Supporting community groups to prepare for emergencies

Ready Communities

FIFE Council’s Emergency Resilience Team is reaching out to local groups to help lead on community arrangements during emergencies including extreme weather events such as flooding, heavy snowfall or drought. The team is also looking to work with individuals thinking about establishing groups in their local areas to prepare for adverse events.

The Emergency Resilience Team supports groups to develop community emergency resilience, so that they can take vital co-ordinated action across their community during emergencies.

Several groups in Fife are already established and the Emergency Resilience Team want to engage with more groups who could respond and help minimise damage and disruption to people and infrastructure locally during emergencies.

Spokesperson for Communities and Leisure Services, Cllr. Linda Erskine said: "Throughout the pandemic we saw a number of great local resilience teams selflessly helping their communities. Their example has helped us realise that we need more local community groups to step up to help adapt to adversity by meeting the challenges of a changing society and environment to protect people and help our communities recover quicker.

"We’re looking for community groups to consider how they can enhance their local resilience during emergencies."

Working with the Emergency Resilience Team, groups such as Craigrothie Village Hall Committee and East Neuk Community Emergency Planning Team (ENCEPT) already have a role in:

  • Co-ordinating community resources during times of crisis, such as fire, flood or loss of essential utilities
  • Developing the community’s chosen form of emergency resilience arrangement(s)
  • Being a point of contact for the community when liaising with Fife Council during an emergency
  • Supporting their community to recover from emergencies.

Community Volunteer from ENCEPT, Elizabeth Riches, said: "We're a registered charity covering the whole of the East Neuk.  We aim to work with our communities to prepare for, respond to and recover from emergencies in such a way that complements our local Emergency Services, whilst aiming to keep the most vulnerable living in our community safe.”

Please contact the Emergency Resilience Team now so that our local community groups can be prepared and have the knowledge, skills and confidence to build resilience for emergency events and protect vulnerable community members.

You can find out more at www.fife.gov.uk/communityresilience