Emergency planning/management officer

As an emergency planning/management officer, you'll play a key role in protecting communities and organisations. Working as part of a team, you'll anticipate and plan for serious incidents, including natural disasters and major accidents. You'll also respond to threats to public safety.

You can work in any sector that needs to plan for emergencies, including local or central government, a public body, a university, or a specialist resilience agency. Your work may involve business continuity management, in which you'll support businesses and provide a certain level of service in adverse conditions. Job titles may vary depending on the employer, and can include:

• civil contingencies officer
• civil resilience officer
• emergency planning and resilience officer.

A related but distinct area of work is international relief and development. For more information, see international aid/development worker.

Types of emergency

You may respond to incidents such as:

• acts of terrorism
• epidemics and pandemics, such as swine flu and COVID-19
• flooding
• major industrial accidents
• natural disasters
• winter weather.

Working as an emergency planning/management officer

As an emergency planning/management officer, you'll need to:

• write and implement safety development plans and reports, as well as plan for - and respond to - potential risks to public health, such as an outbreak
• provide advice and consultancy to businesses to ensure they can carry on functioning in the event of an emergency
• complete risk assessments for a diverse range of sites, such as chemical factories, nuclear factories, city centres, and major sporting venues
• act as duty officer as part of a 24-hour duty system, responding to emergency situations as they arise
• prepare and conduct safety and training exercises to test emergency and business continuity plans for businesses, local authorities, voluntary agencies, and other bodies
• communicate with emergency services and other bodies, including liaising with non-emergency organisations and local communities
• help to coordinate the response of all non-emergency service organisations
• raise awareness of public safety issues by developing information, presenting at events and conferences and delivering special projects
• ensure compliance with relevant government legislation and develop new policies and procedures as needed.

Emergency planning/management officer salaries

• Starting salaries for emergency planning officers in the UK average £23,000 in local authority or NHS-based roles.
• Fully trained officers can earn from £29,000 to £41,000, depending on the employer and level of responsibility in the role.
• Within senior roles at a management level, salaries can be excess of £65,000 or even over £80,000, depending on your experience levels.

The public sector has set pay scales that you can progress through, but you may find higher salaries in the private sector.

Figures are intended as a guide only.

What are the working hours for an emergency planning/management officer?

Your standard working hours will be between 37 and 40 hours per week, Monday to Friday. However, they will be longer in an emergency.

Operating an on-call rota is the norm, so expect to be able to cover any arising crisis situations. Travel is also possible, with occasional overnight stays, and there may be opportunities to work overseas for humanitarian organisations like the World Health Organisation (WHO).

When dealing with an emergency, you'll need to be flexible with your availability as you'll be expected to work outside your usual hours. This will include having to work evenings and weekends. As such, the role is typically pressured, with elements of risk and high responsibility. You'll also be expected to wear protective clothing when necessary.

How to become an emergency planning/management officer

Employers typically look for either a degree, professional qualification, or substantial experience in a related area. Degree subjects that are relevant to the role include:

• business and continuity management
• disaster and emergency management
• risk management
• security and resilience management.

If your degree isn't in a related subject, you may need to complete a postgraduate qualification but check requirements from individual employers. It's possible to do a Masters in emergency management and resilience, disaster management and risk, crisis and resilience management. Search for postgraduate courses in disaster management.

Professional qualifications and specialised courses exist but are typically aimed at people already working in a related role, such as in the voluntary, health, or public sectors.

While these don't necessarily qualify you to move into emergency planning roles, they do support a move into work relating to emergency planning. Courses are available through the UK Resilience Academy.

Emergency planning/management officer skills

You'll need to have:

• the ability to communicate with people at all levels, especially during moments of stress
• the capacity to stay calm and resilient in disaster situations
• operational decision-making skills
• a logical approach and the ability to be creative in a high-pressure situation
• a flexible attitude, with the ability work to deadlines, prioritise tasks and manage a range of tasks at once
• project management skills, including analytical and problem-solving skills
• an understanding of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (CCA).

Some roles may require you to have a full driving licence and, in some cases, you may need to be prepared to work towards a recognised emergency driving qualification. You might also need to achieve appropriate security clearance.

Where can I get emergency planning/management officer work experience?

Employers value relevant work experience, so a part-time job or a placement in an emergency planning role will give you an advantage. If you can't find any opportunities, focus on developing the skills essential to the job. Practical experience, such as voluntary work for a humanitarian organisation, may also be useful.

It's also worth considering membership with a professional body, such as the Emergency Planning Society (EPS). This will give you access to useful resources and networking events, as well as help keep you up-to-date with industry news. The society offers a reduced rate for student members.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Who employs emergency planning/management officers?

Emergency planning officers are employed by public bodies, including:

• government organisations, such as the Environment Agency (EA) and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)
• local authorities
• National Health Service (NHS)
• the fire service
• the police.

Charities and universities are also key recruiters, providing opportunities throughout the UK and overseas.

On the commercial side, consultancies offer specialist risk management and business continuity services to:

• government
• private sector developers
• regional development agencies
• small businesses
• utilities companies.

Private employers range from small, specialist consultancies to large multinationals, offering business continuity as part of a package of services.

Increasingly, private companies are taking on business continuity specialists to protect their operations in the event of an emergency, particularly within the financial services. As with consultancy work, these roles usually require a good level of experience in the field, as well as a relevant qualification.

Look for job vacancies at:

• Civil Service Jobs
• Continuity Central
• LG Jobs - for local government roles
• NHS Jobs

You can also look at local council websites for opportunities. Individual companies and organisations will also advertise vacancies, so make sure to search for those, as well.

Emergency planning/management officer career prospects

Although you'll generally develop your career in either emergency planning and management or business continuity management, there's scope to move into other areas after gaining experience.

With a relevant qualification, it's possible to move into:

• health and safety consultancy
• international relief and development work
• risk assessment.

More established career pathways tend to exist within local authorities, where you may progress from a trainee or assistant officer to emergency planning officer. From here, you might wish to move into a senior management position. In these roles, you may specialise in a specific area, such as human or animal health, or severe weather planning. Senior officers in local authorities tend to take on more staff management and development responsibilities, moving away from direct planning and response.

Other career options include making a move from the public to the private sector, or moving into an emergency planning role overseas, which involves supporting government organisations in other parts of the world.

Most employers carry out some on-the-job training, and it's likely you'll have the chance to learn from more experienced colleagues. You may also attend in-house training courses and external training with a professional body. Training may cover specific emergency planning topics as well as soft skills, such as project management, time management, and communication.

The UK Resilience Academy is a provider of resilience training and offers various events and courses that are relevant to emergency planning/management officers. Training topics include:

• crisis communications
• debriefing emergencies and exercises
• developing and embedding business continuity management
• preparing for recovery management
• strategic emergency management
• writing contingency plans.

The UK Resilience Academy provide articles, podcasts, guidance, publications, and studies, to aid you in your work.

Membership with the Emergency Planning Society will give you access to various benefits and schemes, including:

• events, training, webinars, and a knowledge hub
• mentoring, networking, and discussion groups
• the ability to contribute to academic research and access online resources
• access to a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) scheme and learning pathway.

Health-related emergency planning courses are available from the relevant public health bodies.

It's important to keep up-to-date with emerging issues and developments in legislation, such as the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. Becoming a member of a relevant professional body, such as the EPS, can help with this.