Crisis Management Kit Policy

Cerne Abbas CE VC First School, Duck Street, Cerne Abbas, Dorset, DT2 7LA

‘The Small School with the Big Heart.’

Tel: 01300 341319         e-mail:office@cerneabbas.dorset.sch.uk         Website: www.cerneabbas.dorset.sch.uk

Cerne Abbas CE VC First School 

Crisis Management Kit Policy

AIMS

The aim of this Kit is to ensure that all staff and governors of Cerne Abbas First School are aware of their responsibilities and duties in the event of a crisis that affects the school.  It is the responsibility of the Governors Finance Committee to ensure this Kit is kept up to date.

Procedures and advice on the following possible scenarios are included in the Kit:

1. Intruders on school premises
2. Fire
3. Power/heating failure
4. Vandalism/theft
5. Adverse weather conditions/natural disasters
6. Death of pupil or member of staff
7. Accident during school trip
8. Medical alert/member of staff taken ill
9. Missing Pupil
10. Lockdown
11. Terrorism
12. Pandemic eg Covid-19
13. Cyber Security

Appendix – Winter checklist and maintenance numbers.

1. INTRUDERS ON SCHOOL PREMISES

Whilst it is difficult to make the school site totally secure, we must do all we can to ensure the school is a safe environment for all who work or learn here.  Intruder alarms are present throughout the main building, however these are only set at night and during weekends and holidays.

All visitors to school should sign in with our electronic sign-in system and wear the photograph badge.  All staff should feel confident in issuing a polite challenge to any visitor, such as; “can I help you?” or “are you lost?”.  If any member of staff is concerned about the presence or behaviour of any visitor they should report this to the Headteacher, asking the visitor to accompany them to the school office.  If the person will not cooperate the following procedure should be followed:

1. Try to assess the category of intruder and the threat they pose – e.g:

• Opportunist thief
• Non-custodial parent seeking access to their child
• Armed intruder
• Angry parent

2. Always ask another person to accompany you when approaching an 

intruder.  Do not stand too close or invade personal space.  Be polite, 

stay calm and speak gently, slowly and clearly.  Never place your hand 

on a potentially aggressive intruder.  Do not turn your back and if you

leave the room, walk out backwards.

3. Be on the look out for weapons.

4. If in any doubt about your own or anyone else’s personal safety do not 

approach the intruder.  Seek help by asking someone to contact the 

police.  You will need to do so without alerting the intruder of your 

intentions.

5. If there is any doubt about the safety of pupils or staff, and it would not exacerbate an already sensitive situation, evacuate the building using the normal fire evacuation procedure (see Section 2).  However, if this would make the situation worse this approach should be avoided.

6. If the intruder is trying to steal something do not be tempted to “have a go” at stopping them if this would put you or someone else at risk.

7. If the intruder is trying to abduct a pupil or threatening violence, consider the following:

• Is the intruder known to the victim or staff member?
• Will the victim be in more or less danger if you confront the intruder?
• Is it possible to reason with the intruder?
• Do you have any knowledge of the intruder which will assist your judgement.

The only principles which must be followed are to take the course of action which you believe presents the least risk to the children and school staff and summon the police as soon as possible.

After the event

Any violent incident which takes place in school must be reported to, Health and Safety Officer, Dorset  Council.

It is possible that those involved could be traumatised by the incident and it may be appropriate to arrange counselling.

If the intruder has left the premises but could pose a threat to other schools, DC Schoolwatch should be contacted. 

Schoolwatch can only be triggered by the Police at Poole Police Station – call 101 or 01202 222222.

Types of incident to report include – Abduction, assault, interference or inappropriate approach, Aggressive, suspicious or unauthorised persons, Bogus calls or anything that arouses suspicion.

It may be appropriate for the Headteacher or Chair of Governors to brief officers from DC, particularly if there is any media interest.  No other member of staff should speak to the press or other media without first consulting DC.

2. FIRE

In the event of a fire the following procedures should be followed:

1. Member of staff who finds the fire must sound the fire alarm then go to the school office and let the Headteacher or office staff know where the fire is.
    
2. Headteacher and office staff should wear fluorescent jackets so that they are easily recognisable as a contact point and go to the assembly point over the road, taking the Crisis Management Kit, the class registers, First Aid bag and print off of visitors present in the school.
    
