UK Resilience
Last updated: 28 October 2008
Experience from previous emergencies has shown that specific attention is required by the responding agencies on meeting the medium and longer term needs of the people affected (directly and indirectly). Evidence and common sense suggests that the sooner people's needs are addressed and catered for, the better the prospect for individual and community recovery. After an emergency, responders should therefore consider the humanitarian response as a priority, recognising that a new constituency of people will have been formed that require, and have an entitlement to, appropriate assistance.
From the community profiles produced as part of the Community Risk Register process, local responders will have a good understanding of the make-up of their local community. However, people's needs will be various, emerging and change over time. Many of these needs will be for services which local authorities and other partner agencies routinely provide – such as welfare support; special needs support; and access / signposting to existing sources of assistance. Other needs may be outside the scope of normal agency business, but will still need to be met in a co-ordinated and timely fashion. Further, people's ability to meet their own needs and support one another without (or with low levels of) external intervention should be recognised; involving a community in its recovery and facilitating self-support has been shown to help individuals and communities achieve a ‘new normal'.
Humanitarian assistance (as defined by Anne Eyre, 2007) refers to those activities aimed at meeting the needs of people affected by emergencies. In particular this includes:
Of key importance in the planning stage is that all agencies and individuals involved recognise the high trauma and stress that those affected may have experienced; and the need for a wide range of organisations to have appropriate plans in place to provide an appropriate response. It is imperative that organisations ensure staff are adequately trained, informed, supervised and supported throughout, as they will be affected by their involvement and if emergency responders are unsupported, they risk experiencing secondary trauma themselves.
A wide and diverse range of agencies in the UK offer assistance, advice and support to people on a routine basis and have the capability to play a key role in the recovery phase. Planning should cover anything which people are likely to need in the immediate days, weeks and months after the emergency. This package of care will necessarily involve a range of agencies working together. The exact focus and nature of provision will depend on the type of emergency, the impact it has had on the community, and people's needs.
Communities may be affected in different ways. For example, where those affected are predominantly from one community, there may be heightened fear, anger and the need for targeted support. A Community Impact Assessment (CIA) is a vital element in both ensuring the most effective and appropriate response to those affected by the emergency and in retaining the trust and confidence of the wider community. Depending on the nature of the emergency, either the Local Authority or Police will lead the assessment. Some information about CIAs is available in topic ‘Impact Assessments’ (see below), but likely needs will include:
Some further information about Community Impact Assessments is available in the Humanitarian Assistance in Emergencies Guidance, and in the Impact Assessments topic sheet.
A wide and diverse range of agencies in the UK offer assistance, advice and support to people on a routine basis and have the capability to play a key role in the recovery phase. Planning should cover anything which people are likely to need in the immediate days, weeks and months after the emergency. This package of care will necessarily involve a range of agencies working together. The exact focus and nature of provision will depend on the type of emergency, the impact it has had on the community, and people's needs.
Issues around health provision and support are covered in more detail in the Needs of People – Health topic sheet.
A number of organisations operate as national networks and may be able to help include statutory agencies such as JobCentre Plus and the Citizens Advice Bureau, and voluntary sector agencies. Local community networks, schools, centres of faith and community groups might also participate in an appropriate response.
Mechanisms and structures which might play a role in the provision of an appropriate response in the short, medium and long term include:
Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to provide welfare support and will take a lead role both at the strategic and operational levels in the recovery phase. Category 1 responders should ensure they are aware of the activities and roles of Category 2 responders, such as Transport Operators, some of whom will have their own plans for meeting the needs of those affected. Information on the role of Rail Incident Care Teams can be found in the Transport Topic Sheet.
The ability to be effective in reaching out to everyone affected in the recovery phase may well depend on the collation of information and contact details in the response phase. Information should be shared, where appropriate, between agencies whose aim is to provide information, assistance or advice to those who have been affected. Sharing contact details allows agencies to proactively reach people who may welcome help, and allows the individual to choose whether or not to take up offers of assistance.
