Both the management of a building/premise and disabled people need to understand that planning for means of escape is planning for an exceptional circumstance, it is not an everyday event.

It should also be remembered that what a disabled person is prepared to do in exceptional circumstances may differ significantly from what they can reasonably manage in their everyday activities.  For any PEEPs to work there needs to be ‘a negotiation of reasonable adjustments’.

There are two main types of PEEPs, individual and generic.

Disabled employees and known regular visitors to a building can be provided with an individual evacuation plan.  The plan must be tailored to the individual’s needs and will detail information on their movements during an escape. There may also be some building adaptation or provision of special equipment to facilitate their escape and minimise the need for personal assistance.

Where disabled visitors to a building/premise are known, controlled or occasional, then a set of generic options should be available which contain a number of basic elements which can be simply adapted for an individual or particular organisation.

The provision of generic PEEPs will take account of a number of issues particular to the person(s) and the building/premise.  Generic PEEPs are written procedures that can be used as options for disabled people to choose from and should be advertised and offered to people as part of the entry/reception procedures.

This is not complicated, it is just an extension of signing into a building at reception.

Where people can enter and move around a building/premise openly and without going through a reception, it is difficult to gather information prior to an evacuation.  In these circumstances, Generic PEEPs can still be used and advertised so that disabled people are aware of the provision.  In these circumstances the training of staff is vital as they will have to provide assistance and advice to disabled users of the building as the incident develops. The plans to enable them to leave safely in the event of an incident will require pre-planning. Staff will have to understand all the options for that particular building/premise and be able to communicate these to disabled people at the time of evacuation.

Not all disabled people may need or ask for a PEEPs.  Some will be confident that they do not require any assistance whilst others, who may not be considered as having a disability, should be able to request a PEEPs (consider the temporary situation where an employee has broken their leg, this will require a PEEPs to be put in place until such time as they are mobile again).  A service provider must embrace an approach that allows all people to ask for a plan, when needed.

Preferred PEEPs may be as individual as the person is. There are around thirty individual plans which can be used as either individual or generic PEEPs that have been set out for the building/premises.  It should be understood that a request for a PEEPs should not result in restricting the use of the building.

A good set of PEEPs should ensure all disabled people in the building/premise are catered for in an emergency and all staff involved are trained to have a full understanding of the process.