3. Headteacher or office staff to contact Fire Service.
    
4. On hearing the fire alarm, Class teachers should lead their children out of class and assemble them across the road on the hard play area.  They should bring any medical supplies they may need if away from the building for any length of time – i.e. for asthmatic children.
     
5. Class Teachers collect their class register from the Headteacher and take a roll call.  If any children are not present inform the Headteacher immediately before deciding what action to take.  Administrator should check the Inventory App to ensure all visitors to the premises (including contractors) have assembled in the playground.
    
6. Classroom support staff and teachers are responsible for checking everyone has left their classroom and office staff will check no one is in the toilet/cloakroom area.
    
7. The last member of staff out of an area is responsible for closing the doors and windows if safe to do so.
    
8. If it is safe to do so, (Office staff to switch off boilers in boiler room (right hand side inside door – turn boiler one and two off) – see building plan.
    
9. When all children and staff/visitors have been accounted for everyone should walk to Village Hall.  Headteacher or Administrator will stay at school to liaise with the emergency services and public.
    

The Chair of Governors will be informed of the incident as soon as practicable.

1. Once the Fire Service have assessed the situation, if it is decided that the building is unsafe, parents should be contacted to collect their children from the Village Hall (coordinated by Headteacher / School office).  Parental contact details (school office)  Administrator should contact  Area Officer of closure on 01305 224158 (Transport Dorset Community Transport 01258 287984 and Beaver Cabs 01935 816620)
    

Only the Headteacher, Chair of Governors or DC staff should deal with any media interest.

3. POWER/HEATING FAILURE/BURST PIPES (FLOOD)

The effect of loss of power in school will depend on the time of year.  In the summer months it should not prove to be too much of a problem, apart from the Administration computer systems.  In the winter loss of power will mean the school is too dark to work in and the heating will fail causing the temperature to be too low for children and staff.  Only the Headteacher can make the decision to close the school.  They will take the following actions:

1. Headteacher / Administrator to contact the Electricity Board to establish how long power is likely to be off.  SSE 0345 0262658
    
2. If pipes have burst, if safe to do so, Site Manager to switch off mains water supply (see building plan at Appendix 1).
    
3. Chair of Governors to be consulted, if possible.  01300 321281 / 07850 914630
    
4. School transport services to be contacted to advise operators of closure/new arrangements
    
5. Parents to be contacted, coordinated by the Administrator. 
    
6. Headteacher to contact Strategic Services Emergency Planning Liaison Officer on 01305 224690 and advise of closure and reason.

4. VANDALISM/THEFT

The main security threat to schools is vandalism and theft which may need to be reported to the police.  Section 40 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 makes it an offence to trespass on school property.

Any items of school property that are missing should be reported to the Headteacher as soon as possible.  She will decide if it is necessary to contact the police.

Any damage to school property should be reported to the Headteacher as soon as possible.  If the damage is severe enough to warrant closure of the school the procedures outlined in Section 3 should be followed.

If a member of staff sees someone trespassing on school premises they should follow the procedures outlined in Section 1.

5. ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS/NATURAL DISASTERS

If severe weather is forecast or the LEA notifies the school of expected severe weather it may be necessary to close the school.

The following procedure should be followed:

• Site Manager to contact Headteacher and advise of safety and accessibility of premises.
   
• Headteacher to contact Chair of Governors, if possible.  (Contact details at 01300 321281 – 07850 914630
  
   
• School transport services to be contacted by Administrator to advise operators of closure/new arrangements.  Administrator should contact  Area Officer of closure on 01305 224158 (Transport - Dorset Community Transport 01258 287984 and Beaver Cabs 01935 816620)
  
   
• Headteacher to contact Strategic Services Emergency Planning Liaison Officer on 224690 and advise of closure and reason.
   
• If school is to be closed in the middle of the day, Administrator to coordinate contacting parents to collect children.  Children should be collected from classrooms to ensure no one goes home unsupervised.  Parental contact details in school office.
   
• If the building has to be evacuated staff will follow the procedures outlined in section 2 to relocate the children to the Village Hall.
   

Even if the school is partly or wholly closed to pupils, staff are expected to report to work and undertake appropriate preparation or other duties as directed by the Headteacher.  Staff who are unable to reach school due to adverse road conditions should let the Headteacher, Finance and Business Manager know as soon as possible.

