Emergency Plans - Welfare

Emergency Rest Centre

Emergency Rest Centre (ERC) is defined as: Premises which provide a form of short-term accommodation during a disaster or other civil emergency, set up to shelter people who are temporarily homeless, either because their homes are no longer habitable, or to remove them from danger nearby. It is intended to provide:

• Basic feeding
• Care and attention
• Information
• Shelter
• Warmth

Reasons for Evacuation - Short Term Evacuation

Evaluated as being precautionary rather than necessary and the duration should be assessed as being up to 24 hours. Possible scenarios could include:

• A gas leak
• General fires
• Localised storm damage, snow or flooding
• General transport accidents/incidents
• Traffic accident involving a fuel or chemical tanker (leakage or fire)
• A siege/hostage incident
• Discovery of a terrorist explosive store/device
• Bomb scare
• Firearms incident
• Chemical leak (off-road)
• Structural damage to buildings

Rest Centre Management & Operating Procedure Guidance
This guidance has been prepared with reference to the five local authority Major Incident Plans of Tyne and Wear and will be implemented in accordance with their provisions. The document is intended to be used as a guide to rest centre ‘best practice’ although implementation of its recommendations will be at the discretion of individual local authorities.

The main body of the guidance outlines the general principles of rest centre provision including the basic facilities that evacuees may require and the administration and resources that need to be considered for its operation.

Aim of the Guidance
The aim of this guidance is to provide advice and guidance to the local authority in the provision of immediate short term accommodation, welfare and feeding facilities for persons evacuated from their homes or place of work, made homeless, or, requiring shelter, as a result of a major incident or state of emergency.

The guidance may also be used as a training tool for designated local authority rest centre staff to enable a clearer understanding of their roles and responsibilities.

Objectives of the Guidance

• To disseminate ‘best practice’ in rest centre provision;
• To provide guidance to the local authority for the effective and efficient mobilisation of resources and personnel
• To  provide such temporary accommodation as is required;
• To identify those local authority personnel who will respond as a Rest Centre Team including an explanation of their roles;
• To highlight the necessary rest centre functions that are required in rest centre activation;
• To identify additional resources that the local authority may call upon in rest centre provision.

Humanitarian Assistance Guidance (HAC)  

The HAC is a ‘one stop shop’ for information in the aftermath of an emergency. It should provide those affected, directly or indirectly, by the emergency with as much information and help as is possible to arrange at a convenient location.  

The role of the HAC is to:

• Act as a focal point for the provision of humanitarian assistance to bereaved families and friends and survivors, and where appropriate to anyone else who has been affected;
• Enable those affected to gain as much information as is currently available about missing family members and friends;
• Enable the gathering of mass forensic samples in a timely manner, which enhances the ability to identify loved ones quickly;
• Offer access to a range of facilities that will allow families and survivors to make informed choices according to their needs; and
• Ensure a seamless multi-agency approach to humanitarian assistance in emergencies that should minimise duplication..