In putting together plans for humanitarian response, planners should note that any emergency occurring in the United Kingdom is likely to involve a diverse community with different needs based upon a wide range of factors. Local responders will be best placed to identify the needs of those affected taking into account cultural factors, such as language, faith and belief, and other needs. All support should be appropriate and based on knowledge about the community and the diverse needs of its population.
No difference for Wales.
The principles set out in the documents above apply to Northern Ireland but because of the different statutory and organisational position, different organisations will be involved. The roles and responsibilities of Northern Ireland organisations in relation to civil contingencies are set out in The Northern Ireland Civil Contingencies Framework and A Guide to Emergency Planning Arrangements in Northern Ireland. A Guide to Evacuation in Northern Ireland gives guidance on providing welfare support to people affected by emergencies.
Under the Local Government Act 2000, Local Authorities have a responsibility to ensure the economic, social and environmental well-being of the community that they serve. In emergencies, Local Authorities support the emergency services in mitigating its effects, co-ordinate the provision of welfare support to the community; lead the establishment of key humanitarian assistance facilities; and take on a leading role in the recovery phase of emergencies.
Individual Local Authorities will have to decide upon arrangements to carry out this function taking into account its local government structure, its arrangements under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and the provision of the Children's Act 2004. The appropriate Councils and their departments should work closely with the various health agencies and other relevant organisations in all aspects of emergency planning and response. Reports from recent public inquiries have identified a role for support agencies such as Adult and Children's Social Care departments.
Family Liaison Officers (FLOs) are deployed by the police to work with families bereaved through crime, road accidents, and sometimes with people who have been seriously injured in a criminal incident. Their role is to facilitate the investigation by close contact with relatives of those killed, but they also, inevitably, become a source of real support and comfort to ‘their’ families. The decision to deploy FLOs in the aftermath of an emergency will be taken by the police Senior Identification Manager (SIM), in consultation with the Senior Investigating Officer (SIO) and the overall incident commander (Gold).
The voluntary sector contribution to and involvement in emergency planning, response and recovery in the UK is large and diverse, offering a range of skills and expertise. Those preparing plans should be aware of the wide spectrum of operational and support activities provided by the voluntary organisations and volunteers. These include:
Family Support Groups
Following the disasters of the 1980s, and subsequently, a number of family support groups have been formed consisting primarily of survivors and friends and families of those killed. Their main functions have largely been to offer each other mutual emotional support, to seek answers relating to questions of responsibility for the disasters and to work on preventing similar disasters from happening in the future.
In 1991, the charity Disaster Action was formed. Disaster Action acts as an umbrella organisation to represent the common problems faced by disaster groups in dealing with statutory and other organisations following a disaster.
Membership consists of people who have had direct experience spanning the majority of major emergencies which have occurred in the UK since 1966. Disaster Action provides practical and emotional support to those directly affected by a major emergency. Disaster Action also provides continuing advice to emergency management organisations to ensure that they take into account the immediate and longer term needs of those most affected by a disaster or catastrophic incident.
The role of the Minister for Humanitarian Assistance, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), is to ensure that the needs of British people affected by emergencies are understood and properly considered within Government in building preparedness for and responding to emergencies, and to represent the Government and explain its policies when dealing with victims and their families.
The three key aspects of DCMS work on humanitarian assistance are:
DCMS have developed a series of general aftercare web pages to provide the public with practical information in the medium and longer term following a major emergency. The pages also signpost individuals to sources of additional support available - www.direct.gov.uk/helpafterincident
[Note: Issues around health provision and support are covered in more detail in the Needs of People – Health topic sheet].
