Plans and preparation are vital, should the worst happen, but more often it is the lesser events which occur where schools could really use a formal procedure. Emma Gray, chief finance and operations officer, explains why she is developing a ‘not-such-a crisis’ plan for these moments
Read the full article below on page 32 in our January magazine
Although I sometimes yearn to pack my bags to go and live the life of a remote hermit, I’ve so far resisted the urge. Something about a small stone hut on the side of a lake with civilisation way over a mountain is very appealing, but the desire to remain accessible to my family, embrace the challenges of work, and take a daily hot shower keep me grounded.
This is the sort of thought process I go through at the beginning of a new year. What’s in store? Where am I heading? What are the priorities on my to-do list? Could I escape it all?
I do like January – it’s an incredibly positive month. It feels fresh, like a clean start. It’s a time to wait patiently for the spring bulbs, plan for the year ahead, use a small space window to review policies and procedures and, of course, there is always that thrilling chance of a few snow days.
This year, we’ve already had a snow day with an unexpected fall on a Sunday in mid-December. It was lovely, for a few minutes; then it became a day of messaging what-ifs, can-we’s, and how shall we’s? Inevitably (and necessarily) the decision was left to the last possible moment, but then glitches in the systems needed to be dealt with. It was not a fun day. I don’t like texting staff at nine p.m. asking if they could just sort something out.
One of the problems I find with emergency, business continuity and crisis management plans is that we only think to use them in a major crisis or emergency. Of course, the plans and preparation are vital, should the worst happen, but more often it is the lesser events which occur where we could really use a formal procedure.
So, I’m thinking of introducing a ‘not-such-a-crisis’ plan in my trust. This plan will lay out a procedure for a minor, but unusual, event which requires the input of key members of staff. It will list who is needed and how we will communicate; it can draw on experience of previous events and we can review and update it after the event. It will mean we have a record of the event and ensure responsibility doesn’t fall on one person. We can also put in some clear succession should, for example, senior staff be out of the country.
I’m thinking my ‘not-such-a-crisis’ plan could be used for:
Unexpected snowfall or other inclement, weather-affecting, operations.
Power, heating, or water failure.
Moderate-to-high levels of absence among staff and/or students.
An incident on a school trip.
Damage, however caused, to buildings or equipment.
An incident on site during school holidays.
I’m sure you can think of lots of other occasions in your school when a checklist would have been helpful, meaning staff involved had prior warning of when they would be needed and dare I say, when they wouldn’t! The key headings in my plan are going to be:
Who will be involved? (My advice is keep it to a minimum).
How are those involved going to communicate with each other?
Who is required to advise on the decision?
Who is required to make the decision?
Who leads on communications to staff/parents/students?
Who supports the communications? (From a technical point of view.)
Who reviews the event and updates the plan?
This sounds so simplistic and obvious but, for us and our recent Sunday snow day, it would have saved a lot of time, minimised avoidable delays and resulted in targeted support and clear communications. It would have also given us an evidence record, should it be needed.
Of course, we managed, we got the job done and the communications out. The outside world wouldn’t have seen anything other than serenity as we swept into action and got it all sorted. From the inside, I would just have liked a bit more structure and targeted input. Thankfully, major incidents are rare, but those small ones which seem to test us on a regular basis could, I think, be supported by some small formality and overall awareness.
I want to wish a happy new year 2023 to all school business leaders across the UK, and beyond. For me, 2023 is going to be a year of significant change in the colleagues I work with and how I execute my role in my trust. It’s exciting, but daunting at the same time.
I really want to streamline my day-to-day and become more organised, so I’m ready when those unusual events take place. How do you manage the ‘not-such-a-crisis’ in your school?
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