Emergency Management Guide Available to Schools

Nova Scotia's public schools now have provincewide guidelines designed to help keep students and staff safe in an emergency.

Education Minister Karen Casey released the Emergency Management for Nova Scotia Schools Planning Resource today, June 10. It will be used by boards and schools to develop their own individual response plans.

"The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority," said Ms. Casey. "It is important that every school be able to manage emergencies as swiftly and effectively as possible. This resource will be a valuable planning tool for boards and their schools as they develop their own plans to be prepared for any emergency."

The planning guide was prepared by provincial school safety advisor Const. Mark Young, in consultation with school boards. It addresses appropriate responses to various types of emergencies, planning and preparation, training, and prevention.

"I thank Const. Young for his work to help make our schools as safe and secure for students and staff as they can be," said Ms. Casey.

Although each emergency management plan will have to meet required elements outlined in the guidelines, boards will have flexibility to develop and modify plans to meet specific needs of their school communities.

Const. Young is a 29-year police veteran and an expert in safe school design. He reviewed the security practices at each of the province's eight school boards. He also met with school board representatives, school officials, police, parents and students over the past year as he developed the guidelines.

"Schools are very safe places for both students and staff, and the risk of targeted violence occurring at one of our schools is low," said Const. Young. "However, a well-prepared and practised plan is essential, even if the risk is minimal."

The department will work with boards to establish full implementation of the guidelines in all schools by December.

The resource will also be shared with universities and the Nova Scotia Community College.

The guidelines come as a result of Premier Rodney MacDonald's directive to the Department of Education to have boards review their safety policies and procedures and update them, if necessary.

Work will soon begin with school boards on a range of other school safety topics, including threat and risk assessment, school safety and security guidelines, police-school protocols, and safe school design.

The Emergency Management for Nova Scotia Schools Planning Resource is on the Department of Education's website at www.ednet.ns.ca .