Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) Officer, Band 6
The EPRR Officer plays a vital role in ensuring Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is fully prepared for the challenges of emergencies, major incidents, and business continuity disruptions.
Working across the organisation and reporting to the Head of Organisational Resilience, the postholder will help develop, deliver, and continually strengthen the Trust's Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) arrangements in line with statutory duties, NHS England Core Standards, and local system priorities.
This role is exciting and varied, providing opportunities to influence patient safety, operational readiness, and organisational learning.
The postholder will lead and support the development of emergency and business continuity plans, coordinate exercises and training, assist with incident response, and work closely with clinical and operational teams to embed a strong culture of resilience.
We are looking for someone who thrives in a dynamic environment, enjoys problem‑solving and is passionate about strengthening preparedness across complex healthcare settings.
Main duties of the job
* Emergency Preparedness & Resilience: Support the development, review, and assurance of emergency plans and business continuity arrangements, ensuring compliance with NHS EPRR standards and readiness for incidents.
* Provide operational support during incidents, including coordinating information, supporting incident coordination centres, maintaining logs, and contributing to debriefs and organisational learning.
* Plan, deliver and evaluate training and exercises to enhance staff preparedness, while capturing and applying learning from incidents, audits and national guidance to improve resilience.
* Governance & Assurance: Contribute to reporting, policy development and governance processes, maintaining accurate records and supporting compliance with statutory and organisational requirements.
* Advisory & Cultural Leadership: Provide expert advice and promote a culture of preparedness, safety and continuous improvement across the Trust.
* Professional Development: Maintain and develop professional knowledge in EPRR and resilience, participate in training and appraisal, and contribute to organisational learning and education.
Job responsibilities
1. Emergency Preparedness, Resilience & Response
o Support the development, maintenance and regular review of the Trust’s Emergency Plans and Business Continuity arrangements in line with NHS England EPRR Core Standards and statutory requirements.
o Coordinate and contribute to annual EPRR assurance processes, including evidence collection, gap analysis, improvement planning and reporting.
o Assist in preparing the Trust for internal and external incidents, ensuring plans remain current, accessible and operationally workable.
o Provide operational support during incidents, including staffing or supporting the Incident Coordination Centre, producing situation reports, maintaining logs and coordinating information flows.
o Act as a point of contact for departments during incidents, ensuring consistent communication and prompt escalation where required.
o Assist in post‑incident debriefs, capturing learning and supporting the development of action plans to strengthen resilience.
2. Training, Exercising & Organisational Learning
o Organise, deliver and evaluate EPRR training programmes for staff across the Trust, including incident management, loggist training and roles‑specific preparation for command teams.
o Lead or support the design and facilitation of exercises (table‑top, command post, live‑play), working with internal teams and multi‑agency partners.
o Capture and analyse learning from incidents, exercises, audits and national guidance; support the development of learning frameworks and improvement actions.
o Support the collection and analysis of data from exercises, incidents and audits to identify trends, learning themes and opportunities for improvement.
o Contribute to the development and evaluation of new training resources, digital tools or methodologies that enhance incident readiness and staff engagement.
3. Business Continuity
o Support the implementation and maintenance of divisional and departmental Business Impact Analyses (BIAs) and Business Continuity Plans (BCPs).
o Help monitor compliance with business continuity requirements, providing guidance and support to operational departments in developing robust continuity arrangements.
o Contribute to risk assessments and organisational resilience activities, ensuring risks are identified, mitigated and escalated appropriately.
4. Partnership Working & Multi‑Agency Engagement
o Develop and maintain effective working relationships with system partners, emergency services, Local Resilience Forum colleagues, local authorities and other NHS organisations.
o Represent the Trust at relevant meetings, user groups, working groups and exercises as delegated by the Head of Organisational Resilience.
o Support integrated health system planning and ensure alignment between Trust arrangements and wider multi‑agency response structures.
5. Assurance, Governance & Reporting
o Produce clear and accurate reports, briefings, dashboards and documentation to support governance processes.
o Maintain accurate records, logs and audit trails relating to plans, training, exercises, incidents and assurance activities.
o Assist with policy development and updates, ensuring they reflect best practice and national guidance.
6. General Responsibilities
o Model and promote a culture of proactive preparedness, safety and organisational resilience across the Trust.
o Provide expert advice to colleagues at all levels, supporting a proactive and informed approach to emergency planning and continuity management.
o Undertake additional duties reasonably required, commensurate with the postholder’s role and grade.
7. Professional Development, Education and Training
o Maintain and develop professional knowledge and competencies in EPRR, business continuity and incident management.
o Participate in regular appraisal, supervision and personal development planning.
o Keep up to date with changes in legislation, national guidance, NHS England EPRR Core Standards, JESIP doctrine and best practice.
o Participate in relevant internal and external training courses, conferences and communities of practice.
o Maintain accurate records of mandatory training and ensure compliance with Trust requirements.
o Share learning and specialist knowledge with colleagues, promoting continuous learning and a culture of resilience.
o Contribute to the development of training materials, educational sessions and awareness‑raising initiatives for staff involved in emergency planning and incident response.
8. General Working Conditions
o Work flexibly to meet service needs, including occasional adjustments to working hours for training, exercises or incident response activities.
o Adjust priorities and respond at short notice to emerging operational pressures or incidents.
o Work in a busy office environment, the Incident Coordination Centre or clinical/operational areas as required.
o Provide extended support during periods of heightened activity until service continuity is restored.
o Travel between Trust sites and external partner locations may be required.
o Maintain professionalism and composure when working under pressure or in time‑critical situations.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Diploma in Health Emergency Planning (DipHEP).
* Completion of or commitment to undertake relevant NHS EPRR training (e.g., incident management, JESIP Awareness).
* Up‑to‑date mandatory training as required by the Trust or evidence of ability to achieve this.
* Experience working within an acute hospital, NHS organisation or health system, with an understanding of clinical operations and escalation processes.
* Loggist trained or experience as a loggist.
* Evidence of competence aligned to NHS England Minimum Occupational Standards for an NHS Operational and Tactical Commander.
Knowledge and Skills
* Strong understanding of EPRR principles, including major incident planning, business continuity and civil contingencies.
* Knowledge of relevant legislation, standards and frameworks, including the Civil Contingencies Act, NHS England EPRR Core Standards, JESIP doctrine and national guidance.
* Ability to design, support or facilitate training and exercises, ensuring learning outcomes are met.
* Understanding of business impact analysis and wider risk assessment methodologies.
* Advanced facilitation or teaching skills, including experience in running multi‑agency or live‑play exercises.
* Understanding of quality‑improvement methodologies or willingness to develop skills in audit, evaluation and organisational learning relevant to EPRR.
Experience
* Experience in EPRR, business continuity, risk management, operational management or a related emergency services field.
* Experience coordinating or delivering training and exercises, such as tabletop drills, live‑play or staff preparedness sessions.
* Experience working with a wide range of stakeholders, including clinical teams, operational managers, partner agencies or multi‑agency resilience groups.
* Experience supporting the development and maintenance of Business Impact Analyses (BIAs) and Business Continuity Plans (BCPs).
* Experience supporting multi‑agency emergency planning activities, including Local Resilience Forum work.
* Experience using incident management or logging systems, digital command tools or structured reporting processes.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and requires a submission to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Employer name
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Salary: £39,959 to £48,117 a year (pa, pro rata if part‑time)
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