Rinova Limited (“Rinova”) is committed to ensuring the continuity of its training, consultancy, and project delivery services in the event of disruption. This Business Continuity Plan outlines the procedures and responsibilities required to maintain operations, protect learners, and staff, and recover effectively from incidents.
Objectives
Rinova is committed to ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of training and learner support across all its programmes. In the event of disruption, the organisation will take all necessary steps to protect critical data, infrastructure and contractual obligations, while minimising financial, reputational and operational impact. Rinova will maintain clear and timely communication with learners, staff, partners, and stakeholders throughout the incident, and will work swiftly to resume normal operations in a safe and effective manner.
Risk Assessment and Preparedness
Rinova recognises the importance of identifying and preparing for potential threats to business continuity. We actively monitor and consider risks such as IT system failures, cyberattacks, staff unavailability, loss of access to premises, transport disruption, and extreme weather events. These risks are discussed at senior management level and inform our contingency planning and operational decision-making.
Response Procedures
In the event of a disruption to Rinova’s operations, a structured and timely response is essential to safeguard learners, staff, and business continuity. The following procedures outline the key actions to be taken across critical areas of the organisation, ensuring that services are maintained, risks are mitigated, and recovery is initiated effectively. These procedures are designed to be flexible and scalable depending on the nature and severity of the incident.
- Incident Notification and Activation
- Any staff member identifying a disruption must notify the Business Continuity Lead immediately.
- The Business Continuity Lead will assess the situation and activate the appropriate response level.
- A log of the incident and actions taken will be maintained.
- Training Delivery Continuity
- Switch to online delivery where in-person delivery is disrupted.
- Use pre-recorded modules and digital resources to maintain learner progress.
- Reallocate tutors or delivery staff as needed.
- Notify learners of changes via email, SMS, and phone.
- IT and Data Recovery
- Activate disaster recovery protocols for our systems.
- Restore data from secure cloud backups.
- Notify IT support provider and escalate if external intervention is required.
- Communicate system status updates to staff and learners.
- Staffing Contingency
- Implement remote working protocols for affected staff.
- Reassign responsibilities to trained team members.
- Notify HR of any long-term absences and initiate recruitment or freelance support if needed.
- Facilities and Equipment
- Relocate delivery to alternate venues if primary site is inaccessible.
- Ensure insurance claims are initiated for damaged assets.
- Provide staff with necessary equipment for remote work.
- Communication Protocol
- Issue internal updates via email and Teamwork.
- Notify learners and partners.
- Inform funders and stakeholders within 24 hours of major disruptions.
- Assign a spokesperson for external communications.
Recovery and Resumption
Following any disruption, Rinova will establish a recovery timeline appropriate to the severity and nature of the incident, ensuring that critical services are restored in a structured and timely manner. Priority will be given to the continuation of learner support and the fulfilment of contractual obligations.
A post-incident review will be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the response, identify lessons learned and inform future improvements.
Once the organisation is ready to return to standard operations, a formal board meeting will be held to:
- Review the effectiveness of the continuity measures
- Document lessons learned
- Officially conclude the continuity phase
- Resume normal business processes and governance structures
The Business Continuity Plan will be updated accordingly to reflect any changes in procedures, risks, or organisational needs.
Roles & Responsibility
To ensure an effective and coordinated response during any disruption, Rinova has clearly defined roles and responsibilities across key operational areas. These roles support the activation of the Business Continuity Plan, the protection of systems and services, and the smooth recovery of operations. Each designated lead is accountable for specific aspects of the response, ensuring clarity, efficiency, and continuity throughout the organisation.
Key personnel responsibilities include:
- CEO – Continuity Officer – Leads strategic oversight of the continuity plan and ensures alignment with business priorities
- Chair of the Board – Convenes an emergency session (in person or online as circumstances dictate) to ensure the plan is implemented and to review the circumstances and precise arrangements required at the time
- Operations & Finance Director – Coordinates with project managers and support staff to ensure present work priorities are reviewed and allocate resources
- IT Manager – Ensures data protection and system recovery
- Training Manager – Maintains continuity of training delivery and learner engagement
- HR Manager – Manages staffing, wellbeing and internal communications during disruption
Monitoring and Review
Rinova is committed to regularly reviewing its Business Continuity Plan to ensure its effectiveness. The plan is formally reviewed on an annual basis or following any major incident that impacts operations.
This plan applies to all organisations within the Rinova Group. For the avoidance of doubt, where ‘Rinova Ltd’ is referenced this shall be understood to also apply to Rinova Community CIC and Rinova Malaga S.L.
Date Created: 01/12/2015
Last Review: 01/09/2025
Next Review: 01/09/2026
This policy has been reviewed and approved by the Board of Rinova Ltd. Richard Parkes, Chair and Director.