Prepare, respond and recover
The work of the Local Resilience Forum is focused on:
- Saving lives
- Relieving suffering
- Protecting property
- Preventing further damage to the environment
- Preventing the impacts of a disaster getting worse
- Restoring normality as quickly as possible
Local Resilience Forums are directed by the Civil Contingencies Act (2004).
The act imposes a clear set of roles and responsibilities on the emergency responders and specific supporting agencies within the forum, which each have a role to play in preparing for and responding to emergencies.
The Civil Contingencies Act
In summary, the Civil Contingencies Act requires Local Resilience Forums to:
- Assess the risk of emergencies occurring
- Develop a Community Risk Register
- Put emergency plans in place
- Create business continuity plans so that critical functions can continue in an emergency
- Warn, inform and advise the public in the event of an emergency
- Make information about civil protection matters available to the public
- Share information and cooperate with other local responders
- Provide advice and assistance to businesses and voluntary organisations.
The Community Risk Register
The Community Risk Register aims to inform you about the highest risks and their potential impact and provide you with measures that can be taken to become better prepared in your home, business and community.
While certain risks are mentioned, it does not mean that they will definitely occur: it means there is a possibility that such incidents may happen, and agencies in the forum must have plans in place to respond if they do.
This is what we do to prepare for, respond to and recover from a major emergency, but there are also things you can do.
Being aware of the risks and potential consequences and putting measures in place to reduce the impact on you, your family, your home, your business and your community, will benefit everyone.
What you can do
The best thing you can do is understand the risks and follow our advice on what to do before, during and after an emergency.
Some risks and their potential consequences, such as a power cut, could affect any of us at any time, so being prepared is vital. Others may be more relevant to you than others. For example, if you live near a river, flooding is more likely to affect you. However, we have seen in previous years that flash flooding can happen anywhere, so it is useful for everyone to know what to do. You can also help others in your community who are less able to help themselves.
It is important to remember that emergency situations can be challenging and can change quickly. Services we usually rely on, such as the telephone networks and internet, may become unavailable. Emergency services may have to prioritise resources. . We will all benefit if everyone in the county is better prepared for all possible situations.
Use the navigation tools to find out what you can do to prepare your family, your home, your business and your community.