An emergency is defined as:-

• An event or situation which threatens serious damage to human welfare and/or the environment; or
• War, or terrorism, which threatens serious damage to security.
• Examples of major incidents include:-
• Natural disasters such as floods and storms
• Pollution i.e. spillages, radioactive substances, toxic gases
• War or terrorism

The Civil Contingencies Act places civil protection requirements on all public authorities and other agencies to work together to develop, maintain and implement effective arrangements for responding to emergency incidents, disasters, etc.

The Act:

• Establishes a clear set of roles and responsibilities for local responders;
• Gives structure and consistency to local civil protection activity; and
• Establishes a sound basis for performance management at a local level.

The Act divides local responders into two categories depending on the extent of their involvement in civil protection work. Category 1 responders are those organisations at the core of emergency response (eg emergency services, local authorities).

As a local authority we are required under the Act to:-

• Assess the risk of emergencies occurring and use this to inform contingency planning;
• Put in place emergency plans;
• Put in place Business Continuity Management arrangements;
• Put in place arrangements to make information available to the public about civil protection matters and maintain arrangements to warn, inform and advise the public in the event of an emergency;
• Share information with other local responders to enhance co-ordination;
• Co-operate with other local responders to enhance co-ordination and efficiency; and
• Provide advice and assistance to businesses and voluntary organisations about business continuity management.

Further information on the Civil Contingencies Act can be found on the Gov.uk website.

The Council has Emergency Plans in place to enabling us to respond or react to any major incident.

The Council will play a key role in alleviating the effects of an emergency on the community and the environment and restoring normality as quickly as possible by:

• Liaison with the emergency services and supporting organisations;
• The involvement, either directly or indirectly, of appropriate personnel;
• Handling the large number of enquiries likely to be generated both from the public and the media;
• Working closely with the emergency services, Staffordshire County Council, voluntary organisations, private industry and other organisations responding to an incident, to ensure that there is an efficient and coordinated response.

What you can do to prepare for an emergency?
The Government has produced a web page which tells you how you can help yourself and your family in emergencies. The page can be found on the direct.gov website or by following this link.

• Make a list of important contact details, such as family, friends, neighbours, GP, veterinary surgery, public utility companies etc. 
• Familiarise yourself with emergency procedures both at work and for children at school. 
• Know how to turn off your gas, electricity and water supplies. 
• Know how to tune your radio to local stations. 
• Know how your family will stay in contact in the event of an emergency. 
• Make up an emergency pack

Home Emergency Pack

Try to keep enough of the following in your household at all times to last at least two days:

Suggested list
• Lighting (torch/candles) and spare source of power (batteries etc) or wind-up torch. 
• Cooking equipment (including tin-opener, utensils and cutlery). 
• Drink (cans of juice, bottled water etc). 
• Long life food and milk - Items that can easily be consumed such as ready to eat meats, canned fruits, crackers, cereal bars or biscuits. Check use by date and replace when necessary.) 
• Portable radio and spare batteries or wind up radio. 
• First Aid Kit - Include items such as assorted bandages, cleansing agents, pain relief tablets.  Remember prescription medication. 
• Contact list 
• Warm / Dry clothing and blankets. 
• Personal hygiene products such as soap, toothpaste, feminine supplies 
• Medication (including baby items). 
• Entertainment items such as board games or books

Useful numbers to make a list of and put in your emergency pack
• Doctor 
• Insurance Company 
• School 
• Bank 
• Family 
• Utilities

In the Car:
These could vary depending on the time of the year, but could include items such as:
• First Aid Kit. 
• Bottled Water. 
• Torch with spare batteries. 
• In car mobile telephone charger 
• Sweets or long life snacks 
• Blanket, warm clothing and woolly hat 
• Spare socks and gloves 
• Waterproof clothing and Wellington boots.

ICE = 'In Case of Emergency'

Storing 'ICE' along with a name and telephone number will enable emergency services to quickly contact someone for you in the event of an emergency.

Eight out of ten people in the UK don't carry next of kin details yet 80% carry a mobile phone, most of whom have it with them all the time. There is no simpler way of letting the emergency services know who to contact should you be involved in an accident than by using ICE.

