
It can be hard to predict crime and violent incidents, but you can prepare for them using GuideOne's armed intruder resources.
The best way to protect your staff, your volunteers and the people who depend on your organization is to have an action plan ready to handle armed or hostile intruders.
Prepare to Prevent
By thinking about possible situations or risks, and taking steps to minimize the likelihood of them occurring, you limit the risk of surprise and chaos when an incident happens. The following considerations may be helpful:
- Establish a team. Develop a safety or risk management team that will be responsible for safety issues and designate a point person for that team.
- Assess your facility and response capability. A security assessment by a professional can go a long way toward identifying your organization’s vulnerabilities. Ask local law enforcement to conduct an assessment of your facility and plans. Alternatively, ask security professionals.
- Create an organization safety and security plan. Based on the results of the security assessment, develop a security plan that defines the roles of staff and volunteers with regard to safety and security. Your plan should also detail the prevention measures and responses to harmful situations that may arise.
- Establish a communication plan. In the case of a crisis, it is important to communicate efficiently—especially for members of your safety or risk management team. Create a plan of action for how your organization will communicate during an incident and decide how you will explain the situation to your community members, the public and media.
- Seek Training. When your security plan is in place, ensure all involved staff and volunteers are trained on their roles. Again, the assistance of local law enforcement or a security professional in training can be very helpful.
Link to the full article
Source: GuideOne