{{org_field_logo}}

{{org_field_name}}

Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}

---

Emergency Procedures Policy

1. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to set out clear guidance for all staff of {{org_field_name}} on their roles and responsibilities in the event of an emergency occurring while on duty at client premises, such as care homes, nursing homes, or other healthcare environments. Temporary healthcare staff must be prepared to respond effectively to emergencies to protect the safety, welfare, and dignity of service users, colleagues, and others. This policy aims to ensure that staff are fully equipped to respond promptly and safely to a wide range of emergencies and to understand their roles within the client’s local procedures. Emergencies may include but are not limited to medical emergencies, fire, security threats, adverse weather, equipment failure, and safeguarding incidents.

This policy is designed to support compliance with applicable legislation and guidance relevant to a temporary healthcare staffing agency, including the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the Employment Agencies Act 1973, the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003, the Agency Workers Regulations 2010, the Equality Act 2010, the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018, and safeguarding legislation relevant to placements involving adults or children at risk.

{{org_field_name}} does not directly provide regulated activities and does not require registration with the Care Quality Commission. Where workers are supplied to CQC-registered or other regulated providers, workers must follow the client organisation’s local emergency, safeguarding, health and safety, infection prevention and incident-reporting procedures.

2. Scope

This policy applies to:

• All temporary staff engaged by {{org_field_name}}, including registered nurses, healthcare assistants (HCAs), senior carers, and support workers
• All directors and office-based staff responsible for supporting placements
• All care settings to which staff are assigned

It covers the preparation, immediate response, communication, and follow-up actions in the event of emergencies and unexpected incidents during assignments.

This policy applies when workers are supplied to client organisations, including care homes, nursing homes, supported living services, hospitals, clinics, community healthcare settings, and other health or social care environments. The client organisation remains responsible for the safety of its premises, local emergency plans, fire arrangements, evacuation procedures, clinical escalation routes, and day-to-day management of the workplace. {{org_field_name}} remains responsible for ensuring that workers are appropriately recruited, checked, informed, trained where required, supported, and instructed to follow client procedures and report concerns promptly.

3. Related Policies

• Incident and Accident Reporting Policy
• Safeguarding Adults and Children Policy
• Communication and Record-Keeping Policy
• Whistleblowing Policy
• Health and Safety Policy
• Code of Conduct

4. Policy Statement

{{org_field_name}} is committed to ensuring that all staff are able to recognise, respond to, and manage emergencies efficiently to reduce risks, prevent harm, and safeguard service users, colleagues, and members of the public. As a temporary staffing agency supplying healthcare workers, it is essential that all staff understand their duty to:

• Act in the best interests of service users
• Follow emergency protocols set out by the client organization
• Work within their role, training, competence, professional registration, and the client’s instructions
• Escalate immediately to the nurse in charge, manager on duty, safeguarding lead, emergency services, or other appropriate person where there is an immediate risk of harm
• Never delay emergency action because they are awaiting authorisation from {{org_field_name}}
• Contact {{org_field_name}} as soon as it is safe and practical to do so after immediate emergency steps have been taken
• Report emergencies to the appropriate authorities and to {{org_field_name}}
• Record and reflect on all emergencies, incidents, and near misses

Staff must demonstrate accountability, professionalism, and good judgement at all times during emergencies.

{{org_field_name}} will not require or permit workers to undertake duties for which they are not suitably trained, experienced, competent, authorised, or checked. Where a worker believes they are being asked to work outside their competence, in unsafe conditions, or contrary to the client’s emergency procedures, they must escalate this immediately to the person in charge at the placement and to {{org_field_name}}.

5. Responsibilities

Director

Since {{org_field_name}} does not have a registered manager, the Director will assume full responsibility for:

• Reviewing and updating this policy annually or as required
• Ensuring that all staff are informed of this policy and receive training during induction and ongoing development
• Ensuring emergency incidents reported by staff are reviewed, investigated, and followed up
• Ensuring lessons learned from emergencies are reflected in staff training, supervision, and policy review
• Supporting staff who are involved in emergencies or critical incidents

The Director is also responsible for ensuring that, before supplying a worker to an assignment, {{org_field_name}} has taken reasonable steps to obtain and consider relevant information from the client organisation about the role, duties, risks, required experience, qualifications, professional registration, health and safety arrangements, safeguarding requirements, emergency procedures, and any known risks to the worker or service users.

