Disaster Management Training Module 3: Have a Plan

You Need a Plan Coordinate and collaborate Work effectively under stressful circumstances Make impact In the last module we got a view of the big picture how we need to work to efficiently and effectively support the people impacted in disaster. To facilitate a coordinated approach to disaster management and ensure everyone involved will have an understanding of their roles, responsibilities and what they are there to do, your church needs a Disaster Management Plan. In this module, we will review the steps to creating you own local church disaster plan: Content time: 5 minutes Activities: 1 x 5 minutes Total time: 10 minutes approx.

Make it Yours Template is available for local church use Review the Disaster Management Framework Review the template Adapt to the suit your area’s needs Knowing where to start in making your disaster plan can be overwhelming and it can become a stumbling block to actually getting it done. To overcome this, the LCAQD have a local church disaster management plan template in their on line disaster management resources, which can be used by Local Church as a guide to creating their own disaster plan. To get started, review the Disaster Management Framework and the Disaster Plan template before creating your local church plan. Next, tailor the template so that it will be relevant to your area. The disaster response activities in the template plan can be adapted to suit a major disaster event such as cyclone or flood or any other type of event. This is important, as we cannot pre-empt the type of disaster or the severity with which it may impact our region therefore it is vital that there is flexibility to adapt your plan to meet the given situation. What the plan does provide is a structure that ensures a disaster response will can be coordinated and will provide opportunity to collaborate and work together with the existing disaster management arrangements.

It Takes a Village Local Church collaborates with multiple agencies to: Identify gaps in services People needing assistance Needs of the community You’ve heard the saying it takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a village to respond and assist a community to recover from disaster. In some instances the impact can be so wide reaching with multiple agencies must work together to provide assistance and local church needs to work in that structure to provide effective support. For example, in the bigger picture, Dept of Housing may be sourcing replacement accommodation, State Government providing financial assistance, Salvation Army providing food assistance, Uniting Care providing counselling support. By connecting with the bigger picture, your church will be able to collaborate to identify gaps in services and also be a referral point for agencies needing to connect someone with friendship and spiritual support. The assistance you give will hit the mark

It Takes a Team Coordinate requests for support Coordinate communication Coordinate volunteers Coordinate use of church facilities It takes a village working together to help a community, and at local church level, it will take a team working together. While the congregation may provide the volunteer capacity and resources to support in disaster, all these efforts need to be coordinated within and outside the church, for example: Requests received for help need to be recorded and actions coordinated There needs to be accurate, consistent messaging with the congregation, public and people the church will be working with Volunteer placement needs to be coordinated to ensure volunteers are used effectively, safely and are well rested A central facility needs to be coordinated for volunteers to report for duty, for meetings to be held, and to receive and send information Use of church Facilities for response and recovery efforts needs to be coordinated These are some of the elements that need to be coordinated in disaster management, responsibilities for the elements can be delegated individually or jointly, depending on the size of the congregation and the severity of the impact of the disaster event. The disaster management plan template outlines the roles and responsibilities of a disaster response team which would be responsible for coordination of these key elements.

Appoint a working group who will be responsible for : Reviewing the Disaster Resilience Framework Drafting a local church plan using the template Appoint a Disaster Response Team Set a date for each of the actions outlined above Let’s put the wheels in motion … for the next five minutes: Appoint a working group who will be responsible for : Reviewing the disaster resilience framework Drafting a local church plan using the template Nominating a Disaster Response Team Set a date for each of the actions outlined above When you’re ready, start the discussion countdown by clicking on the START button or enter on your keyboard. Once discussion are complete, proceed to the next slide. 5 Min 4 Min 3 Min 2 Min 1Min Next

Appointed a working group and set target dates to start the journey Why we need a plan The tools to help us Appointed a working group and set target dates to start the journey We’ve got a plan to make a plan In this module we’ve reviewed the steps necessary to start drafting your local church disaster plan. Why we need a plan The tools to help us Appointed a working group and set target dates to start the journey We’ve got a plan to make a plan The next module is will be reviewing the disaster management building blocks, which will help further with the development of your local church plan End