6. DEATH OF PUPIL OR MEMBER OF STAFF

It is the responsibility of the Headteacher to make sure the parents or next of kin of a staff member are informed of the tragedy as soon as possible.  In the case of a sudden death it is usual that the Police will undertake this role.  When the next of kin has been notified the following should happen:

• Senior Management Team should ensure that all staff members and the Chair of Governors are made aware of the situation as quickly as possible.
   
• No one should talk to the media or local community without prior authorisation of the Headteacher.
   
• Headteacher or Administrator should inform DC Education Psychology Dept.  Deborah Gill 01305 228300
   
• Headteacher, in consultation with Chair of Governors to make arrangements to close the school if necessary, ensuring the LEA is informed
   
• Headteacher should make arrangements to write a letter home to parents as soon as possible giving as much information as considered appropriate.
• Salisbury Diocese to be contacted to offer support

7. ACCIDENT DURING SCHOOL TRIP

The member of staff who has overall responsibility for the school trip should always carry a mobile phone.   Should an accident occur, after telephoning the emergency services, the following procedure should be followed:

• Headteacher to be informed immediately.
   
• A member of the SMT should, if possible, travel to the scene of the accident to support pupils and staff (it may be necessary to take other members of staff depending on the numbers of pupils affected).
   
• Administrator to make arrangements to transport pupils and staff back to school.
   
• Headteacher to advise relevant parents and next of kin of staff members involved in the accident.  (It may not be possible to do this in person as it is important that everyone involved knows what happened as quickly as possible).
   
• Administrator to ensure that all staff members and Chair of Governors are made aware of the situation as quickly as possible.  (all numbers in Red file in the office.
   
• All staff and governors should be asked to respect the need for all communication with media and local community to be made only by authorisation of Headteacher or Chair of Governors.
   
• Headteacher, in consultation with Chair of Governors to make arrangements to close the school if necessary, ensuring the LEA is informed
   
• Headteacher should make arrangements to write a letter home to parents as soon as possible giving as much information as considered appropriate.

8. MEDICAL ALERT/STAFF ILLNESS

In the event of the school being notified of a pupil contracting a serious contagious disease (e.g. meningitis) the following procedure must be followed:

• Headteacher/ Administrators to contact the child’s doctor to ascertain the implications for pupils and staff members who were in contact with the affected child.
   
• Following advice from a medical professional, if necessary a letter should be sent home with pupils advising parents of symptoms to watch out for and if there is a need to keep a child away from school.
   
• If an outbreak of the illness escalates, Headteacher to decide, after consultation with LEA and Chair of Governors, if it is necessary to close the school for an agreed period of time.
   

MEMBER OF STAFF TAKEN ILL

If a member of staff is taken ill during the school day a message should be sent to the office to send help.  The member of staff should be removed from the classroom if safe to do so and taken to the staff room.  The Headteacher will arrange for someone to take their class – under no circumstances should pupils be left unattended in their classroom.  The First Aider should assess the teacher’s condition and decide on further action.

9. MISSING CHILD

If a child goes missing from class during school time, the following should happen:

1. TA / Administrator to search all classes, store rooms and school grounds.
2. If child not found, Headteacher to be informed.
3. Headteacher  will arrange search of the immediate locality.
4. Parents will be contacted if child still not found.
5. Police to be informed.

10. LOCKDOWN eg gunman outside or External Chemical incident.

• Call 999
• Keep all children and staff within the building and away from roadside windows – ALL TO GO TO GIANT CLASS.
• Close all doors and windows
• If chemical incident place wet towels/clothing along bottom of doors and windows.
• Mobilise first aiders.
• Liaise with emergency services and provide update of incident and casualties if necessary.
• Ensure Chair of Governors is alerted.
• Determine requirement for initial media holding statement
• Determine requirement to inform pupils
• Determine requirement to inform parents.
• Ensure contact is made with DCC Emergency Planning Service.
• See separate Lockdown policy and procedure.

11. TERRORISM / RADICALISM

• Please see below frequently asked questions about visits and the threat from Terrorism produced by the National Guidance.
• Tight controls on Internet Use and age and race of children in school reduce risk of Radicalisation quite dramatically.
• Annual talk by Safer Schools Team who teach parents, children and staff safe internet use.

Visits and the threat from terrorism

What should we do about visits given the current threat of terrorist

attacks?

