Evacuation Plan?

How do you answer the question "what is your evacuation plan?" when asked in an interview.

I am having trouble with the wording.

I provide all the parents with an evacuation plan once they sign on. It gives the address and telephone number of where we would be, should we need to evacuate. On the form it also lets them know that I have all their contact numbers at that location and would call them immediately upon arrival there. Hope that helps a little.

Oh no, I don't have one. I guess maybe I should make one. I just assumed their parents would come and get them ASAP. I don't have anyone nearby that we can go to their house. Where do people go? I have a school across the road. I would assume if the daycare burned down they would let us come in...other ideas?

I have never had parents ask that question but my daycare is on the main floor. If you are in a basement could you make sure you have windows that open anda stepladder so that you can reach the windows if the stairs were out of the question? Just an idea.

I have never been asked but have a plan in my mind. My daycare is in the basement and I have a fire extinguisher,a window I can get out of and a step ladder. My neighbor next door works nights so is home all day. There is another daycare immediately across the street and 2 other neighbors are home during the day as well. Keep it simple, parents just want to know that you have thought about it and have an idea what do in an emergency.

I agree with Wonderwiper - this kind of question is not so much about what you will do when the sky falls. Really, what the parents want to know is that you have a plan for every contingency. The sad truth is that in the same way that they (the parents) would be flying by the seat of their pants in this kind of scenario, so are we. =) I have a "war binder" that I take with me any time we leave the house - it has a small first aid kit, my cell phone, and all my emergency contact numbers for the dck's. My exit plan involves getting everyone out, and calling the parents to pick up their children. The location will be dictated by the circumstances. i.e. if I'm being evacuated because of a gas leak I won't be able to wait it out at my neighbours house - they too will be evacuated - so in that case I might plan on taking the children to the local school. Where we go will also be affected by the season and weather that day. i.e. in the winter I wouldn't be able to wait outdoors in a nearby park, I might instead take them to the school or local rec centre. I would hope that parents would be able to understand that in a situation like this, a lot of our decisions are going to be made on the fly, and this is why it's important for parents to trust our judgement. =)

I was required to make a comprehensive safety plan in order to be licensed in Manitoba. At the following link is the Enhanced Safety Plan template I used, it covers absolutely every scenario. It was alot of work to fill everything in, but after the fact I'm glad I did it. I also have everything ready by my front door encase we need to leave the home if there is an emergency - a backpack with emergency contact info, first aid kit, a bag fill with blankets and hats, etc.

My place of shelter is the school nearby, I contacted the principal to ask permission to identify this as my location. I'm also required to do monthly fire drills, including actually going over to the school at least once a year. So if an actual emergency happens, the kids know what to do.

http://www.gov.mb.ca/fs/childcare/sa...ide_homes.html

Thank you Amanda, I read half of the safety plan and looks very resourceful. I think I will implement the fire drills with the kids among other tips from there.