Midlands

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Forthcoming Events for 2008

 

28 February

Regional Seminar at Worcestershire Rugby Club.

 

15 May

Regional Seminar and AGM at Warwick Castle.

 

September (date to be advised

Regional Seminar - 'Tree Root Trespass'

For further information contact Elaine Taylor

6 November

Regional Seminar at Donnington Park.

For further information contact Elaine Taylor

 

 

2007 ....

 

ALARM Midlands 2007 joint meeting with CIPFA Insurance Officer Group was held at Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service Headquarters at Stone on 7th March.  As usual attendance from both groups was well subscribed and the event exceeded our expectations in every respect.

The day opened with a welcome to all attendees and speakers together with a summary of forthcoming events made by the Regional Chair.

 

The first item was a presentation by Phil Farrar (of Risk Management Partners [RMP] who are good friends of ALARM) on ‘Setting the Price’ which debated the various aspects of Insurance premiums in the Public Sector and how they are calculated, a topic close to our hearts at a time of a really soft market. This was followed by a participatory session on the subject which demonstrated the difficulties faced by underwriters at present and how there are in reality two premiums the scientifically based one and the commercially based one. As usual Phil injected a degree of humour into the subject whilst in no way diluting the content and left attendees with food for thought for future renewals on this extremely complex subject.

 

Brown Jacobson’s Simon White presented extensively on Cyber Risks and made the subject come to life with some real life anecdotes and some warnings for users. He proved the lie to whoever said that Lawyers have to be boring!!

 

After lunch the fixed agenda item of Open Forum (ALARM)/Points of Practise (CIPFA) was ably presented by our own Robin Powell and as usual he teased out a multitude of discussion issues.

 

A practical Risk Management session was laid on by Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service, when the training school showed how to risk assess the situation, stabilise the vehicle involved in an RTA ‘mock up’, and extract the injured occupants with minimum aggravation to their accident injuries. (The car was a mess though after its roof had been cut off hydraulically)

 

Karen Seabright the CIPFA Chair closed the day and thanked participants, presenters and attendees for their part in making the day such a success.

 

 

Alan Clarke

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Events of 2006....

 

ALARM Midlands first event for 2006 was the joint ALARM/CIPFA meeting which was held at Leicester City Council.  This high attendance event boasted a programme which was both educational and innovative.

 

The day started with a slick presentation on Speed Networking by Elaine Taylor.  It is envisaged that this skill will be a valuable asset for us all as time constraints  continue to be tested.  It was certainly thought provoking and demonstrated an innovative way of exploiting the opportunities which membership of ALARM offers.

 

A session followed on Witness Training.  Peppy Marshall and Sarah Tedstone of Weightmans (Solicitors) showed how to succeed in court and what to avoid with many simple and commonsense tips on how to remain a cool and credible witness in a civil court of law.  The playacting helped by adding a touch of authenticity.

 

After lunch we moved on to a session on 'interactive skills' where Ian Hughes of Wizz Training demonstrated that creativity is alive and well.  He showed that such aids as mind maps, active listening and non-verbal communication (among other techniques) all have a significant part to play in getting the message across.  The afternoon was rounded off with Robin Powell chairing our ever-popular Discussion Forum / Points of Interest.

 

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ALARM Midlands 2006 AGM and Aspects of Business Continuity Seminar was held at the prestigious Techno Centre in Coventry. This popular event boasted a healthy attendance of approaching 60 members and an action packed day of presentations and workshops.

 

The AGM opened the day with a summary of previous events made  by the Regional Chair and reports from Jean Anslow (the treasurer) and results of local Election of Officers ( who form part of The Steering Group) declared by Neil Pearson. All four nominations were duly re-elected  - Alan Clarke, Jean Anslow, Nish Padhiar and Debbie Clements. Regrettably subsequent resignations from Debbie, (Due to her departure form the Public Sector) and Andrew Rewell, (Due to increased work responsibilities) have been reluctantly accepted and our thanks as a region go to both of them for there continued support of the Steering Group together with our best wishes for the future.

 

Liz Taylor of PRM presented an illuminating summary of how to sell the concept of Business Continuity to your Authority with several practical examples and an insight into persuasive techniques which can make the whole process more compelling for an Authority’s perspective

 

The workshop orientated presentation from Richard Blackwell of Marsh followed and allowed the participants an opportunity to explore business continuity incidents in a desktop environment.   The meeting was spit into 5 groups and we were all given a different disaster scenario that developed through 3 “moves” at the end of each the group had to report back and Richard gave “constructive” feedback.

 

The meeting concluded with a talk from Maddi Bali from Gloucestershire County Council gave an overview of the “Gloucestershire Business Continuity Experience and how business continuity planning has been implemented in her authority.

 

Overall the day was very successful with good feedback from Members who found the various sessions very useful.

 

Alan Clarke