Responding Agencies
Background
This section outlines the roles and responsibilities of the main agencies
and sectors that are likely to become engaged in the response to and
recovery from emergencies at the local level. This section describes
arrangements in both England and Wales unless otherwise stated. For further
information on the Devolved Administrations (DAs) and their arrangements,
see the DAs
section.
Police services
The police will normally co-ordinate the activities of those responding at
and around the scene of a land-based sudden impact emergency. The key
priority is the saving and protection of life but care will also be taken
to safeguard evidence for subsequent enquiries and, possibly, criminal
proceedings.
Where practical, the police, in consultation with other responders,
establish cordons to facilitate the work of the responding agencies in the
saving of life, the protection of the public and property and the care of
survivors. Where terrorist action is suspected to be the cause of an
emergency, the police will take additional measures to protect the scene
(which will be treated as the scene of a crime) and will assume overall
control of the incident. The police oversee any criminal investigation and
undertake the collection of evidence. They have responsibility for
arranging for the removal of fatalities on behalf of HM Coroner, who has
the legal responsibility for investigating the cause of any deaths
involved.
Fire and rescue services
The primary role of fire and rescue services in an emergency is the rescue
of people trapped by fire, wreckage or debris. They will also deal with
released chemicals or other contaminants, assist other agencies in the
removal of large quantities of flood water and assist ambulance services
with casualty-handling and the police with the recovery of bodies. They may
also, on behalf of the NHS, undertake mass decontamination of people who
have been exposed to chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN)
substances.
Health bodies
Ambulance services have responsibility for co-ordinating the on-site NHS
response and determining the hospital(s) to which injured people should be
taken. An Ambulance Incident Officer (AIO) will take overall responsibility
at the scene and a Medical Incident Officer (MIO) may also attend.
More broadly, Acute trusts, Primary and community care services, Strategic
Health Authorities (SHAs) in England and Local Health Boards in Wales will
all be engaged in the provision of specialist staff and care following an
emergency.
In the event of a major public health emergency, the Health Protection
Agency (HPA) provides specialist scientific/medical advice. The Regional
Directors of Public Health (RDsPH), who represent the Chief Medical Officer
in the English regions, provide advice, support and leadership to help the
SHAs and wider NHS to manage the emergency, and ensure co-ordination with
regional resilience mechanisms. In Wales, public health advice is available
from the National Public Health Service for Wales.
In emergencies on a national or international scale, the Department of
Health (DH) will co-ordinate the NHS response from its Emergency
Preparedness Division Co-ordinating Centre, supporting health Ministers,
and liaising with the devolved administrations.
HM Coroner
In an emergency, the coroner will be responsible for establishing the
identity of fatalities and the cause and circumstances of death. Following
the recovery of the deceased from the emergency (usually co-ordinated by
police) the coroner will decide whether a post mortem is required to
establish the cause of death.
Coroners should have an emergency plan for their own mortuaries in dealing
with multiple deaths. They are also instrumental in the development of
local and regional emergency mortuary plans.
The role of the coroners in responding to emergencies is detailed in the
Home Office document Guidance on Dealing
with Fatalities in Emergencies (May 2004) [PDF, 94 pages,
677KB].
Local authorities
Local authority functions (e.g. social services and housing) will be a
critical support to emergency services during an emergency. They also
crucially exercise a community leadership role. Local authorities planners
co-ordinate and facilitate emergency planning and response work across the
authority.
As the emphasis moves from response to recovery, the local authority will
take the lead in facilitating the longer-term rehabilitation of the
community and the restoration of the environment.
Government agencies and other NDPBs
A range of other government bodies will have key roles to play, depending
on the type of emergency. These could include:
-
the Environment Agency in an incident affecting the
environment (flood or pollution incidents);
-
the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in its role of
ensuring the health and safety of people in their workplaces (including
the responding emergency services), as well as its regulatory role in
sites such as nuclear installations, hospitals, schools and railway
safety, and its specialist expertise in CBRN and major hazard industrial
sites;
-
the Highways Agency in an incident affecting the road
network in England (the Welsh Assembly Government has responsibility for
motorways and trunk roads in Wales); and
-
the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) in incidents
requiring civil maritime search and rescue (HM Coastguard) or where
pollution or safety at sea is a factor. Their role is detailed in the Search
and Rescue Framework for the United Kingdom [External
PDF, 54 pages, 828KB] and the
National Contingency Plan for Marine Pollution [External
website]. Both documents may be found on the MCA's
website [External website].
-
the Government Decontamination
Service [External website] in its role of
providing advice and guidance to those responsible for dealing with
decontamination following a CBRN or major HazMat (Hazardous Materials)
incident.
The Armed Forces
The Armed Forces' national structure, organisation, skills, equipment
and training can be of benefit to the civil authorities in managing the
response to and recovery from emergencies. This support is governed by the
Military Aid to the Civil Authority (MACA) arrangements (set out in detail
in the Ministry of Defence (MoD) publication Operations
in the UK: The Defence Contribution to Resilience) [PDF, 317
pages 2.6MB].
However, it should be made clear that the Armed Forces maintain no standing
forces for MACA tasks and hence cannot make a commitment that guarantees
assistance to meet specific emergencies. The Armed Forces should be called
upon only as a last resort, and responding agencies should not base plans
upon assumptions of military assistance.
Emergency Planning College
(EPC) [External website] is the leading provider of
training for emergency preparedness, attracting delegates with
responsibility for preventing, planning for, responding to or recovering
from a major incident. The EPC runs Defence Contribution to UK
Resilience [External website] as well as courses on
other aspects of civil protection.
The private sector
There is a wide range of private sector bodies that - while not routinely
involved in the core of emergency response and recovery - will have an
important role when incidents affect their sectors. They include: gas and
electricity transmitters and distributors; fixed and mobile
telecommunications providers; water and sewerage undertakers; and a range
of transport companies. These organisations are defined under the Civil
Contingencies Act as Category 2 responders, with a requirement to
co-operate and share information with Category 1 and other Category 2
responders.
A wider community of industrial or commercial organisations may also play a
direct role in the response to emergencies, especially if their
organisation is the cause of an emergency (e.g. industrial accident at
their premises); is affected by an emergency (e.g. staff need to be
evacuated); or can provide resources required to mitigate the effects of an
emergency (e.g. food retailers, caterers). In the recovery phase, the
private sector will play a significant part, given the size of the
resources, specialist expertise and capabilities (e.g. site clearance,
decontamination and engineering) at its disposal. Insurance is a key
enabler in the recovery process and hence a key player.
The Preparing for
Emergencies [External website] website provides
information on the various arrangements for business
involvement [External website] in civil protection.
The voluntary sector
The voluntary sector can provide a wide range of skills and services to
statutory responders. These skills and services include: practical support
(e.g. first aid, transportation, provisions for responders); psycho-social
support (e.g. counselling, helplines); equipment (e.g. radios, medical
equipment); and information services (such as public training and
communications).
The Preparing for
Emergencies [External website] website provides
information on the various arrangements for for engagement
with voluntary and community groups [External
website] in civil protection.
The community
The community can play a vital role in the response to and recovery from
emergencies. It can provide resources, expertise and knowledge in support
of the response agencies. Members of the community may need to provide
self-help and can also provide support for local vulnerable people. There
will also be local networks for the dissemination of information that the
response agencies need to pass on to the local community. The community may
also be able to advise on the different cultural or language needs of its
members.
Key Documents
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Key Links
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