Critical Incident Response Policy

Emergency information

Call 000 if there is an immediate danger.
UTS Security: Free call 1800 249 559 (24 hours) or dial 6 from any campus phone.
NSW Police Assistance Line: Call 131 444 (24 hours).

Further information on reporting emergencies or critical incidents is available at Urgent help and emergency response.

1. Purpose

1.1 The Critical Incident Response Policy (the policy) outlines UTS's framework for the management of critical incidents.

1.2 This policy:

classifies and defines critical incidents (refer Definitions)
coordinates the implementation of the university’s response functions to effectively manage critical incidents
supports the health, safety and security of UTS staff, students, affiliates, visitors and other members of the UTS community
addresses requirements outlined in the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021 (Cwlth), and
addresses the obligations under the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (Cwlth) (the ESOS Act) and the ESOS Framework.

2. Scope

2.1 This policy applies:

to staff, students and affiliates (collectively the UTS community) and those with responsibilities under the critical incident response framework, and
where an incident impacts the operations or functions of the university, its campus or the safety of the UTS community.

3. Principles

3.1 The principles outlined in the Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy and the Campus Policy apply for this policy.

4. Policy statements

Critical incident response framework

4.1 The critical incident response framework (the framework) outlines the appropriate response and control mechanisms used to manage critical incidents at UTS. A coordinated response underpinned by specific policies, procedures and plans is applied as appropriate to the specific incident type (refer table 4.1).

Table 4.1 UTS critical incident response framework

Incident type	Response and control mechanisms
Health, safety and wellbeing	Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy Health, safety and wellbeing management system (faculty/unit/university level) (refer Health Safety and Wellbeing (SharePoint)) Hazard and incident reporting online (HIRO) (refer Reporting hazards and incidents) Protocol for responding to a student death or a death on campus (available from the Director, Student Administration or the Director, Student Services) First aid
Campus security	Campus security offices (refer Facilities and campus security) Campus Policy Surveillance Policy Temporary Exclusion Policy Emergency evacuations
Cybersecurity	Information Security Policy Information Security Policy Framework (SharePoint) Data Breach Policy
Community wellbeing	Child Protection Policy Code of Conduct Concerning Behaviour Intervention Policy Equity, Inclusion and Respect Policy Sexual Harm Prevention and Response Policy Student Rights and Responsibilities Policy Personal safety tips
Fraud, corruption and serious wrongdoing	Code of Conduct Whistleblowing and Public Interest Disclosures Policy Fraud and Corruption Prevention Policy
Privacy breach	Data Breach Policy Privacy Policy Privacy Management Plan (available at Privacy regulations)
University travel	Staff Travel, Expenses and Credit Card Policy Student Travel and Expenses Policy

Risk assessment, response and reporting

4.2 UTS critical incident management generally comprises the following steps:

Groundwork: preparing, testing, approving and communicating response mechanisms.
Mitigation: assessing, controlling, treating and monitoring risks.
Response: identifying the incident type and ensuring the safety of people, property and the community as appropriate. Notifying insurance@uts.edu.au
Recover: implementing the business continuity plans and other recovery arrangements.
Support: linking members of the UTS community to available emergency services, counselling support, financial or legal advice and other appropriate provisions.
Improve: formally reviewing UTS’s preparedness and, where an incident occurs, its response as part of a continuous improvement cycle.

4.3 In line with the Risk Management Policy, risk management is integrated into UTS business processes (including emergency management and response) and is responsive, timely and continually improved.

4.4 The assessment and mitigation of risks is aligned to the response and control mechanism provided for each incident type (refer Critical incident response framework and Health Safety and Wellbeing: Risk Management (SharePoint)).

4.5 In line with the Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy:

UTS must report notifiable incidents to the appropriate authorities (refer Health Safety and Wellbeing: Safety Incident Reporting and Investigation (SharePoint)), and
the Chief Operating Officer (COO) must report critical incidents to the Audit and Risk Committee of Council.

Emergency management coordination

4.6 The Head of Security and Emergency Management is responsible for the coordination of Emergency Planning Committee tasks (including training, exercises, management and review). These tasks fall in the regular duties of Security and Emergency Management (in the Property Unit). Police assistance may be sought as outlined in the Campus Policy.

4.7 The Emergency Management Plan (EMP) will be reviewed annually by the Head of Security and Emergency Management, in consultation with the Director, Property Unit and the COO. The Vice-Chancellor (as UTS’s emergency planning authority) is responsible for the approval of the EMP.

