Oral Report.
Minutes:
The Authority’s business continuity policy required that the business continuity plan was periodically tested, in a simulated environment, to ensure that staff understood how it was to be executed, and that it could be successfully implemented in emergency situations.
The Planning Committee was required to monitor the effectiveness of the Service’s business continuity arrangements on an annual basis, and to ensure the plan was regularly reviewed and updated, to take account of changing circumstances. Typically, this was achieved as result of the business continuity plan being subject to an annual test / update; either through a planned ‘simulated’ event, or through an unplanned ‘real life’ event with outcomes reported to the Authority as appropriate.
The Deputy Chief Fire Officer introduced Station Manager, Tom Cookson who presented Members with details of the plans, policies and strategies adopted by the Service including how these had been tested this year.
SM Cookson advised that the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 placed a duty on all Category 1 responders to:
· Maintain plans for the purpose of ensuring that if an emergency occurs or is likely to occur, the person or body is able to continue to perform his or its functions; and
· Consider whether a risk assessment makes it necessary or expedient for the person or body to add to or modify emergency plans.
He reassured Members that the Business Continuity Policy was reviewed and tested each year and audited every 2 years. The policy was aligned to good practice guidelines set out by the Business Continuity Institute (who are an independent body of knowledge for good Business Continuity practice worldwide). The Business Impact Assessment was a process to identify the critical activities within the Service which quantified the effects of disruption. Analysis had been carried out within each department and significant findings had included a reliance on ICT, the Service Headquarters Building and on North West Fire Control.
The Business Continuity Test scenario this year involved an exercise involving wide-area flooding that included the flooding of 3 stations and Service Headquarters (which resulted in the failure at Service Headquarters of the server room), and which occurred during a period of increased demand. The scenario was tested without notice and focussed on testing Station, Departmental, Tactical and ICT business continuity plans.
The exercise increased the understanding of business continuity and improved resilience.
In response to a comment from CC O’Toole regarding the wording of the colour-coded green, amber and red categories detailed under 5.1.1 of the Service’s Strategic Business Continuity Plan, particularly he questioned why both the amber and red categories referred to a ‘severe’ warning, SM Cookson confirmed that these had been aligned to those used by resilience partners (Category 1 and 2 emergency responders) who share information across organisational and geographic boundaries.
In response to a question by CC J Shedwick the Assistant Chief Fire Officer advised that a future business continuity plan exercise could be used to examine any overlap with Lancashire County Council’s Emergency Planning while testing the Service’s performance.
RESOLVED: - That the Planning Committee note the report and endorse the effectiveness of the Service’s business continuity arrangements and the satisfactory outcome of the latest Business Continuity Plan exercise.