Do any of your team need a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan?

When the alarm goes off, can everyone in your building actually get out? 

When the alarm goes off, most of us respond the same way. Get up, find the nearest exit, down the stairs and make our way to the assembly area as directed by the fire wardens. However, what happens if you can’t hear the alarm, or if there is someone with mobility limitations, how do they make it down five flights of stairs safely?

A Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (commonly shortened to PEEP) is designed for these exact individuals. PEEPs are designed to cater to all people who may need some extra assistance in an emergency event. PEEPs are written in compliance with AS 3745 and work alongside your workplace’s Emergency Plan and Evacuation Checklists. 

PEEPs are entirely customisable and should cover what the person needs, who’s responsible for helping them, the route and any equipment involved, and where they’ll wait safely if they can’t get out straight away.

Naturally, the people that come to mind when putting together your evacuation plan are those with permanent disabilities – however it’s important to know that they can be developed for anyone who might struggle to get out unaided – a broken leg, late pregnancy, a heart or lung condition, poor hearing, or something a person would simply rather not announce to the whole office. Anyone can request one, and a good workplace offers them to everyone rather than waiting to be asked or singling people out.

A copy should be kept with the people who’d actually use it – typically with the wardens or alongside the emergency plan, so that when the time comes, it’s a plan being followed, not a problem being solved. PEEPs should be reviewed periodically and updated as people and buildings change. 

And it matters more than it might look. The responsibility for getting everyone out safely sits with the business, and an emergency gives you no time to work out who needs what. A PEEP is the difference between every person making it out and one being forgotten in the chaos – which is not a phone call anyone wants to make afterwards.

So, if you’re not sure whether anyone in your building has a PEEP – or whether anyone’s ever been offered one – that’s usually a sign it’s worth a proper look. It’s exactly the sort of thing we can help you sort out, so if it’s on your mind, get in touch and we’ll work through it together.