Henshaws is a charity that supports people living with site loss and a range of other disabilities. In March 2020 their specialist college in Harrogate had to implement sudden changes to its operations during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Business Continuity Manager Lisa said: ‘During the pandemic, schools with specialist provision were allowed to stay open. We had a business continuity plan, but new announcements meant we had to constantly adapt. We risk assessed the staff and students to make sure we knew how many people we could support at one time to remain safe. We kept in regular contact with staff and students that had to remain home and implemented a bubble system when this came into effect. Non-critical activities stopped, and we moved some learning online by updating our technology and provided students with laptops. We kept a log of every decision made during this 2-year period of change and used our expertise to help other schools and colleges to continue to operate. During unprecedented circumstances you need to know the impacts to your business and what your priorities are. Focus on what is critical and do not try to do too much!’