Emergency Rest Centres

During or following an incident, the emergency services may need to evacuate a populated area. Evacuees will initially be taken to a temporary place of safety, such as a village hall or public house, by the Police.

At this stage, it will be determined which evacuees have no alternative means of accommodation. If there is a significant number, a rest centre will be opened.

The aim of the rest centre is to care for evacuees who need temporary accommodation or shelter due to an incident or emergency. Its main objective is to minimise the discomfort and anxiety of those who are temporarily displaced by an incident or an emergency.

The rest centres are managed in accordance with the Suffolk Resilience Rest Centre Guide. Local authorities play a part by providing staff, accommodation and resources to enable these temporary shelters whilst normality is being restored, assisted by a number of statutory and voluntary agencies.

Pets, like us, are likely to feel varying amounts of stress, being taken into unfamiliar surroundings.  Whilst the initial evacuation is underway, pets will be accommodated but kept separate from the public areas of the rest centre. Dependent on the length of the evacuation, the authority will try to find suitable accommodation for pets, such as the RSPCA, Blue Cross, ect. If time permits, please make sure your pet has a suitable cage/carrier, or suitable lead/muzzle to safely control it in a public place.