Client: Scottish Government & EPS Scotland
EPC Lead: Bev Griffiths
Introduction
Along with the EPC, The Scottish Government and Emergency Planning Society (EPS) had recognised that Scotland's resilience community were looking for training that needed to be delivered in Scotland to meet the needs of a wide range of partners. Working with partners in Scotland, the EPC has sought to deliver a number of training courses set to expand in the future.
The Client
Scottish Government and the Emergency Planning Society in Scotland wanted a range of courses written and delivered specifically for Scotland:
- To offer a range of accessible courses in Scotland that limited the need for excessive travel
- To modify the content to focus on Scottish structures which differ slightly from the English ones at the core of current training
- What is offered should complement the training provided by partners and not compete with them.
What We Delivered
It was costly and ineffectual for individuals to travel to EPC courses not delivered in Scotland, because of this discussions began, and the EPC showed willingness to support the delivery of the first group of courses.
EPC have since delivered courses in Scotland, with either a Local Authority or other agencies commissioning the course direct from EPC, for a reasonable price, and being able to fill the course either with their own staff or opening it up for wider partner attendance. EPC have also engaged in communicating what is available.
Results
Whilst not able to measure impact, there is no doubt that EPC has become more accessible for practitioners in Scotland. The arrangements mean that Scotland accesses the same training delivered for England and Wales, but with reassurance that it is fit for purpose and meeting Scotland's needs.
The EPC took on their role as an integral part of the stakeholders group. Beverley Griffiths, Resilience Capability Lead at the EPC, committed time and effort to travel to Scotland so that she was fully engaged in the review process.
She also used the opportunities of meetings to provide updates on wider EPC business and developments, helping to keep the team up-to-speed.
During a discussion with Dr Campbell McCafferty at that time Director of Civil Contingencies Secretariat, the Head of Unit suggested the idea of 'EPC in Scotland.'
He was supportive and after further discussion with Mark Leigh a bespoke group was set up - EPC Scottish Stakeholders Group. This group consists of EPC, ScoRDS (Chair and secretariat), EPS and SMARTEU (representing police, fire and ambulance).
The group identified which courses offered by EPC were most desirable for Scotland and reviewed the content to check validity for delivery in Scotland.
Scottish Resilience Development Service (ScoRDS) together with Scottish Multi-Agency Resilience Training and Exercise Unit (SMARTEU) and the Emergency Planning Society Scotland (EPS) works with the Emergency Planning College (EPC) to highlight training courses that can be delivered in Scotland to complement the Resilience Learning Programme for Scotland.
The partnership meets through the EPC Scottish Stakeholders Group and provides a quality control role, identifies opportunities to support continuous professional development and jointly promotes resilience courses.
The results of this partnership approach are:
- Enhanced relationships and understanding between key resilience organisations
- EPC courses contextualised for Scotland, designed around Scottish risks, the Scottish environment, and Scottish resilience structures
- Better understanding of the EPC programme with more choice, less travel and therefore costs for Scottish practitioners.
All of this would not be possible without the enthusiasm, expertise and experience of Beverley Griffiths who works collaboratively with resilience partners to enhance the learning and development opportunities for Scottish practitioners.
Scottish Stakeholder Group