Prepare
Your Business
Guidance for business owners and organisations
Emergencies can happen without warning from severe weather and power outages to cyber incidents and supply chain disruption. Planning ahead helps protect your people, assets, reputation and long-term viability.
5 ways a business can
Prepare for an emergency in Cheshire
Preparing your business before an emergency occurs will reduce downtime, financial loss and uncertainty
Preparing for an emergency in Cheshire
If you run a business in Cheshire, it is crucial that you are aware of the local, regional and national risks that could disrupt your operations. A disaster such as flooding, power outage, cyber-attack or supply chain issue could strike at any time. Therefore business-owners and managers should assess how they can be prepared for all eventualities and put a plan in place.
How could this affect my business?
Without sufficient preparation, many businesses would struggle to overcome the effects of a disruptive event. Carrying out a risk knowledge assessment and planning for the worst-case scenario will help your company ride the storm, limiting damage where possible, and ensuring you have a recovery strategy ready.
What is a Business Continuity Plan?
A Business Continuity Plan provides a strategy for prevention and recovery from potential threats to a company. It ensures resilience by identifying the elements you cannot afford to lose - such as information, stock, premises, staff, equipment, utilities and cash flow - and planning how to maintain them if an incident occurs.
For example, having contingency plans in the event of a power outage is critical since it could completely shut down your business, preventing access to vital documents and the ability to contact key personnel. Steps to protect your organisation could include investing in an emergency generator and making plans for how personnel can find and/or get in touch with each other in a blackout.
Reduction in staff availability
Prepare for reduced staff availability by identifying critical roles, cross-training team members, and creating a priority rota to maintain essential services.
Loss of telecommunications or computer system
Prepare for loss of telecommunications or computer systems by maintaining offline contact lists, backup devices, manual processes, and a clear escalation plan to keep essential operations running.
Loss of access to premisis
Prepare for loss of access to premises by identifying alternative work locations, remote working options, and procedures to protect staff, customers, and essential operations.
Failure of key suppliers or partners
Prepare for failure of key suppliers or partners by identifying alternatives in advance, maintaining key contact details, and agreeing contingency arrangements for essential goods and services.
What to do if there is an emergency?
Understand the risks that could affect your business locally and nationally.
Reduce the likelihood of disruption where possible, for example, use multiple suppliers, secure your IT
systems, and maintain strong passwords.Create and maintain an up-to-date Business Continuity Plan (BCP) that includes:
How to stay informed during an emergency
Your business-critical resources
How to communicate effectively with staff and customers
Practice your plan regularly and make sure it’s accessible even if you can’t reach the office.
If you or anyone else is in immediate danger, call 999.
Stay calm, activate your Business Continuity Plan and keep it to hand.
Think about what your insurers might need - take lots of pictures and videos as evidence of loss/damage.
Stay in contact with key people and keep them informed. What do staff, suppliers and customers need to know?
Identify which business activities can continue and which may need to be put on hold.
Speak to people who may be able to help, such as local/neighbouring businesses, local authorities.
Recovery can be a complex and long-running process and will probably involve more people than in the response phase of an incident.
Be prepared that things may not return to ‘normal’, but could be restored to a new improved normal.
Learn from what happened to influence future incident planning. Reflect on what did and did not go well.
Amend your Business Continuity Plan accordingly.
Where can I find more advice and information?
The North West Cyber Resilience Centre
The North West Cyber Resilience Centre (NWCRC) supports businesses of all sizes with training and are a not-for-profit, police-led partnership providing small businesses with affordable, professional cybersecurity services.
Business_Continuity_Managment_Toolkit.pdf
The Business Continuity Management Toolkit (publishing.service.gov.uk) is an HM Government guide to BCM.
The Business Continuity Institute
The Business Continuity Institute is a knowledge hub containing reports, case studies and webinars.
Business Continuity Plan Template
A template business continuity plan you can use for your business
Environment Agency
The Environment Agency provides useful information on flooding, tools to find out if you are at risk of flooding, and how to sign up for flood warnings.
The Flood Hub
The Flood Hub has specific flood-related information for businesses.
10 ways you can improve risk management
The top 10 risks that small businesses face, from slips and trips to fires and burglary, and the measures you can put in place to place to prevent them.
Being prepared for a power cut
Electricity North West can provide help and advice.
Advice for medium to large organisations
to help respond to a cyber incident
If your business or organisation is victim of a cyber attack there are resources and support available to help you
Is your business fire-safe and compliant?
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service's Business Fire Safety Check (BFSC) helps ensure your workplace meets fire safety regulations and legal duties under the Fire Safety Order.
Counter terrorism advice for businesses
Vital counter terrorism security information including training materials, protective guidance, and campaign toolkits.