessment 36. Identifying risks is the most important preventive and preparatory work for coping with an emergency. See separate risk assessments outlining potential risks such as fire, water, theft and vandalism to: • the buildings and sites, including all sites identified in paragraph 14 • visitor services • the collections • Collections Care and Conservation • Security • Health and Safety Separate Risk Assessments for each building, (including No 44 Amington Store) are in Appendix 4 . \\svr02\shared$\Community&Environment\Communities Planning & 4 Partnerships\Castle\Collections\Accreditation\Emergency Plan 2014 SECTION ONE - Emergency Prevention 37. In the unlikely event of an emergency it is important to know the following information relating to maintenance, power failures and staff knowledge in order to facilitate ease of response: Buildings maintenance A separate 10 year management and maintenance plan has been implemented since December 2010, and should be referred to for all building and maintenance issues relating to Tamworth Castle, and its related buildings. This will be reviewed annually. Responsibility for the buildings maintenance for Unit No 44 Amington store, Sandyway, Amington Industrial