Voluntary, community and faith groups have an important role in our community. But how would your group cope in an emergency? Could you still function if you couldn't use your normal premises or meeting room? What would you do if your records or contact lists were destroyed? If your organisation ceased its activities, what would the impact be on the community that it serves? What steps can you take to avoid or mitigate these problems in advance?
Business Continuity Management (BCM) is planning to ensure that your organisation has a relatively quick and painless return to "business as usual" in the event of a major disruption, regardless of the cause of the underlying incident (be it man-made or natural, accidental or deliberate). The principle of BCM applies just as much to voluntary, community and faith groups as it does to business itself. To put it in simple terms, BCM is about:
- Reducing the risk to your organisation in advance
- Responding effectively in an emergency
- Restoring normality as easily and inexpensively as possible
Having an effective and rehearsed BCM plan will allow you to achieve all of these objectives.
Greenwich Council has an Emergency Planning and Resilience Unit that can provide general guidance to help you with your BCM planning. One way of accessing this information is to log on to the Council website (www.greenwich.gov.uk) and type "Business Continuity" in the "Search" box. This will provide you with a brief guide to BCM, and give you some ideas of items to keep away from your normal premises to help you in an emergency. There is also a blank template that you can download to complete your own BCM plan.
You can also contact the Emergency Planning and Resilience Unit for advice as follows:
- Telephone:
- 020 8921 5868 / 6258 / 6339
- Fax:
- 020 8921 6267
- Email:
- emergencyplanningunit@greenwich.gov.uk
- Address:
- Room 211, 2nd floor, Peggy Middleton House, 50 Woolwich New Road, London SE18 6HQ