A Local Authority case study for a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan - PEEP

1. A Local Authority case study for a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan - PEEP Ian Sands – Health, Safety and Emergency Planning Officer Newry and Mourne District Council 23.11.09

2. Overview • Getting started • Case study – Main Council Offices • Training • Employee work activity profile • Employee disability profile • PEEPS case study • Documentation • Summary

3. Getting started • Identify the areas which allow access to disabled persons. • NMDC had 2 main sites, one with lifts, the *other did not. • *Still need to do a ‘PEEPS’ assessment regardless (Ensure self-evacuation whenever practicable). • With training, Line Managers can coordinate PEEPS documentation and evacuation.

4. Case study – Main Council Offices • This example excludes assessment of visitors (Public building with meetings in Boardroom on 1st floor). • Identified existing disabled employees in building = 1.no • Profile of employee activities (Consulted with Employee and Line Manager) • Profile employee abilities (Consulted with Employee and Line Manager)

5. Training of evacuation coordinators • Training included: • Fire discovery/action (999, fire fighting, own safety) • Evacuation coordinator duties (zones, assembly point roll call) • Fire prevention (Risk assessment, arson, combustibles, electricity, maintenance, contractors) • Evacuation of disabled including PEEPS, practical operation of evacuation chairs, disability awareness and people handling/chair transfer

6. Employee work activity profile • Primary base in 1st floor typing pool office • Main activity – DMS/Document management (Scanning). • Employee also provides occasional cover at ground floor main reception. • Works in shared office and Line Manager in adjoining Office

7. Employee Disability Profile • Ability to walk unaided but at a slower pace. • Needs handrails on stairwells but can ascend and descend. • Would use lifts frequently

8. PEEPS case study • One to one discreet informal discussion held with employee and Safety Officer. • Useful open discussion of employee’s abilities, concerns and disability. • Agreed that employee was confident to self-evacuate from normal place of work, downstairs 1 flight and then down final external steps. • Thereafter, due to 100m distance (fatigue) to fire assembly point; employee agreed to be transferred into evacuation chair for transportation. • Alternative means of escaped identified – see PEEPS (Horizontal evac/Refuge/Intercom)

9. PEEP Case study – Paperwork! • See PEEP form example • 2 parts – Employee and Line Manager • ‘Buddy’ system – i.e. for assurance and minor assistance during evacuation. Could be one of several persons sharing office. • Evacuation coordinator to assist with chair deployment and employee transfer – but can still perform other duties. i.e. site clearance and then roll-call at fire assembly point.

11. Transferring to Evacuation Chair

12. Final comments/ Q & A • Ensure you regularly inspect your evacuation chairs (Condition and location) – they can go missing! • Review you PEEPS at least annually-it will never be perfect! • Train as many as you can – will coordinators be there when you need them? • PEEPS form filling is one of the last tasks – informal chat can reveal more about the PERSON. • Ensure PEEPS form part of you recruitment procedures – follow up and record complete. • Note this completed in you Fire Risk Assessment.