The current global situation means that the possibility of being close to, or caught

up in, a terrorist attack is a risk faced by us all. Like all risks this needs to be kept

in perspective and managed in a thoughtful and proportionate way. To provide

some perspective, the UK government identifies five levels of threat - from ‘low’ to

‘critical’. Since 2006, when the levels were first published, it has never been

below ‘substantial’ – the middle level.

When planning any off-site visit consider the likelihood of the destination, venue

or transport hubs being at risk of a terrorist attack.

It is sensible to:

• Be aware of the latest news relating to your destination

• In the UK, know the current threat level (available at:

www.mi5.gov.uk/home/the-threats/terrorism/threat-levels.html).

• Consider the threat of terrorism as part of visit risk management and

   include it within visit emergency plans. 

• Possible safe areas or venues, near where you intend to be, that you could

   use as an emergency shelter.

• How to minimise waiting time at busy transport venues?

• How you would get away in an emergency, bearing in mind that the direct

   route and planned transport might no longer be an option. Are you aware

   of alternatives and can you access emergency funds to pay for them?

• The possibility of an enforced overnight stay and what this might entail –

   for example do you need a reserve of any critical medication?

• How the leadership team might manage an enforced group split.

Visits and the threat from terrorism Page 2 of 2 

During the visit:

• Be vigilant and aware of your surroundings – know where the exits are and

   where you would run to.

• When staying at any place for more than 30 minutes identify emergency

   meeting points in case the group is forced to move and becomes split.

• Avoid congregating too long around entrances to major public sites.

• Be aware of the ‘Stay Safe’ principles: ‘Run, Hide, Tell’ and know what to

expect if you encounter armed response officers (see point 2 in ‘recognizing

the terrorist threat’: http://tinyurl.com/pp4fxmu)

Another useful source of information is the website of the National Counter-

Terrorism Security Office:

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/national-counter-terrorismsecurity-

office

If this link doesn’t work, try http://tinyurl.com/o5qjkvs.

12. Pandemic such as Coronavirus (COVID-19)

In the event of the following procedures to be followed:

• The school to maintain regular contact with the LA and follow their advice.
• The Pandemic Risk Assessment to be followed.
• The school to remain open to Key Worker and vulnerable children. Staff required to look after them on a rota basis to minimise any spread of infection.

• Procedures put in place for children entering moving and conducting themselves around the school (please see the Risk Assessment).
• The addendum to our Safeguarding policy concerning the monitoring of the welfare of our children and concerning on-line learning for the temporary new schooling arrangements to become active.
• A DSL to be on-site at all times.
• Children eligible for free school meals to be catered for through local vouchers and any LA/Government led scheme.
• Pupils continue learning through on-line learning platforms particular to each class (for example Tapestry, Google Classroom and Class Dojo). Ensure Our Facebook page ‘Stay at Home, Stay in Touch’ is live to celebrate children’s learning.
• Contact to be maintained with parents through emails, phone calls and the on-line learning platforms.
• Staff, Governor and other meetings continue to take place and decisions made via virtual on-line meetings.
• Staff welfare to be closely monitored through regular contact.
• Regular advice to be given and made available to parents with regards to their children.
• If necessary staff to shield in line with government guidelines.

CYBER SECURITY

1. Purpose and scope

1.1 The purpose of this Procedure is to establish systems and controls to protect Cerne  Abbas CE VC First School from cyber criminals and associated cyber security risks, and to ensure that appropriate action is taken should the school  fall victim to cyber-crime.

1.2 This Cyber Security Procedure applies to all IT systems used by Cerne Abbas CE VC First School including:

● Computers (Desktops, Laptops, Smartphones, Tablets, Servers);

● Telephony Hardware;

● Internet Routers and Firewalls;

● Wired and Wireless Networking Hardware;

● All software and operating systems used

● 3rd party systems (e.g. IT Helpdesk, FMS and

SIMS); and

● Cloud based systems (e.g. Office 365).

1.3 It is important, given the serious consequences of a cyber-attack, to be careful not to be the victim and to follow this procedure.

2. Introduction

2.1 What is Cyber Security? - Cyber security is how individuals and organisations reduce the risk of a Cyber attack. Its core function is to protect the devices that an organisation uses (smartphones, laptops, tablets, as well as local onsite and cloud based server infrastructure), from theft or damage and to prevent unauthorised access to the vast amounts of personal information that are stored on these devices,and on local servers and in the Cloud.