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) provides support for people seeking employment and administers social security benefits through its agencies – JobCentre Plus, the Pensions Service and the Disability and Carers Service. The Child Support Agency (CSA) deals with child support matters. The Department has a national network of offices. Further details of DWP's services and organisation are available on the Department's website and in the Financial Support for Individuals topic sheet.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is a network of people working in the UK and in over 200 Embassies and Consulates abroad. Providing high quality services to the public around the world is a top priority for the FCO. This includes helping UK citizens abroad, issuing passports and giving travel advice. When a consular emergency occurs, such as a terrorist attack or natural disaster, the FCO's London-based Crisis Management Team takes the lead in responding to provide fast consular assistance to British nationals overseas. This response might include sending a Rapid Deployment Team to help, opening the Consular Emergency Unit, or evacuating British nationals.
Where incidents occur in devolved areas, DCMS will work closely with the devolved administration concerned in dealing with victims and their families.
As above.
Responsibility for providing welfare support to people affected by emergencies, including during the recovery phase (which for some people may be many years) rests with Health and Social Care Trusts. In providing this care, Health and Social Care Trusts will normally work with partner organisations, including district councils and voluntary bodies.
The Northern Ireland district councils do not have a general community wellbeing duty as described above for England.
The Social Security Agency would provide emergency benefits payments to people affected by emergencies, through its district offices or community assistance centres if established.
The Northern Ireland Housing Executive has statutory responsibility for providing accommodation for homeless persons. It would work closely with the Health and Social Care Trusts on provision of accommodation to people displaced on a medium-to-long-term from their normal accommodation.
In a regional emergency affecting the welfare of a large number of people, the parent departments of these organisations would work closely with them to co-ordinate action. A lead government would be determined depending on the cause and impact of the particular event.
Local Authorities will be ultimately responsible for meeting the costs of providing for people's needs in the event of an emergency. However, it is important to adopt a multi-agency approach to this task in both the planning and response phases. Where a Local Authority has significant concerns about the cost implications of this, early contact should be made with the Government Liaison Officer based at the local Strategic Co-ordinating Group (and subsequently, the Recovery Co-ordination Group).
During the planning phase, Local Authorities should consider entering into agreements with voluntary agencies to provide certain aspects of assistance in the event that a Humanitarian Assistance Centre is established. Where such agreements are entered into, these should be built on shared expectations as to what, if any, costs will be reimbursed. Consideration should be given to involving local businesses in plans, as they may be well placed to donate funding and/or resources (particularly furniture and equipment). Wherever possible, standing contracts should be entered into, since these can significantly reduce costs. Planning on a regional basis can also enable costs to be pooled.
Further details on financial aid for local authorities can be found in the Financial Impact on Local Authorities topic sheet.
The Bellwin Scheme in Wales is devolved to the Welsh Assembly Government. Further details on this scheme can be found in the Financial Impact on Local Authorities topic sheet. Where a Local Authority has significant concerns about the cost implications, it should liaise directly with the Welsh Assembly Government.
Significant concerns about cost implications should be discussed with the Scottish Government.
[TBC]
Financial support for individuals
Investigations and prosecutions
UK residents affected by overseas incidents
Non-resident UK nationals returning from overseas incidents
Yorkshire and Humber Flooding - Rotherham, June 2007
Carlisle flooding: 8 January 2005
Lewes flooding: 12 October 2000
Direct Gov - Support and information after a major incident
Humanitarian Assistance in the UK: Current capability and the development of best practice (Dr Anne Eyre for DCMS, October 2007)
Literature and best practice review – identifying people's needs in major emergencies and best practice in humanitarian response (Dr Anne Eyre for DCMS, August 2006)
‘ Building resilience: report and recommendations for Victim Support on delivering services to victims of terrorist attack’ (Victim Support, March 2007). This report was produced to ensure the lessons identified following Victim Support's response to 7th July bombings were properly captured.
Initial Trauma Support at UK Airports: an evidence based framework, Sandie Cox and Malcolm Wandrag for City University, London and Heathrow Travel-Care, 2007
Humanitarian Assistance Unit, Department for Culture Media & Sport
2-4 Cockspur Street, London, SW1Y 5DH
Tel: 020 7211 6200
General enquiries: Cabinet Office, 22 Whitehall, London SW1A 2WH.
Contact: via feedback form.
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