Emergency Planning Officer

Haringey GP Federation; Brighton; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent NHS organization in Brighton is seeking an Emergency Planning professional to support their Emergency Preparedness function and ensure compliance with legal obligations. Responsibilities include developing emergency plans, conducting risk assessments, and engaging with multi-agency partners. The ideal candidate will have a degree-level education, experience in Emergency Planning, and excellent communication skills. This role offers a collaborative environment focused on enhancing community health services.

Benefits

Flexible working options

Excellent training and development opportunities

Accredited Living Wage Employer

Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or equivalent qualification.
• Experience in Emergency Planning and Business Continuity.
• Excellent communication skills to convey complex information.

Responsibilities

• Support the Emergency Planning Lead with planning and response.
• Develop and maintain Emergency Plans to ensure resilience.
• Assist in delivering training on Emergency Planning.

Skills

Excellent communication skills

Ability to analyse risks

Excellent time management

Ability to work with minimal supervision

IT skills in Word and Excel

Education

Degree level or equivalent

Job description

a) The post holder will have an understanding of Emergency Planning and Business Continuity and be able to support the Emergency Planning Lead in the delivery of the Trust's Emergency Preparedness Resilience and Response (EPRR) agenda, ensuring that Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT) fulfils its legal obligations and responsibilities under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, NHS England EPRR Framework 2015, Business Continuity Standard ISO 22301, the Health and Social Care Act 2012 and other government planning requirements.

b) The post holder has responsibility Trust wide to ensure the development and delivery of the organisation's emergency planning and resilience function and improve standards of emergency preparedness across the organisation.

c) The post holder will contribute to the management, coordination, development and delivery of service business continuity plans and incident response plans via the Trust Resilience Group and will be heavily involved in the delivery of the EPRR training and exercise programme for the Trust.

d) The post holder in partnership with the Emergency Planning Lead will represent the Trust within multi agency emergency planning committees.

Main duties of the job

a) Support in maintaining the Trust risk register by analysing and interpreting data to understand the threats to and vulnerabilities of its critical services.

b) Maintain emergency plans to support reducing, controlling and mitigate the effects of incidents that may impact upon the trust.

c) Assist in the delivery of the Trusts Business Continuity Management System, with a particular focus on supporting teams to review their Business Impact Analysis' (BIA) and Business Continuity Plans (BCP). Support the Emergency Planning Lead to review the Trust-wide BIA and BCP.

d) Assist in the delivery of training sessions in line with the Trusts Training Needs Analysis to variety of SCFT staff, including the On Call team, Trust Executives and incident support staff, in relation to Emergency and Business Continuity Planning.

e) Support the Emergency Planning Team in developing and delivering Table-top, Live-play and Communications Exercises to staff across the Trust, and multi-agency partners, to ensure the effectiveness of Trust plans and procedures. Attend multi-agency Exercises across the NHS Sussex system and SRF.

f) Prepare reports for internal and external use to provide updates on Emergency Planning work-streams. This includes compliance reports for Training and Exercising and Business Continuity.

About us

We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex, with 6,000 staff serving 1.3 million people. We deliver essential care to adults and children, helping them manage their health, avoid hospital admissions, and reduce hospital stays.

Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community. We offer opportunities across medical, clinical, support, and corporate services.

Why work for us?

• Positive 2024 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeingo Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussex
• Flexible working options: part-time, flexi-time, annualised hours, and flexi-retirement
• Excellent training, development, and research opportunities
• Accredited Living Wage Employer, we ensure fair pay for all our staff
• Cost-effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brighton
• Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief network
• Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust

Our values--Compassionate Care, Working Together, Achieving Ambitions, Delivering Excellence--guide everything we do.

We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment.

This post may close early if sufficient applications are received.

Job responsibilities

a) Provide efficient, comprehensive and professional support to the Emergency Planning Lead.

b) Undertake EPRR risk assessments in conjunction with the National and Community Risk Register and assessing the risks facing the Trust with regards to EPRR, developing and maintaining controls assurance for these risks and ensuring they are documented on the Trust Risk Register; and reporting regularly to the Resilience Group.

c) Provide specialist knowledge on matters relating to the emergency planning and business continuity within the Trust.

d) Support the Emergency Planning Lead in the development of new and revised plans related to EPRR

e) Support the development of Business Continuity Plans to minimise and where necessary address risks and hazards identified across the Trust and within the surrounding geographical area.

f) To support the Emergency Planning Lead in the development and preparation of training materials to contribute to organisational resilience by delivery of an ongoing training and exercise programme, ensuring that robust processes are in place which meet the needs of staff, and raising EPRR profile and awareness.

g) Reviewing the response to major incidents and disruptions to Trust services, assessing the adequacy of plans and making recommendations for improvement to the Emergency Planning Lead.

h) Engaging with internal and, where appropriate, external stakeholders including, but not restricted to, NHS England, ICBs, UK Health Security Agency, other Health Providers, Emergency Services, Local Authorities; promoting partnerships and co-operative working.

i) Engaging with external suppliers, local, regional and national, through appropriate management structures to advise and assist with ensuring business continuity plans are in place.

j) In partnership with the Emergency Planning Lead represent the Trust at health and multi-agency meetings concerning emergency preparedness including exercise planning at local, regional and national levels.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or equivalent, Post Graduate Diploma, Management qualification or equivalent

Experience

• Experience in Emergency Planning, Business Continuity
• Experience in multi-agency and partnership working with other NHS Trusts, Local Authority and Social Services
• Proven record of planning, delivery and participation in Emergency Planning/Major Incident/Business Continuity exercises
• Proven record of planning, delivery of training in Emergency Planning and Major Incident/ Business Continuity response

Skills and Knowledge

• Excellent communication skills both written and verbal, able to communicate complex information to staff at all levels
• Ability to give clear instruction and communicate concisely and accurately in written or verbal form
• Ability to communicate with and establish sound working relationships with multi-agency partners to share and develop plans
• Experience of Policy and Procedure and Plan development and implementation
• Excellent time management and prioritisation skills
• Ability to work with minimal supervision
• Ability to prepare and provide clear and concise reports
• Ability to continually analyse risks and threats that may affect the Trust
• Ability to review and analyse the Trust's emergency response plans to ensure compliance with current policy and legislation and preparedness to respond to major incidences and other events which affect the Trust
• Excellent IT skills in Word, Excel and use of Internet
• Knowledge and familiarity of technical communication systems including mobile and mobile PC working
• Sound understanding of the Civil Contingencies Act (2004), NHS England Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) Framework 2015, The NHS England Core Standards for Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response, The Health and Social Care Act 2012 and other government planning requirements.

Other

• Ability to drive

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.