We have a duty to have plans in place to respond to an incident or emergency within the borough quickly and effectively, and to operate essential services in an emergency. An emergency can be:

  • an event that threatens serious damage to either human welfare or the environment
  • an act of war or terrorism that threatens our security

We also have procedures in place which state how we’ll support London’s emergency services. These are described in The London Emergency Services Liaison Panel’s (LESLP) “Major Incident Procedure Manual”.

Major Incident Plan

The procedures and guidance we follow if there is a major emergency in Merton are contained in our Major Incident Plan.

Borough Resilience Forum

The Borough Resilience Forum is a local multi-agency forum which meets four times a year to discuss, plan and test emergency response plans. The forum puts together a register to assess the risk of an emergency occurring or affecting Merton.

Community Risk Register

Emergency plans for schools

Schools can use the national critical incident plans and resources to create emergency plans. For help putting a plan together call 020 8274 4901 or email civilcontingencies@merton.gov.uk

School emergency planning resources (zip file)​

Emergency plans for you and your community

You can use your local resources and knowledge to help yourself and your community prepare and plan for an emergency. These resources provide guidance:

Preparing for emergencies

GOV.UK: Community resilience: resources and tools