Brantham to overhaul emergency plan after response to search for three-year-old Noah Woods
The Suffolk village which saw hundreds of people come together to search for three-year-old Noah Woods says they want to share what they've learnt
Brantham Parish Council says it will update its community emergency plan, review the resources available to volunteers and look at ways of improving communication following the search for Noah.
Tuesday (22 September) marks one week since the three-year-old was reported missing after becoming separated from a relative following a visit to a playground in Merriam Close.
A major search involving emergency services, specialist teams and members of the public followed.
Noah's body was recovered from Decoy Pond the following afternoon. You can read more here,
Suffolk Police subsequently confirmed his formal identification and said his death was not being treated as suspicious, although officers still had a number of enquiries to complete before submitting a file to the coroner.
'Things that worked well, things that hadn't'
Sarah Keys, clerk of Brantham Parish Council, helped coordinate the community response as large numbers of people arrived to help search.
She said the council has since discussed both what worked during the response and what could have made it easier.
“We discussed some of the practicalities of how the response had happened and things that had worked well, things that hadn't worked well,” she said.
“Just silly little things like, for instance, sometimes we could have used walkie-talkies or some more high-vis vests, those sorts of things.”
Ms Keys said the parish council's community emergency plan now needs updating so people have clear information to work from if another emergency happens.
“We reviewed the fact that our community emergency plan definitely needs updating and that's a process that we'll be undertaking in the near future,” she said.
The council plans to review details including contact numbers, what resources are already available and where additional equipment may be needed.
It is also in the process of employing a Police Community Support Officer to be shared with East Bergholt, who Ms Keys said could provide another link with the police.
Improving communication
One of the practical lessons identified was the difficulty of communicating while volunteers and organisers were spread across the village.
Ms Keys said the response operated from both Brantham Leisure Centre and the village hall once the system was established, while she was receiving large numbers of calls on her mobile phone.
“Being able to easily walkie-talkie across to a colleague would have made my life, well, just so much easier,” she said.
Brantham Parish Council has only two paid members of staff, according to Ms Keys, meaning volunteers played a significant role as the response grew.
“Once you have a large number of volunteers across an open space, communication does become really important,” she added.
Ms Keys estimates she personally spoke to hundreds of people during the response and said thousands of people in Brantham were involved in some way.
Suffolk Police has said approximately 1,300 members of the public supported the search, alongside specialist police teams and personnel from organisations including HM Coastguard, Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, Suffolk Lowland Search and Rescue, the East of England Ambulance Service and the Environment Agency.
Brantham Parish Council chairman Mal Bridgeman has separately praised Ms Keys and assistant clerk Lauren White for designing and operating a system which he said directed more than 1,600 volunteers to search areas around the village.
Volunteers to be brought back together
The parish council is now planning a debrief with people who volunteered during the search.
Ms Keys said the meeting would gather feedback about what worked and what could be improved, while also providing an opportunity to check on the well-being of those involved.
She said: “I'll be gathering information from them on exactly what worked well for them, what didn't work well for them. Also checking on them to check they're okay and that type of thing.”
A date is still being finalised, with the beginning of October being considered.
The council also hopes members of the public will volunteer to become part of a future community emergency response.
Ms Keys stressed the revised plan would not only be designed for missing-person searches, but could help Brantham respond to emergencies including flooding, severe weather and fires.
Sharing what Brantham learned
The parish council also wants other communities to benefit from what it learned during the response.
Ms Keys said: “We would be very happy to disseminate our experiences with other community groups and share the learning that we've had from this experience with others so that they can benefit from the learning that we've had over the last week or so really.”
The review follows an exceptional community response to Noah's disappearance.
In a statement following the search, Mr Bridgeman said the response from Brantham, surrounding villages and people further afield had been “truly amazing”.
Suffolk Police Superintendent Tom Pearse also thanked those who took part, saying officers had been “overwhelmed by the outpouring of public support”.
Police have asked that Noah's family continue to be given time, space and privacy.