Highways Agency

• Traffic Incident Management Bulletin

November 2007

Resilience Forums

• What are Resilience Forums?
• Why are they in place?
• Why are they applicable to the Highways Agency?

These are questions that are raised regarding the subject of Resilience Forums. This article will hopefully go some way to giving a basic understanding what they are, why they are in place and why they are applicable to the Highways Agency.

What are Resilience Forums?

Resilience Forums have developed as part of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, an Act which gives a statutory framework to the way Civil Emergencies are managed and by whom.

Civil Contingencies Act 2004

The Civil Contingencies Act sets out a legal framework for civil protection for the UK, which includes emergencies that take place within the UK or may affect the UK.

An emergency is defined as:

1. an event or situation which threatens serious damage to human welfare in a place in the UK
2. an event or situation which threatens serious damage to the environment of a place in the UK, or
3. war, or terrorism, which threatens serious damage to the security of the UK

The Act defines responders for emergencies in the UK, which are separated into Category (Cat) 1 and 2 responders, examples of Cat 1 responders are the Police, Local Authorities and other Emergency Services. The Highways Agency have been designated as a Cat 2 responder. The designation of an organisation will dictate statutory duties/responsibilities under the Act.
 
The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 requires responders, under the Act, to plan for incident management and co-operate with each other. Although this was previously done within some regions before the Act, the Act has made planning and cooperation a statutory requirement.

Planning and cooperation duties can be discharged through the introduction of:

• Resilience Forums
• Community Risk Registers

Resilience Forums

Resilience forums are broken in to 2 levels, these being Regional and Local.

Regional Resilience Forums

The Regional Resilience Forum (RRF) is the principal mechanism for multi-agency co-operation. An RRF is established by the Government Office within a region for organisations with an interest in regional civil protection issues to co-operate with each other. This enables civil protection discussions from a regional perspective to take place and acts as the link between Government and Local Forums. The RRFs provide the following:

• Support the LRFs to ensure they are able to meet their aims and objectives
• Ensure delivery of Civil Contingencies Act 2004 duties applicable to a multi-agency response on a Regional level.
• Facilitate integrated emergency and civil contingencies planning across the region.

For further information please follow the link to the UK Resilience website.

Local Resilience Forums

 The primary means for multi-agency cooperation under the Act is the Local Resilience Forums (LRFs). LRFs are generally based on local police areas (with the exception of London), and bring together all the organisations who have a duty to co-operate under the Civil Contingencies Act, along with others who would be involved in the response.

The purpose of the LRF process is to ensure effective delivery of those duties under the Act that need to be developed in a multi-agency environment.

The remit of the LRFs is:

• Ensure that there is an appropriate level of preparedness to enable effective multi-agency response in the geographic area served
• Ensure delivery of Civil Contingencies Act 2004 duties applicable to a multi-agency response.
• Provide support to their members to plan and exercise to prepare for local or wider area hazards/risks
• Facilitate integrated emergency and civil contingencies planning across the local area.
• Attended by senior managers from Category 1 and 2 responders taking a strategic view of emergency planning

The LRF is made up primarily of representatives for Cat 1 responder organisations, however Cat 2 responders can be invited and have the right to attend the LRFs where it adds value to the process. The LRF must meet every 6 months, although it is not a legal entity and the LRF has no powers to direct its members.

The LRFs support the cooperation of responders at a local level, which is additionally supported at a regional level by the Regional Resilience Forum (RRF).

For additional information, please follow the link to the UK Resilience website.

Why are they in place?

Co-operation between organisations is fundamental to emergency preparedness. A large number of organisations will need to co-operate when responding to emergencies, so it is right that organisations co-operate closely in preparedness and planning as well. This is where the Resilience Forums fulfill that requirement.

Why are they applicable to the Highways Agency?

As a Cat 2 responder the Highways Agency can be invited and has a right to attend the LRFs applicable to their regions. Representation at these forums, both at a Regional and Local level, is key to emphasising the importance of the strategic road network operated and maintained by the Hightways Agency and its Service Providers. The network has been and will continue to be the main arterial routes for transportation around England. When an incident occurs there is potential for significant effects on the public and the surrounding areas.

Attendance at these forums will enable the raising of the Highways Agency’s profile and also ensure that the importance of these strategic routes is highlighted to the other Cat 1 and 2 responders. The Highways Agency’s network could be the centre of a significant incident however these strategic routes can also be used to evacuate large numbers of people quickly and effectively. In addition through strategic diversion planning through the National Traffic Control Centre affected areas can be bypassed effectively.

Where now?

The Highways Agency is currently undergoing an internal and external review of how it discharges its duties as a Cat 2 responder under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. A future article will update the future direction of the Highways Agency with regards the Act.

Has this article been worthwhile reading? Why not take a moment to send us your comments, thoughts or questions. Please e-mail TIMbulletin@highways.gsi.gov.uk