Emergency Planning

Business continuity

The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 places a duty upon Local Authorities to put in place Business Continuity Management arrangements and to promote business continuity to businesses, in particular small and medium enterprises, and voluntary organisations.

Business Continuity Management (BCM) is a process that helps mitigate the risks of an incident, disaster, disruption or emergency. It means planning to ensure the smooth running of an organisation, or delivery of a service in the event of a disruption.

This could include one or more of the following:

• Loss of a major building or facility e.g. fire, storm damage
• Large staff absences e.g. epidemic/pandemic
• Severe Weather e.g. snow, flooding
• Loss of utilities e.g. electricity, gas, water, telephones, IT (Information Technology)
• Major industrial incident e.g. major fire, release of chemicals

Did you know?

• About 20% of businesses suffer a significant disruption each year
• 58% of UK businesses report that they were disrupted as a result of September 11th with one in eight severely affected
• 80% of businesses affected by a major incident do not re-open or close within 18 months
• 90% of businesses that lose data from a disaster are forced to shut within two years

Why do you need a business continuity plan?

Experience has shown that organisations with business continuity arrangements in place are more likely to stay in business and recover quickly in the event of an emergency than those who do not. It is not only the major emergencies that disrupt organisations; a wide range of day-to-day disruptions can threaten the smooth running of an organisation.

Developing a business continuity plan will assist you to manage your risks to ensure that, at all times, your organisation can continue operating to at least a pre-determined minimum level. This will enable you to continue service delivery during and beyond a crisis.

 ‘Preparing for Emergencies', has useful advice on business continuity. The website exists to provide information to the public, businesses and voluntary/community groups on the risks and what to do if an incident occurs.

If you require further assistance or wish to discuss any particular issues concerning business continuity, you can contact our Business Continuity Team.

Paul Eades - Risk Manager Tel: 01437 776291

Or the Emergency Planning Dept Tel: 01437 775661