Emergency Planning – what3words & UK Grid references

With the increased use of mobile applications to determine locations for both work and leisure it’s important to understand the limitations of these methods. This document highlights those limitations and provides guidance on obtaining accurate location details for the purpose of Emergency Planning.

Please also refer to FISA Safety Guide 802 - Emergency Planning.

what3words

Some emergency services in the UK do not recognise Grid References.
w3w is utilised by most emergency services in the UK.
The app provides the user with a quick tool to find their location in both aerial map and normal map mode.
If you have no mobile reception the app will locate your w3w position but not show the base map.
If set up correctly, w3w will provide you with the Grid Reference for you location.
You can share your location information via SMS, WhatsApp, email, Messenger etc.
When searching a location, you can ask w3w to navigate you to the destination – this is done via 3rd party apps such as Google Maps, Apple Maps etc.

w3w in an Emergency…..

If you are phoning the Emergency Services, there is a concern that words and spelling will be incorrectly recorded – thus delaying a response….
Often, in a woodland/forest/mountain environment an Ambulance would be unable to access the worksite.
In this scenario, you should call 999, request POLICE and then explain the situation and inform them that you require MOUNTAIN RESCUE assistance.
At this point you should supply the GRID REFERENCE for your location.
- Remember to do this prior to moving to an area where you can obtain a mobile phone signal!
By using numbers there is a reduced opportunity for mistakes to be made.
You can obtain your Grid reference by using OS Locate, w3w and other apps.
Depending on your location, weather, cloud etc the actual location on your device may move….
This is why it is important to have your Emergency details planned and recorded prior to them being required.