If you find yourself in an emergency - use common sense and your instincts. Do not put yourself or anybody else in danger. If emergency services are at the scene follow their advice and try to remain calm.

It is however important to:
• Make sure 999 has been called 
• Try and remain calm 
• Speak clearly 
• Tell the operator which service you require 
• Tell the Emergency Service 
• Where the trouble is 
• What the trouble is 
• Where you are

Do not hang up until the operator tells you to do so 
If there is a medical emergency, you may be given medical instructions that can help the patient Remember, 999 is free from any pay phone and mobile phone.

If you accidentally dial 999 STAY ON THE LINE and tell the operator what happened. Emergency operators treat unknown 999 calls as potential emergencies in progress requiring immediate response.

Please be sure that everyone in your home knows how to dial 999 - to report an emergency and be sure all children know that they should not dial 999 as a joke. Ensure you do not put yourself in danger.  Check for injuries.  Follow the advice of the emergency services.

If an incident occurs within close proximity you should:
Go inside a safe building and stay there until you are advised to do otherwise.

Tune into local TV or radio for situation updates. 
Go in, Stay in and Tune in.

Be aware of how to get information in the event of an emergency.
In the case of most major emergencies the simple advice to follow is to go inside, stay inside and tune into the local radio.
 
With most incidents the safest place to be is indoors, with the correct preparation you should be able to stay there safely for some time (remember in the case of a fire in a building - get out and stay out).

If you are close to an emergency and believe you or others are in danger go inside a safe building (as long as you are sure there is no fire risk) and stay there until advised otherwise. Tune into local radio and television for updates on what is happening.

Local and national radio stations work together to make sure they can give out accurate and up to date information to keep people fully informed on what to do if there is a major incident.
Radio is easily accessible.

You can listen to it in the car and as long as you have a battery powered or wind-up radio you can still listen even if there is a power cut. Warning messages are categorised as below.

Threat - is used when describing the general need for alertness.

Alert - is used where there is a need for particular vigilance and readiness by the public to take specific action.

Warning - is reserved for occasions where when there is specific intelligence about a time and place, when the police need to take action to protect people.

Local radio stations:
The FM frequencies are shown below for some of the more common radio stations serving the are

89.1 BBC Radio 2
91.3 BBC Radio 3
93.5 BBC Radio 4

FM 94.6 (Stoke-on-Trent)
FM 104.1 (Stafford, Staffordshire)
AM 1503 (Staffordshire)

Touch Radio
FM 101.6 (Lichfield and Tamworth, Staffordshire)
FM 102.4 (Burton-on-Trent)

Over 5.5 million properties in England and Wales are at risk of flooding from rivers, seas or surface water.  That's one in six, which means there's a high chance one of these properties is your home or business.

It pays to prepare for flooding - if your home or business is flooded it can be costly, not just in terms of money and time but also inconvenience and heartache.  While it's impossible to completely flood-proof a property, there are lots of things you can do to reduce the damage flooding can cause.  The key is to act now so you're prepared if there's a flood in your area.

Please click on any of the following links for information around flooding and what you can do to help yourself.

• Find out if you're at risk of flooding in England
• Get help during a flood
• Prepare for flooding
• Report a flood or possible cause of flooding
• Sign up for flood warnings
• What to do after a flood

If you need any further advice or information then you can contact the Resilience team at Cannock Chase Council, PO Box 28, Beecroft Road, Cannock, Staffs. WS11 1BG or email civilcontingencies@cannockchasedc.gov.uk or call 01543 464588.

Preparing for emergencies

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/

www.staffordshireprepared.gov.uk

This requires the submission of a completed Full Plans Application Form, full construction drawings, details and specification of the intended scheme prior to work commencing on site.

A detailed assessment of the submitted drawings will be carried out by a Building Control Surveyor.

If your plans comply with the building regulations you will receive a notice stating that they have been approved. If Building Control is not satisfied you may be asked to make amendments or provide more details. Alternatively, a conditional approval may be issued. This will either specify modifications which must be made to the plans; or will specify further plans which must be deposited with your authority.

