West Sussex County Council local authority awarded national standard by BSI

West Sussex County Council has become the first local authority in England to be awarded a national standard proving the resilience of all its services.

The British Standard for Business Continuity shows the council can handle crisis situations in the worst of conditions. It was awarded after auditors from the British Standards Institute (BSI) spent seven days quizzing managers and staff about what they would do in various emergencies.

“Business Continuity is all about making sure that vital services can continue to operate during a crisis,” explained Peter Evans, County Council Cabinet Member for Public Protection. “It could be anything from a simple power failure for a few hours, to a major catastrophe.
“Being the first to gain this standard is a major achievement, and shows the County Council is determined to safeguard citizens and services during any kind of emergency. It means other authorities have a benchmark they can work towards.”

Now a special presentation is to be made to the County Council, which like all councils, has an Emergency Management Team on permanent standby.

Areas examined by the BSI auditors included West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, the Contact Centre in Bognor Regis, the county Homecare Team and Trading Standards.

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Well done Crawley!!

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