Agenda item

Mark Norris, LGA Principal Policy Adviser, outlined the contents of the report and noted that local authorities were keen to share their experiences of handling civil emergencies after events earlier in the year. Members were told that the Cabinet Office’s Civil Contingencies Secretariat (CCS) were undertaking a review of the challenges associated with national resilience and how the Government can be assured that councils are prepared for civil contingency issues. LGA officers had engaged with the CSS at an early stage in their review to inform the recommendations, and had identified measures to provide central government with an assurance process that did not involve a new inspection regime, as well as setting out what central assistance local areas most needed in a civil emergency. Recommendations had been sent to the National Security Council and it was expected that a report on the review would be available by the end of November.

Members were told that feedback from the review suggested one outcome would be a move towards a peer review system which would use the new set of standards being developed on civil resilience. It was noted that the past year had shown strong regional arrangements in terms of mutual aid in both London and Manchester but there were concerns about other areas and the need to increase and strengthen mutual aid requirements.

In terms of next steps, members were advised that a pilot masterclass session was being developed for councillors, that a guide for councillors about civil emergency roles in planning would need updating to include reference to community leadership, and that joint work with Solace was planned to provide guidance aimed at chief executives which would take readers through the life cycle of a civil emergency. Members were asked how they thought councillors should fit into this and what training or support was wanted.

A number of points were raised in the discussion which followed:

·         Members stressed the need to develop mutual aid arrangements, as reductions in the number of council staff meant they had less capacity to cope with civil emergences.

·         On training, members welcomed the masterclass offer but wanted to see it expanded to allow backbenchers to benefit as well as leaders and portfolio holders. A discussion took place about  how officers and councillors should work together during a civil emergency, whether joint training could be held, and how useful media training would be. Members discussed the use of social media during an incident and how important it was to ensure that both councillors and officers were consistent in the messages they were putting out.

·         It was suggested that there was a great deal of focus on cities and urban areas in terms of civil resilience but not enough focus on rural areas. Members also noted that the potential for tragedy is diverse so emergency training needed to cover as many potential threats as possible.

Decision

Members noted the report.

Action

Officers to continue working with Solace and the CCS on guidance on civil resilience.