Regional Emergencies & Disaster Support (REDS) service
Annual Operating Agreement, 2015/16
Please use a separate sheet for each building/location (eg museum, record office, off-site store,
library) containing historic collections to be covered by the REDS service. PLEASE USE BLOCK CAPITALS
Name of site
Name of heritage organisation
Governing body responsible for
the building (if different to above)
Full address (inc postcode)
On-site telephone number
Name of keyholder
Out-of-hours tel. no.
If this building/location is hard to
find (particularly in the dark),
please give directions
*include your Emergency Plan’s
site map, clearly labelled, if
necessary*
Please indicate the types of collections present at this location by marking an ‘x’ in the appropriate boxes
Archaeology
Art/Paintings
Costumes & Textiles
Decorative Art/Ceramics
Ethnography
Furniture
Geology/Natural History
Industrial
Military
Paper & Parchment
Photography
Social History
Other collections of special consideration and/or significance (please specify)
I,…………………………………[name], confirm that I am authorised to sign this Agreement to action REDS membership.
I apply on behalf of the above governing body to be included on the register of premises eligible to receive the
services of the East Midlands Museums Service REDS Team. I have read and am authorised to accept the Conditions
set out on the reverse of this form. I confirm that:
(a) We have valid Public Liability insurance cover (minimum £5 million) at the above premises.
(b) We intend to reimburse the full costs of any REDS Team members attending an incident at the above premises
to their employers.
(c) We have an Emergency Plan covering the above premises, available for inspection by EMMS/REDS at any time.
A copy is kept off-site.
Print name:
Email address:
Position:
Tel No:
Date:
2015
In case of any contact over this Agreement, the following is authorised to act on behalf of the governing
body:
Name:
Daytime Tel:
Position:
Evening Tel:
Mobile Tel:
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Conditions
1
Participation in this scheme does not require the East Midlands Museums Service, or any members of
its Regional Emergencies & Disaster Team, to attend any incident. Every effort will be made to
respond to participants’ calls, but all assistance is at the discretion of EMMS, and subject to
availability. There is no limit on the number of emergency callouts in any year, recognising that it is
not always possible for all Team members and their employers to comply.
2
The affected institution is responsible for:

Initiation of the site-specific Emergency Plan and liaising with the emergency services;

Carrying out the initial assessment of damage/seriousness and contacting REDS;

Undertaking a risk assessment and dealing with security and building issues in order to make
the premises safe.
Transporting objects in vehicles if this is deemed necessary, and ensuring that salvaged objects
transported and stored off-site are adequately insured.
3
The East Midlands Museums Service gives no guarantee as to the quality of work undertaken by REDS
Team members.
4
Neither the East Midlands Museums Service, nor the members of the REDS Team or their employers,
accept responsibility should their actions or omissions, individually or collectively, lead to any loss or
damage whatsoever, whether on the part of the governing body of those premises attended, or by
other parties whose property is within those premises at the time of the incident.
5
The REDS Service has been formed by the museums and record offices of the East Midlands,
cooperating under the central organisation of the East Midlands Museums Service, for mutual benefit.
REDS Team members are released from their normal duties by their employers for up to three days per
year for training visits, covering their salary and travel expenses. They also agree to release Team
members (by arrangement with EMMS) for emergency callouts for immediate and short-term support
of no more than one working day. Thereafter, the maximum time for Team members to be released is
at the discretion of their employers and is dependent upon the scale and nature of the disaster, and
whether an individual is providing general or very specialist advice; this ‘second phase’ commitment is
negotiated directly between the relevant organisations.
6
In a callout, the affected institution will reimburse to the Team members’ employers all the costs
incurred by REDS Team members i.e. basic salary, overtime, on-costs, travel and subsistence
expenses. The costs of any materials used will also be reimbursed. Governing bodies seeking the
services of the REDS Team should, therefore, ensure that there is sufficient insurance cover on their
buildings and/or collections to meet such costs, and to ensure that a minimum of £5 million public
liability insurance cover is in place.
7
In order that the REDS Team can work with efficiency and speed, it is expected that an appropriate
Emergency Plan for the building(s)/collections covered:

Is readily available for REDS Team members to consult on arrival at a callout;

Confirms the command structure to be adopted in the event of an incident, in particular
specifying the levels of delegated authority each member of the affected museum will have
and, specifically, the budget at their immediate disposal (if any);

Contains a labelled floor plan of the building, detailing the location and salvage priorities of
collections;

Identifies possible areas for temporary re-location of collections - immediate (on evacuation)
and subsequent (under cover);

Contains information on the extent and location of salvage materials housed either in or the
nearby the affected premises.
Please return to: info@emms.org.uk to maintain your REDS membership for 2015/16
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