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How to plan for staff safety in an emergency

By the EMPOBase team · · 4 min read

Short answer

A staff emergency plan lists each site, the routes out, who leads, how you reach everyone, and where people meet. Name wardens, keep a current emergency contact for every person, set up a communication tree, and practise with drills at least once a year. Review the plan after each drill, move, or change in risk.

Key points

  • Plan per site. An office, a guesthouse and a field base each need their own routes and meeting point.
  • Name wardens and a deputy for each site, and train them.
  • A communication tree only works if phone numbers and emergency contacts are current.
  • Drills find the gaps. Run one at least once a year and record what you learned.
  • Review the plan after every drill, relocation or change in the security situation.

What is an emergency plan for staff?

An emergency plan answers four questions before anything happens: where do people go, who decides, how do we reach each other, and who do we call. During an emergency, people act on habit. A plan that is short, practised and known by everyone gives them a habit to follow.

Duty of care means taking reasonable steps to keep staff safe. The right level of detail depends on your risks. A city office with fire and flood risks needs a different plan from a field base in a conflict area. Take advice from a safety professional where risks are high.

What should the plan cover for each site?

Write one page per site, whether an office, guesthouse or field base. Include:

  1. The address and a simple map or sketch.
  2. Two exit routes from each part of the building, and where the meeting point is.
  3. The most likely events, such as fire, flood, earthquake, violent unrest or medical emergency, with the first three steps for each.
  4. The location of first aid kits and fire equipment, with who checks them and when.
  5. The names and numbers of wardens and their deputies.
  6. Local emergency numbers and the nearest clinic or hospital.

Keep the steps short enough to read in a stressful moment.

Who are wardens and what do they do?

A warden is a trained staff member who leads people at a site during an emergency. Each site should have a warden and a deputy, so one absence does not leave a gap. Wardens:

  • know the exit routes and meeting point,
  • take a headcount at the meeting point,
  • guide visitors and anyone who needs help,
  • report to the person who leads the response.

Train wardens once a year and whenever the building or team changes. Choose people who are often on site, not only managers who travel.

How do you reach everyone? The communication tree

A communication tree is a simple chart of who calls whom. The leader calls four or five people, and each of them calls four or five more, until everyone has been reached. It is faster and more reliable than one person calling fifty.

For it to work:

  • list a phone number and a second way to reach each person,
  • name a backup for each caller,
  • test it with a short call-out, and time how long it takes,
  • agree what to say: the event, what to do, and where to go.

Many failed plans fail here because numbers are out of date. Our guide to duty of care and the one on staff wellbeing cover the wider picture.

Why do emergency contacts matter, and how do you keep them current?

If a staff member is hurt or missing, you need to reach a family member quickly. Collect an emergency contact for every person, including part-time and short-term staff. Ask them to check it at least once a year, and again after any life change such as a move or a new phone. Keep these details private, and tell staff who may see them.

How do you test and improve the plan?

A plan you have never practised is a guess. Test it with drills:

  1. Walk-through. Walk the exit routes with staff and note blocked doors or unclear signs.
  2. Evacuation drill. Sound the alarm and time how long it takes to reach the meeting point and complete a headcount.
  3. Call-out drill. Use the communication tree and see how many people you reach in 30 minutes.
  4. Review. After each drill, hold a short meeting, list what failed, and assign fixes with dates.

Record each drill with the date, who took part and what you changed. Run at least one drill each year, and again after a move to a new site.

What does a readiness check look like?

Once a year, ask these questions of the whole organization:

  • Does every site have a written plan, with exits and a meeting point, that was reviewed in the last twelve months?
  • Does every site have a named warden and a deputy, and have both been trained?
  • Does every staff member, including new hires, have a current emergency contact on file?
  • Was a drill held in the last twelve months, and were its findings fixed?
  • Do staff know the plan for travel, such as who to call if a vehicle is late?

Any “no” becomes an action with an owner and a date. Report the result to the leadership team, and keep the record for donors who ask about duty of care.

Where EMPOBase fits

The Duty of Care area of People & HR holds emergency sites with routes and communication trees, wardens, drill records and an organization readiness checklist. It also sends reminders to staff who have not filed an emergency contact. EMPOBase does not assess the security risk of your location or replace advice from a safety professional, so use it to keep the plan and its records in one place. See the documentation for details.

Questions people ask

Who is responsible for staff safety in an NGO?

The organization has a duty of care to its staff, and the executive director carries final responsibility. Day to day, a named safety or HR focal point keeps the plan current and the wardens trained.

Does the plan cover visitors and contractors?

It should. Visitors, drivers and contractors on your site are exposed to the same hazards. Include a simple sign-in record and brief them on exits and the meeting point.

How detailed should a plan for a small office be?

Two or three pages can be enough: site address, exits, meeting point, warden names, a phone list and the steps for the most likely events. A short plan that staff know is better than a long plan on a shelf.