Community resilience depends not only on the actions of responders but also on individuals and households, voluntary and community groups, and commercial enterprises and service providers, all working together.
Individuals and Households
Individuals and households can improve their resilience by taking steps to prepare for an emergency before it occurs. These steps include staying informed of risks, making an emergency plan, preparing an emergency kit, and learning useful skills such as first aid. Further detail on these actions is available at Ready Scotland - Prepare.
If an emergency or incident does occur, it is also important to know how to respond. Ready Scotland provides advice on how to Respond to a number of incidents which could affect those living in Scotland including Severe Weather, Travel Disruption, Loss of Utilities, Terrorism and Cyber incident.
The Comhairle’s Winter Safety Campaign Keep Safe, Keep Well this Winter! also provides advice on a wide range of topics which individuals and households can use to take action to stay safe during the winter.
Community Groups
Community Groups and Volunteers can be invaluable in assisting responders to deal with an emergency to communicate with and support individuals and households effectively.
Resources for community groups, including a Community Resilience Checklist, are available at Ready Scotland - Community Groups. Community Groups looking for further advice on how to increase community resilience can contact the Comhairle’s Resilience team by emailing resilence@cne-siar.gov.uk.
SSEN Resilient Communities Fund
The SSEN Resilient Communities Fund aims to help communities become more resilient in the face of storms, severe weather and prolonged power interruptions.
Community groups within the Western Isles have previously made successful applications to the fund and are encouraged to make future applications to support improved community resilience.