Where the role involves professional qualifications, authorisation, registration, regulated activity, or work with adults or children at risk, the Director must ensure that appropriate checks are completed before placement, including identity, right to work, references, qualifications, professional registration where applicable, DBS eligibility and barred list checks where legally permitted and required, and any client-specific compliance requirements.

Client Organisation / Hirer Responsibilities

The client organisation is responsible for the day-to-day control of the workplace and must provide workers with adequate information, instruction, supervision, and access to local emergency procedures. This includes fire procedures, evacuation arrangements, emergency contacts, clinical escalation routes, safeguarding contacts, infection control requirements, moving and handling arrangements, lone working arrangements, and any specific risks relating to the setting or service users.

The client organisation is responsible for ensuring that the workplace, equipment, premises, systems of work, and local emergency arrangements are safe and suitable. Workers must follow the client’s local procedures unless doing so would place them or others at immediate risk of serious harm.

All Staff

All temporary staff must:

• Familiarise themselves with and follow the client organisation’s emergency procedures as part of their initial orientation at each placement
• Follow {{org_field_name}}’s policies and procedures regarding reporting, documenting, and communicating emergencies
• Take immediate action to protect life and minimise harm when an emergency occurs
• Remain calm and professional when dealing with emergencies
• Cooperate fully with emergency services, client organisations, and {{org_field_name}} when responding to and reviewing emergency events

Staff must not undertake emergency interventions, clinical tasks, moving and handling, restraint, medication-related activity, or use of equipment unless they are trained, competent, authorised, and it is within their role and assignment instructions.

Staff must immediately escalate any unsafe instruction, lack of orientation, missing emergency information, unsafe staffing concern, equipment failure, or situation that places service users, colleagues, visitors, or themselves at risk. Escalation must be made to the person in charge at the placement and to {{org_field_name}} as soon as it is safe to do so.

6. Types of Emergencies Covered by this Policy

Emergencies may include but are not limited to:

• Medical emergencies (e.g., cardiac arrest, stroke, severe allergic reactions, choking)
• Fire and evacuation
• Security incidents (e.g., intruders, aggressive behaviour, missing persons)
• Environmental emergencies (e.g., flood, adverse weather, power failure)
• Safeguarding emergencies (e.g., abuse disclosure, serious self-harm risk)
• Equipment failure affecting the provision of safe care
• Outbreaks of infectious diseases
• Falls, serious injury, unexplained injury, or sudden deterioration in a service user’s condition
• Medication errors or suspected medication-related harm, where the worker’s role involves medication activity
• Moving and handling emergencies or equipment failure affecting safe transfers
• Lone working incidents or failure to make expected contact
• Infection prevention and control incidents, including suspected outbreaks, exposure to infectious disease, or failure of PPE supply
• IT, communication, cyber, telephone, or electronic care-record system failure affecting safe communication or record keeping
• Staffing emergencies where unsafe staffing levels may create immediate risk
• Transport disruption or inability of a worker to attend, remain at, or safely leave an assignment

All staff must treat any situation where harm is likely to occur as an emergency and respond appropriately.

7. Immediate Action in Emergencies

When faced with an emergency, staff must take the following steps as appropriate to the situation:

• Preserve life and prioritise the immediate safety of service users, colleagues, visitors, and themselves
• Raise the alarm using the client’s local emergency system
• Call 999 immediately where there is an immediate threat to life, serious injury, fire, violence, criminal activity, or another emergency requiring police, fire, ambulance, or other emergency services
• Follow the client organisation’s emergency plan, including evacuation, lockdown, clinical escalation, safeguarding, infection control, or business continuity procedures
• Seek urgent assistance from the person in charge, registered nurse, manager, safeguarding lead, or senior person on duty
• Administer first aid, Basic Life Support, or other life-saving intervention only where trained and competent to do so, except where emergency action is reasonably necessary to preserve life
• Avoid placing themselves or others at unnecessary risk
• Preserve evidence where there may be a safeguarding concern, crime, serious incident, or investigation, provided this does not delay emergency action or compromise safety
• Record key facts, times, actions taken, people informed, and outcomes as soon as possible after the emergency
• Report the incident to the client organisation and to {{org_field_name}} as soon as it is safe and practical to do so

8. Medical Emergencies

Staff must:

