Preparing for Critical incidents, Bereavement and Loss
2.1 Ensure you have the correct systems in place
All staff need to have knowledge of the plans and policies as it is not possible to determine in advance who might be affected or called into action. It would be beneficial if staff are involved in drawing up plans so that there is a collective understanding and commitment to support them. Schools will need to decide on their own definition of what they consider to constitute a ‘critical incident’ or ‘crisis’.
2.1.1 School and College Security Policy
In November 2019, the Department of Education released new guidance on school and college security policies. This can be found here. This includes templates and advice on emergency planning and business continuity. These documents have been adopted locally by the Coventry Solihull and Warwickshire Resilience Team.
The security policy should be a suite of documents that compliments existing procedures. It should be considered as part of an educational setting’s safeguarding responsibilities and legal obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act, 1974. The policy writer should consider realistic risks and threats to the site and develop appropriate plans and procedures according to the level of impact. Plans should cover procedures for during and outside of normal operating hours, including weekends and holidays, and for extended services on the premises.
2.1.2 Emergency Incident Planning
An emergency plan should be generic enough to cover a range of potential incidents including serious injury to a student or staff member; significant damage to school property; severe weather; public health incidents; and the effects of disaster in the local community. A checklist can be found at the link above that assists in emergency incident planning considerations. It is recommended that everything on the checklist can be evidenced. This does not mean that it must be collated into one document, but all documents should be readily available for if an incident occurs. The checklist should be reviewed annually, or before, if an incident has occurred to accommodate any changes in guidance, staff members or incident learning.
2.1.3 School Bereavement and Loss Policy
See Child Breavement UK - Developing a school bereavement policy or charter.
2.1.4 Ensure you are aware of the Child Death Policy in Warwickshire Local Authority and any other authority in which students lives.
2.2 Ensure communication systems are in place
See poster from CSW Resilience team on who to call in an emergency.
Prepare and Maintain Up-to-Date Lists of Contact Telephone Numbers
- Pupils' parents/guardians
- Staff (including part time/supply teachers and assistants)
- Governors
- Support Agencies
[Consider the following: Who needs to be on the lists?; Where are they to be kept?; When will they be updated and who will be responsible for this?; Do office staff always have a contact number when Headteacher is off site?; Is there a hard copy of information stored on a computer database?; Is a copy stored out of school?; Is there a list of staff who can provide additional help/back-up support both during and after school hours and at weekends - where is this list kept, are the contact numbers up to date?]
Knowledge of local support services for critical incidents available within your LA and an understanding of how each can help.
List of local voluntary services for longer term support, e.g. Victim Support, Cruse following traumatic bereavement to access if needed.
2.3 Ensure staff and pupils have the knowledge and understanding that will support them at times of crises and loss through:
Curriculum development (e.g. PSHE materials) around loss, grief, bereavement and resilience.
Include books on bereavement and loss in the library/in book corners.
Develop staff understanding about trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Develop staff understanding around factors that increase PTSD, decrease PTSD and increase resilience as well as indicators of PTSD in children and adolescents of different ages.