Agenda item

To consider a report (copy attached) by the Head of Corporate Support Service: People presenting the North Wales Regional Emergency Planning Service’s Annual Report 2023/24.

11.45am - 12.15pm

The Corporate Director: Governance and Business introduced the North Wales Councils’ Regional Emergency Planning Service’s (NWC- REPS) Annual Report 2023/24 (previously circulated) to Members.

The purpose of the report was to promote the NWC-REPS Annual Report and provide confidence to Members that Denbighshire was prepared in the event of an emergency. NWC-REPS ensured that significant arrangements were in place regarding emergency planning within the Council and the report specifically detailed:

·       How the regional service contributed to resilience and security of communities in Denbighshire.

·       The current work programme of the Service.

·       The structure within Denbighshire County Council to respond to a crisis or emergency.

·       Out of hours emergency planning provision.

·       Training and Development for staff in Emergency Planning roles.

The Isle of Anglesey County Council, Conwy County Borough Council, Denbighshire County Council, Flintshire County Council and Wrexham County Borough Council worked together in a partnering relationship through the establishment in 2014 of a Regional Emergency Planning Service for North Wales.

The Service undertook the functions of the Councils in respect of civil contingencies and was accountable to an executive Board that comprised of senior representatives of those Councils. NWC-REPS provided a service to ensure the Local Authorities were compliant with the following legislation:

·       Civil Contingencies Act 2024

·       Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations, 2015

·       Pipeline Safety Regulations, 1996

·       Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations, 2019

The Annual report detailed the work of note NWC-REPS had undertaken in the last year.

The Chair thanked the Corporate Director: Governance and Business for the report and questions were welcomed from Members.

In response to a question, he confirmed that the report of the Menai Straits Simultaneous Bridge Closure Group was expected to be available by the end of the current reporting year.  He also outlined NWC-REPS’ involvement in traffic management following the recent unexpected closure of the port of Holyhead due to the damage caused by Storm Darragh.

Members questioned if the Council should be monitoring threats that were happening around the world and asked if the planning process for potential emergencies incorporated these new threats as the world became more precarious.

The Corporate Director: Governance and Business stated that there was a UK and an All-Wales Risk and Assessment Register which informed all plans currently in place. Plans were in place for potential cyber-attacks and climate change related emergencies. The Emergency Planning Officer further explained that the team worked closely with Welsh Government which then informed the Multi-Agency Resilience Forum who looked at how upcoming risks were mitigated regionally.  Planning for emergency situations was far bigger than just a regional and local approach, there was an emergency planning hierarchy in place.  Dependent upon the nature of the risk UK Government and/or Welsh Government would identify the risks and national mitigation measures, this would then be fed down to regional emergency planning services to draw up more local mitigation measures and local plans to respond to the various emergencies if they occurred.  Regional risk registers included both national, regional and local risks.  The North Wales Risk Register was due to be published on North Wales Fire and Rescue Service’s (NWFRS) website in the near future.

Members asked if the Council was prepared for any emergencies in relation to the resources available under the current financial climate and questioned how members could be trained to deal with a situation if it arises.

The Corporate Director: Governance and Business stated that the Council was prepared as much as possible. Members were well informed of any emergencies via Council meetings, circulated emails and a variety of communication forms. General awareness training looking at the emergency planning systems that were in place would be looked into following the meeting with the involvement of Lead Member.

The Emergency Planning Officer stated that a briefing session had been provided for Members previously in May 2022 and a Members Handbook was created at the time and circulated. The Emergency Planning Team were happy to provide any further training that was required. Officers offered to recirculate the handbook along with updated links to Members.

Members discussed the possibility of a checklist containing emergency contact information being circulated. The Corporate Director: Governance and Business stated that he would liaise with the Emergency Planning Team and discuss this further, adding that it would be beneficial for Members.

The Chair thanked the Corporate Director: Governance and Business and the Emergency Planning Officers for their attendance at the meeting. 

The Committee:

Resolved:  subject to the above observations and the provision of the information requested –

(i)             to acknowledge the work undertaken by the North Wales Council’s Regional Emergency Planning Service during 2023/24 as detailed in the Annual Report; and

(ii)           endorse the Service’s efforts locally, regionally, and nationally to date during 2024/25 with a view to ensuring that sufficient arrangements are in place to respond and deal with any emergencies that may arise.