• Act immediately in life-threatening situations
• Activate the emergency call system within the client setting
• Contact the ambulance service via 999 if appropriate and ensure clear information is provided
• Escalate immediately to the registered nurse, clinician, manager, or senior person in charge at the client setting
• Follow the client’s local procedures on clinical deterioration, emergency observations, NEWS2 or other recognised escalation tools where used by the client, and emergency handover
• Check and follow any valid care plan, emergency care plan, ReSPECT form, DNACPR decision, or other lawful instruction available at the placement, while ensuring urgent help is still sought where required
• Remain within their role and competence and avoid undertaking clinical interventions for which they are not trained, authorised, or competent
• Follow Basic Life Support (BLS) guidelines if trained, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use of automated external defibrillators (AEDs)
• Continue to support the service user until emergency services arrive
• Document the incident fully, including time of incident, actions taken, and communication with emergency services
• Report the emergency to {{org_field_name}} as soon as safe and practical, and in all cases within 24 hours, using the Incident Reporting Procedure. Where the incident involves death, serious injury, safeguarding risk, police involvement, media interest, professional registration concerns, or potential RIDDOR reporting, the worker must notify {{org_field_name}} immediately after urgent safety steps have been taken.

9. Fire and Evacuation

Fire safety in client premises is managed under the client organisation’s fire safety arrangements. The client organisation, as the person or organisation in control of the premises, is normally responsible for fire risk assessment, fire precautions, emergency routes, fire detection, fire-fighting equipment, evacuation procedures, and staff instruction under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. {{org_field_name}} requires workers to follow the client’s fire procedures and to raise concerns immediately if they are not given adequate fire safety information at the start of an assignment.

All staff must:

• Familiarise themselves with the client’s fire safety procedures, escape routes, and assembly points at the start of each assignment
• Confirm how to raise the alarm, where fire exits are located, and what evacuation method applies to service users who need assistance
• Follow the client’s personal emergency evacuation plans, progressive horizontal evacuation arrangements, evacuation chair procedures, or other local arrangements where applicable and where trained
• Never wedge open fire doors, block escape routes, ignore alarms, or re-enter a building unless instructed by the fire and rescue service or person in charge
• In the event of a fire, raise the alarm immediately and follow evacuation procedures
• Assist service users to evacuate safely without placing themselves at undue risk
• Only attempt to fight the fire if trained and if it is safe to do so
• Await instructions from the person in charge or emergency services
• Report the incident to {{org_field_name}} as soon as safe to do so

10. Security Incidents, Violence, Aggression and Missing Persons

In the event of aggression, violence, threats, harassment, unauthorised persons, suspected criminal activity, missing persons, absconding, or a lone-working safety concern, staff must:

• Prioritise personal safety and the safety of service users, colleagues, and visitors
• Follow the client’s local security, violence and aggression, missing person, lockdown, or lone working procedure
• Alert the person in charge immediately
• Move to a place of safety where possible
• Avoid physical intervention unless it is lawful, necessary, proportionate, within the worker’s role, and the worker has been appropriately trained
• Contact police via 999 where there is immediate danger, violence, suspected crime, serious threat, missing person risk, or risk to life
• Preserve evidence where safe to do so
• Document the incident factually and report it to the client organisation and {{org_field_name}} without delay

{{org_field_name}} will review security-related incidents, support affected workers, and consider whether the worker should continue at the placement if there are unresolved risks.

11. Safeguarding Emergencies

If a service user, child, adult at risk, visitor, colleague, or worker discloses abuse, neglect, exploitation, self-harm risk, suicidal intent, domestic abuse, sexual abuse, organisational abuse, modern slavery, or any other safeguarding concern, or if staff have reason to believe that a person is at immediate risk, staff must:

• Take immediate action to preserve life and prevent further harm
• Call 999 where there is immediate danger, serious injury, risk to life, suspected crime in progress, or urgent medical need
• Respond calmly, listen carefully, and avoid asking leading questions
• Reassure the person that their concern will be taken seriously, but never promise absolute confidentiality
• Report the concern immediately to the client’s safeguarding lead, nurse in charge, manager, or most senior person on duty
• Notify {{org_field_name}} using the safeguarding reporting process as soon as safe and practical
• Record the concern factually, using the person’s own words where possible, and include dates, times, observations, actions taken, and people informed
• Preserve evidence where safe and appropriate, without delaying emergency action
• Cooperate with safeguarding enquiries, police investigations, local authority enquiries, professional regulator enquiries, and client investigations

Where the concern relates to the conduct, suitability, competence, honesty, violence, abuse, neglect, or risk posed by a worker supplied by {{org_field_name}}, the Director must consider immediate removal from assignment, suspension from further placements, notification to the client, referral to the local authority safeguarding team, referral to the Disclosure and Barring Service where the legal referral duty or power is triggered, and referral to any relevant professional regulator, including the NMC where applicable.