If your plans are rejected the reasons will be stated in the notice. A full plans approval notice is valid for three years from the date of deposit of the plans

You are then safe in the knowledge that providing you and your builder constructs strictly in accordance with those plans, and any conditions on the approval, the regulations will be satisfied.

Minor variations in construction can be agreed as work progresses, major changes may require amended details to be submitted (variations may need to be dealt with separately and differently under other legislation e.g. planning permission).

A completion certificate is issued at satisfactory completion of the project.

The application can be submitted by using any of the methods below.

-  Planning Portal  ( https://buildingcontrol.planningportal.co.uk )

-  Online Form

-  Building Control Application Form (download below)

A Building Notice Application does not require the submission of plans.

The authority may however require details to be submitted during the construction process, if, without them they are unable to ensure compliance with the Regulations eg structural calculations.

Once the Notice is received and providing the fee is correct you will be issued with a Building Notice Acceptance letter. You should note that this does not in any way indicate prior approval of your proposals. Although, this process may appear advantageous as only 48 hours notice is required prior to works commencing it also has its disadvantages

There can be a high risk factor with this type of application and it would be perhaps more suitable for simpler projects.

There are also specific exclusions in the regulations as to when building notices cannot be used in relation to domestic work; a building notice cannot be used:

• For work which will be built close to or over the top of rain water and foul drains shown on the 'map of sewers'
• Where a new building will front onto a private street

A 'building notice' is valid for three years from the date the notice was given to the local authority, after which it will automatically lapse if the building work has not commenced.

The application can be submitted by using any of the methods below.

-  Planning Portal  ( https://buildingcontrol.planningportal.co.uk )

-  Online Form

-  Building Notice Application Form (download below)

Generally window repairs such as replacing broken glass, fogged double-glazing, rotten sashes and rotten sections of the frame can be done without seeking building regulation approval.

Fully replacing windows would usually require building regulation approval, but most work can be carried out using a FENSA registered installer. They will carry out the work to the correct standards and provide you with all the relevant certificates on completion.

If you propose to do the works yourself or if your installer is not registered, then you or he must make an Application for Replacement Windows.

A Regularisation Certificate application can be submitted for works carried out at a domestic property that date back to November 1985 only.

If the work has already recently started or possibly even been completed without proper consent, then a retrospective application can be made using a Regularisation form.

Receipt of a Regularisation application, and payment  a site visit will need to be carried out to inspect the unauthorised works  The Building Control Surveyor will inform the owner what, if any works that would require uncovering for further inspection or, any further works that would also have to be carried out in order to comply with the building regulations.

Please note that this department will not be able to give an estimated time for the application being completed due to the possibility of ongoing site visits or items of a structural nature being checked.

The fees are determined individually and are not subject to VAT

The Building Control Charges are intended to cover the cost of the Building Control services provided by the Cannock Chase and Stafford Building Control.

There are two methods of establishing the charge for Building Regulation applications. These are either individually determined or taken from the Standard Charges.

If the charge for your Building Regulation work is not included within the standard charges please contact the office for a quote. In addition to this if you are carrying out multiple types of work at the same time or highly repetitive work we may be able to reduce the standard charges.

There is a difference in the overall cost dependent upon whether a Full Plans Submission or the Building Notice Procedure.

If you make a Building Notice application, the total charge includes the fee for all inspections, however few or many.

If you make a Full Plans application the plan charge fee is required on application and the remainder becomes payable after the Building Control Surveyor has made the first inspection.  We will invoice you for this fee shortly after you start work.  The amount you pay was determined when you made the application based on the Charge Scheme criteria for the nature of the work involved.  This part of the total fee covers all inspections, however few or many.

To avoid  delay the best and the quickest why to pay for your new application is to call 01785 619340.

The Building Act 1984   The Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 2010

In accordance with the above regulations Cannock Chase District Council has made a replacement scheme of charges in relation to the building regulations function.

This came into effect on 1st September 2022. Standard charges now only apply to domestic work and a single new dwelling. The full charging scheme can be inspected on request at the Civic Centre, Riverside, Stafford, ST16 3AQ, between the hours of 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.