Meeting Agenda:
Emergency Planning
| Meeting Date: | Monday 22 Nov 2021 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 19:00 |
| Councillors | Jon Aldridge Vice-Chairman, Angela Baker, Sarah Compton, Alan Damodaran, Margot McArthur Chair, Stuart McGregor, Steve Taylor, Bob Todd. |
| Committee: | Emergency Planning |
| Venue: | Rickards Hall. 72a High Street Edenbridge, TN8 5AR Kent |
| Notes: | |
| Summary: |
Agenda
Minutes
Long-term volunteer Jenny Brown has regretfully resigned from the committee after many years of support, not only as a licensed radio operator, but also as a Flood Warden, no longer being able to respond to emergency situations if necessary. Other committee members also no longer able to continue are Linda Brown, Gwen Chappell, Mary Grieve, Doreen Howe, Helen Jackman, Marjorie Johnson, Gill Lambert, Gill New, Ronnie Pearman, Wendy Sneyd, and Sara Young. These were all previously available to support a Rest Centre if necessary.
Formal co-option provides non-councillor committee members with the opportunity to speak at meetings (though not to vote on decisions) and also insurance cover during activities. It is reviewed annually, and the current list of individual co-optees is as follows:
Rose Briggs, Ben Brownless, Helen Burgess, Paul Byrne, Mick Cross, Jill Davison, Helen Doyle, Nick Harris, Bob Hart, Jan Hart, Mark Ilsley, Jim Kimber, Steven Knightley, Charles Laver, John Martin, Lesley , Martin, Robert McKillop, Steve Mercer, Robert Peters, Vicki Raeburn-Ward, Malcolm Rogers, Richard Rooth, Colin Thurston, Margaret Watts, Richard Williams,Rev Stephen Mitchell
Do members support these co-options?
The budget and expenditure up-date to 31 October is attached. The figures include £30 annual charge for storage of committee equipment at the WI Hall. The annual radio licence fee falls due in November.
| Financial Budget Comparison.pdf |
The annual budget for the committee was £339 for this current financial year.
Do members wish to request the same budget for the next year?
During the last few months there have been a few alerts of possible weather events, which could have had repercussions for the Edenbridge area, but mostly did not deliver effects felt in some places a little further afield. The “walkie talkie” radios were charged ready on a couple of occasions, but not needed, and the flood alert issued in September reduced after a day of steady river flow through. The stand-by stock of sandbags at Mowshurst Barn has been replenished with a further 60 supplied by SDC.
There are still a number of outstanding actions identified at the previous committee meeting which now need to be pursued:
- Convene a multi-agency meeting including Kent Highways, District Council, Environment Agency, and Police, with the Town Council
- Investigate function of the Southern Water pumping station
- Arrange a residents’ information meeting, with Environment Agency
- Check the Environment Agency debris screens
- Investigate super-fast phone chargers for emergency use
Lanyards have been acquired for Councillors and volunteers’ use, to assist with identification when out in the community.
It is still not planned to reopen the office to members of the public for the foreseeable future, but residents can continue to access services and the sale of waste and garden bags by maintaining social distancing outside the office.
The system established by the Town Council for community support still exists, and could be reactivated if necessary. A number of one-to-one support arrangements continue between residents - which grew out of the volunteering activity last year.
Registered Flood Wardens have received invitations to join on-line “bite-size” training on a variety of topics this autumn, including surface water flooding - no need to register, just click the link on that evening to take part. There are currently 14 wardens registered for Edenbridge.
The Town Council has approved expenditure up to £289 for one person to attend an on-line conference on 8th February focused on Flooding: Resilience, Management and Response. Click here to view the full agenda and further information on the event.
Does the Committee wish a person to attend the conference, and if so whom does it wish to nominate?
The committee has not arranged a practical exercise for some considerable time, and the need has been identified through the recent visit of the Council’s Health and Safety consultant from Ellis Whittam/WorkNest.
Which members of the committee would like to be part of the organising team?
The town’s Emergency Plan is reviewed annually, usually in November, though updates are added as necessary during the year. Cllrs Baker and Taylor carried out this review last year, without subsequent opportunity to report back on suggested amendments.
A year further on it is suggested that this review is revisited, and any required updates be reported back.
Which two or three members will undertake the review?
It was not possible to pursue this project in the first part of this year, and the idea of repeating the previous delivery of info-pack of booklets is no longer feasible, as most of the information has gone on-line. The proposal now is to provide households in vulnerable properties with a letter from the Town Council, and include with it the Personal Flood Plan template to be completed, and basic guidance on the most effective use of sandbags as a temporary defence for premises.
Is there a committee member who will take the lead on this project?
Each year two or three committee members carry out a check on the Emergency Planning equipment held in store.
Which members would like to volunteer for this important task?
Provisionally: March 2022 To be confirmed.