12. Environmental, Infection Control and Business Continuity Emergencies

Staff must respond appropriately to environmental, infection prevention, utilities, communication, transport, staffing, and business continuity emergencies. These may include flooding, power failure, heating failure, water failure, gas leak, extreme weather, infectious disease outbreak, PPE shortage, unsafe staffing, IT or telephone failure, cyber incident, electronic record failure, or major transport disruption.

Staff must:

• Follow the client’s emergency contingency and business continuity plans
• Maintain calm and support service users to remain safe
• Report the situation immediately to the person in charge
• Follow the client’s infection prevention and control procedures, including PPE, isolation, hand hygiene, waste disposal, outbreak reporting, and exposure-management procedures
• Escalate any unsafe staffing or inability to provide safe care to the person in charge and to {{org_field_name}}
• Contact {{org_field_name}} where the emergency affects attendance, safe working, worker welfare, continuity of supply, or the worker’s ability to complete the assignment safely
• Record any incident, near miss, refusal of unsafe work, or significant risk in line with client and agency procedures

13. Communication during Emergencies

Clear and effective communication is vital during emergencies. Staff must:

• Remain calm and speak clearly
• Provide accurate information to emergency services
• Document all actions, times, and decisions made
• Ensure information is passed accurately during handover to emergency responders and colleagues
• Inform {{org_field_name}} as soon as practical using the designated contact details

During emergencies, staff may share relevant and proportionate information with emergency services, the client organisation, safeguarding authorities, healthcare professionals, police, or {{org_field_name}} where this is necessary to protect life, prevent harm, support treatment, safeguard individuals, comply with legal duties, or assist an investigation. Information must be limited to what is necessary in the circumstances and must be recorded appropriately.

Staff must not discuss emergencies on social media, with unauthorised persons, or in public areas. Media enquiries must be referred to the client organisation and the Director of {{org_field_name}}.

14. Reporting and Documentation

All emergencies, whether resulting in harm or not, must be reported:

• Internally within the client organisation following their procedures
• To {{org_field_name}} using the Incident Reporting Form within 24 hours
  Records must include:
• Date, time, and location of the emergency
• Description of the incident and actions taken
• Who was involved
• Outcome of the emergency
• Details of who was informed and when

Serious incidents must be reported to {{org_field_name}} immediately after urgent safety steps have been taken. This includes death, serious injury, hospital attendance, police involvement, safeguarding concerns, allegation against a worker, medication-related harm, fire, evacuation, violence, infectious disease exposure, RIDDOR-potential incidents, media interest, or any incident likely to result in a complaint, claim, investigation, or regulatory notification.

Documentation must be completed accurately, objectively, and securely stored in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR.

Incident records may contain special category data, criminal offence data, safeguarding information, health information, and employment information. Such records must be processed only where lawful, necessary, proportionate, accurate, securely stored, access-controlled, and retained only for the applicable retention period. Disclosure must be limited to those with a legitimate need to know, including the client, emergency services, safeguarding authorities, professional regulators, insurers, legal advisers, or enforcement bodies where appropriate.

15. RIDDOR and External Notifications

Certain work-related deaths, specified injuries, occupational diseases, dangerous occurrences, and incidents resulting in over-seven-day incapacitation may be reportable to the Health and Safety Executive under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR).

Where a RIDDOR-reportable incident involves a temporary or agency worker, {{org_field_name}} and the client organisation must promptly establish who is responsible for making any required report. Where {{org_field_name}} is the worker’s legal employer and the reporting duty applies to {{org_field_name}}, the Director will ensure that the report is submitted to the HSE within the required timescale. Where the client organisation is responsible for the workplace or is the relevant duty-holder, {{org_field_name}} will cooperate with the client to ensure that appropriate reporting is completed.

RIDDOR reporting does not replace internal incident reporting, safeguarding referrals, professional regulator notifications, police reports, local authority notifications, client contractual notifications, or insurer notifications where these are required.

The Director must keep a record of the decision-making process for any incident considered for RIDDOR reporting, including whether a report was made, by whom, when, and the reason for the decision.

16. Post-Incident Support

Staff involved in emergencies may experience stress or emotional impact. {{org_field_name}} will:

• Provide staff with access to debriefing or supervision
• Offer additional support or signposting if required
• Review the incident with the staff member to identify learning and development needs

Where a worker has been involved in a serious, distressing, violent, safeguarding, clinical, or traumatic incident, {{org_field_name}} will consider whether the worker requires immediate welfare contact, debriefing, supervision, occupational health referral, temporary removal from further assignments, adjustment to future placements, or signposting to external support services.

