Part 5: Before you open to the community

Set initial objectives within your team:

Find out what has happened in your community, tell people what is going on, solve problems using what the community has available, match requests for assistance with offers of assistance, coordinate the community response and maintain an understanding of the roles.

1. Check everyone is happy with the role they have.

Make sure that everyone is happy with the role that they have and that they understand what the role entails. If not, change roles/lanyards as appropriate. If there are roles that still need to be allocated, people may end up with two or more roles. Pass them on to other people as they show up to offer help.

2. Communicate the Hub processes to the whole team. 

Make sure everyone has a clear idea of how the whole Hub will run and how information and people might move through the Hub, depending on their needs. Make sure that every different role knows where the other roles are stationed within the hub building.

3. Open the Hub. 

Put up clear signage that the Hub is running.

Contact the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) to let them know that the Hub is open in you can.

Bring the Hub team together regularly to make sure everyone knows what is going on, to inform them of any significant issues, and to check everyone is okay.