2.2 What is a Cyber Attack? - Cyber attacks are a risk for Cerne Abbas CE VC First School.

A cyber attack attempts to damage, disrupt or gain unauthorised access to computer systems, networks, devices and the data they contain. Itcan take shape in a variety of different forms, e.g. hacking, phishing emails,malware, viruses or ransomware attacks.

2.3 Impact of a Cyber Attack – Cyber attacks can have a devastating impact on organisations, with victims requiring a significant amount of recovery time to reinstate critical services. These events can also be high profile in nature, with wide public and media interest. In recent incidents affecting the education sector, ransomware has led to the loss of student coursework, school financial records, as well as data relating to COVID-19 testing. A cyberattack can trigger a breach investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

2.4 Who is responsible for Cyber Security? – It is the responsibility of all members of staff and governors and all need to contribute towards cyber security.

The Headteacher retains accountability for cyber security within the school and may delegate responsibility to the School IT Lead and Dorset IT Council.

The Headteacher and IT Lead will follow the advice Dorset Council IT Services.

2.6 Any member of staff or governor that is aware of or suspects a cyber attack or has a concern relating to a cyber security should immediately notify the Headteacher who will inform Dorset Council IT.

3. Prevention

3.1 The School IT Lead must put in place systems and controls to mitigate the risk of the school falling victim to a cyber-attack, taking the advice of Dorset Council IT .

These include technology based solutions as well as controls and instructions to all staff.

These will include approved:

● Firewalls (correctly configured – as per manufacturers guidance);

● Anti-virus and malware software;

● Anti-Spam filtering for email;

● Automatic updates for systems and applications;

Dorset Council IT - 

Doug Lambert    01305 224062

Drew Sams        01305 221509

Following an update from Dorset Council re phishing and cyber security this is a link to FGB responsibilities 

https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/information/school-governor-questions

Winter Checklist and maintenance numbers

Useful Numbers

Contacting us:  For any callouts within office hours, please use the following numbers – We will be more than happy to help.

•            Helpdesk Manager - Hayley Phillips - 01305 225275

•            Helpdesk West – Sacha Kelly - 01305 225298

•            Helpdesk Central – Issy Harris - 01305 225269

•            Helpdesk East – Jamie Igoe - 01305 225258

•            Helpdesk Contracts – Sharon Mildon - 01305225244

Should you need an emergency out of hours surveyor please call 01305 221909. 

Other contacts

Trend:  In the first instance please call the helpdesk or if you prefer you can call Nathan Berry direct on 01305 221931.  Please try to avoid leaving telephone messages for him, especially if they are urgent.

Grit/sand in preparation for the icy weather: Call Dorset Highways,  Nigel Dibden on 01202 896916

Dangerous trees or branches:  Call Steve Maros on 01305 228159 and he will be able to advise.

Power cuts (electric):  Call 08003163105, this number should be able to provide vital information such as how long the power cut should last, how widespread the problem is etc. You will need to quote your post code.

Contractors who will be working at your property:  We have recently raised orders on the following contractors following their successful tender submissions.

Dorchester – Building reactive: Dorset Build & Maintenance Company Limited                                                 

Dorchester – Plumbing reactive : Kia Ora

Dorchester – Electrical reactive : David R White Building Service Ltd.

Weymouth & Portland – Building reactive : TEK

Weymouth & Portland – Plumbing reactive : Kia Ora

Weymouth & Portland – Electrical reactive : David R White Building Services Ltd.

Sherborne – Building reactive: J M Reed

Sherborne – Plumbing reactive: W D Ritchie Ltd.

Sherborne – Electrical reactive: Spectrum

Ferndown – Building reactive: SCI Systems Ltd.

Ferndown – Plumbing reactive: T J Services

Ferndown – Electrical reactive: Davison Electrical Ltd.

Lifts: Stannah

Mechanical which now includes Heating, Water Hygiene & Kitchen: Watertite Heating Ltd.

Emergency Lighting: Turrell

Lightning Protection: Wessex Group

Fire Alarms – Remain the same

Auto Doors – Will change from Fix A Door to Geze in the near future

Parker Baths: ARJO

Sprinklers: Dorset Fire & Electrical

Drainage: Maintain Drains