Post-incident support must not interfere with any safeguarding, police, client, regulatory, disciplinary, or insurance investigation.

17. Training

{{org_field_name}} will ensure that workers receive induction and role-appropriate training or evidence of competence relevant to the assignments they undertake. Training and competency requirements may include, depending on role and client requirements:

• Basic Life Support or emergency first aid
• Fire safety awareness
• Safeguarding adults and children
• Infection prevention and control
• Moving and handling
• Health and safety
• Lone working and personal safety
• Violence, aggression and challenging behaviour
• Medication safety, where relevant to the worker’s role
• Incident, accident, safeguarding and whistleblowing reporting procedures
• Information governance, confidentiality and data protection

Workers must also complete or receive any client-required local orientation at the start of an assignment, including emergency exits, fire procedures, call-bell systems, escalation contacts, safeguarding contacts, infection control arrangements, and any service-user-specific risk information required to work safely.

Training will be refreshed in line with legal requirements, client requirements, role requirements, expiry dates, risk assessment, incident learning, and {{org_field_name}}’s training matrix.

18. Governance and Quality Assurance

The Director will:

• Review all reported emergency incidents as part of routine governance
• Investigate serious incidents and ensure lessons are learned
• Share learning across the workforce through training, supervision, and updates
• Audit incident reports to identify trends or areas requiring improvement

Governance reviews will include consideration of whether the incident indicates a failure or improvement need relating to recruitment checks, assignment information, worker competence, client risk information, training, supervision, working time, fatigue, safeguarding, health and safety, or compliance with the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003.

{{org_field_name}} will maintain appropriate records to demonstrate compliance with employment agency and employment business obligations, including records relating to hirer information, worker suitability, assignment details, complaints, incidents, safeguarding concerns, and steps taken to protect workers and hirers.

Where an incident identifies possible underpayment, unlawful deduction, holiday pay issue, agency worker rights issue, unsafe work, or other worker-rights concern, the Director must ensure this is reviewed and escalated appropriately, including consideration of current Fair Work Agency enforcement arrangements.

19. Director’s Oversight

The Director will:

• Have overall responsibility for the implementation and effectiveness of this policy
• Lead the review of incidents and ensure appropriate action is taken
• Ensure learning from emergencies is incorporated into policy, training, and staff development
• Ensure that potential RIDDOR incidents are reviewed promptly, that the correct duty-holder is identified, and that any report required from {{org_field_name}} is submitted to the Health and Safety Executive within the required timescale
• Cooperate with the client organisation, HSE, local authority, safeguarding bodies, police, professional regulators, insurers, and other relevant bodies following serious incidents
• Ensure that serious incidents are reviewed for lessons learned, worker support, contractual implications, safeguarding implications, and fitness-to-work or fitness-to-practise concerns

20. Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed annually by the Director, or earlier where required due to:

• Changes in legislation, statutory guidance, regulator guidance, or enforcement arrangements
• Serious incidents, safeguarding concerns, complaints, claims, or near misses
• Client feedback, audit findings, or contractual requirements
• Changes to the services supplied by {{org_field_name}}
• Changes to worker roles, placement settings, or risk profile
• Learning from investigations, supervision, training, or governance reviews

The Director is responsible for ensuring that workers are informed of material changes to this policy and that updated versions are made available.

21. Legal and Regulatory Framework

This policy should be read in conjunction with the following legislation and guidance, where applicable to {{org_field_name}}’s role as a temporary staffing agency and employment business:

• Employment Agencies Act 1973
• Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003
• Agency Workers Regulations 2010
• Employment Rights Act 1996
• Employment Rights Act 2025, as provisions come into force
• Working Time Regulations 1998
• National Minimum Wage Act 1998 and National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015
• Equality Act 2010
• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974
• Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
• Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013
• Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
• Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006
• Police Act 1997
• Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and Exceptions Order 1975
• UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018
• Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006
• Modern Slavery Act 2015, where applicable

{{org_field_name}} does not provide regulated activities directly and does not require registration with the Care Quality Commission. Where workers are supplied to regulated providers, {{org_field_name}} will cooperate with the client organisation’s regulatory, safeguarding, emergency, and incident-reporting requirements.

---

Responsible Person: {{org_field_registered_manager_first_name}} {{org_field_registered_manager_last_name}}
Reviewed on: {{last_update_date}}
Next Review Date: {{next_review_date}}
Copyright © {{current_year}} – {{org_field_name}}. All rights reserved.