A number of weather warnings have been issued as an arctic maritime airmass brings cold weather to the UK with a risk of wintry showers and snow.
What can care providers do?
You can do some of the following things to respond to this:
- Review your Business Continuity Plan
- Check to see if staff are aware of your on-call procedure and if they know who is on-call tonight
Make sure staff are aware of the Business Continuity Plan and what to do in an emergency such as a power cut.
Remind staff of some appropriate policies such as:
- Adverse Weather Policy and Procedure
- Supporting Service Users During Adverse Weather Policy and Procedure
- Business Continuity Plan Policy and Procedure
- On-Call Policy and Procedure
Additional tips and considerations in the event of a power cut:
- Is your emergency grab bag accessible and are any PEEPS up to date?
- Have you got torches and batteries?
- Maybe have some flasks of hot drinks available in the kitchen
- Have you got plenty of spare blankets if needed?
- Are there any vulnerable service users you may need to contact to do a welfare check?
- Are there any vulnerable staff you might want to check on? Ask if any local staff can be on standby in the event of an emergency
Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist, Rebekah Sherwin, said: “As the cold air pushes across the UK from the north temperatures will dip, with daytime temperatures struggling to get above freezing in many places from mid-week onwards. However, the cold air from the Arctic will also bring brighter conditions, with some dry, sunny spells, particularly away from the coast.
“Showers will turn more wintry as the week goes on with a risk of snow at times. Yellow National Severe Weather Warnings for ice and snow have been issued for parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and the east coast of the UK for Wednesday and Thursday. We can expect to see further snow and wintry showers as the week progresses, particularly in coastal areas or over higher ground. There will be widespread frosts with temperatures falling to as low as -10°C overnight in isolated spots by the end of the week.
Further information
Register with the Met Office to receive updates on weather warnings to ensure that you, your staff and service users remain up to date.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cold-weather-alert-issued-by-ukhsa
To check the latest weather forecast updates, visit the Met Office website or app.