Records management

4.8 Records related to critical incidents are high value and high risk requiring appropriate controls and data retention requirements. The UTS Privacy Officer must be contacted in relation to the management of records in relation to critical incidents (refer Privacy contacts).

4.9 Any action or activity taken in line with this policy, including under any policy or process that forms part of the framework, will be recorded in line with the Records Management Policy and, where the incident involves personal information, the Privacy Policy. Records must include:

the type of incident
the parties involved (taking into consideration privacy and access requirements)
mitigation and response mechanisms used in response to the incident
the response times and incident duration
any reporting activities (internally or externally) undertaken in line with legislation or UTS requirements
any recovery activities undertaken
outcome and assessment reports, and
recommendations for improvement with associated implementation steps.

4.10 The formal record and report for any critical incident must be submitted to the Head of Security and Emergency Management for inclusion on the UTS critical incident register (the register). The register will be used to review and improve this policy and the EMP.

Roles and responsibilities

5.1 Policy owner: The Chief Operating Officer (COO) is responsible for enforcement of and compliance with this policy, ensuring that its principles and statements are observed. The COO is also responsible for the approval of any associated university level procedure.

5.2 Policy contact: The Head of Security and Emergency Management and the Manager, Health and Safety are the policy contacts. The Head of Security and Emergency Management is responsible for:

the day to day implementation of the policy, acting as a primary point of contact for advice on fulfilling its provisions
the coordination of Emergency Planning Committee tasks
advice on implementing the Emergency Management Plan, and
the maintenance of the UTS critical incident register.

5.3 Implementation and governance roles: The Vice-Chancellor is responsible for approving the Emergency Management Plan.

6. Definitions

The following definitions apply for this policy and all associated procedures. Definitions in the singular also include the plural meaning of the word.

Campus (also UTS campus or campuses) is defined in the Campus Policy.

Critical incident is defined in the National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students as ‘a traumatic event, or the threat of such (within or outside Australia), which causes extreme stress, fear or injury’. Critical incidents may cause damage to property, assets, environment or reputation and/or injury to staff, students, affiliates or other members of the community and require immediate response. Critical incidents at UTS include but are not limited to the following on a UTS campus:

serious injury, illness or the threat of serious injury or illness
any loss of life
attempted suicide or self-harm or the imminent risk of such
overdose
missing people
assault including sexual harm, violence or robbery, severe verbal or psychological aggression
any mental health episode that may threaten personal safety or the safety of others
natural or unnatural disasters
war or civil unrest.

Notifiable incident is defined under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) and includes the requirement to report to the relevant authorities the death of a person on a UTS campus, a serious injury or illness of a person on a UTS campus and/or a potentially dangerous incident occurring on a UTS campus.

University travel is defined in the Staff Travel, Expenses and Credit Card Policy and, for students, in the Student Travel and Expenses Policy.

Approval information

POLICY CONTACTS	Head of Security and Emergency Management Manager, Health and Safety
APPROVAL AUTHORITY	Vice-Chancellor
REVIEW DATE	2024
FILE NUMBER	UR22/2309
SUPERSEDED DOCUMENTS	None

Version history

Version	Approved by	Approval date	Effective date	Sections modified
1.0	Vice-Chancellor	16/12/2022	22/12/2022	New policy.
1.1	Deputy Director, Corporate Governance (Delegation 3.14.2)	05/04/2023	19/04/2023	Amendments to reflect new position of Director, Student Administration in the Lifetime Learner Experience Unit.
1.2	Deputy Director, Corporate Governance (Delegation 3.14.2)	29/06/2023	07/07/2023	Minor change to reflect the new title of Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy.
1.3	Director, Governance Support Unit (Delegation 3.14.1)	08/09/2023	30/09/2023	Changes resulting from the development of the Whistleblowing and Public Interest Disclosures Policy.
1.4	Deputy Director, Corporate Governance (Delegation 3.14.2)	13/11/2023	28/11/2023	Minor update to reflect the new Data Breach Policy.
1.5	Director, Governance Support Unit (Delegation 3.14.1)	31/10/2024	07/11/2024	Update to title of Fraud and Corruption Prevention Policy.
1.6	Deputy Director, Corporate Governance (Delegation 3.14.2)	11/02/2025	14/02/2025	Update to reflect the new Information Security Policy Framework SharePoint site.