UK emergency planning boosted with new Resilience and Emergencies standards
Iain Hoey
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New national standards to support emergency preparedness in the UK
The Workforce Development Trust has announced the publication of new National Occupational Standards (NOS) for Resilience and Emergencies, developed under the UK Cabinet Office.
The new NOS are intended to support the development of skills, training and recruitment across organisations responsible for preparing for and responding to major incidents.
These include government departments, local authorities, emergency services and infrastructure operators.
The Workforce Development Trust said the NOS align with the launch of the UK Resilience Academy and aim to improve the ability of organisations and civil society to prepare for, respond to and recover from events such as climate-related emergencies or a pandemic.
Development guided by emergency and resilience professionals
According to The Workforce Development Trust, the NOS were created through a collaborative process involving experts in emergency planning from across national and local government, the NHS, emergency services and other key sectors.
The organisation said the aim was to provide a shared baseline for competencies in resilience, applicable across a range of agencies and sectors.
The standards are intended to guide recruitment, skills assessments, performance management and training design for those working in statutory and non-statutory roles linked to emergency response.
Fire and rescue sector views NOS as tool for interoperability
Dave Walton, Deputy Chief Fire Officer at West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service and Co-Chair of the West Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, supported the publication of the NOS.
Walton, who also leads on resilience for the National Fire Chiefs Council, said: “Resilience is vitally important to fire and rescue services because we have to plan and train for emergencies and be able to respond 24/7, 365 days a year.
“What resilience looks like is different for every organisation, however, meaning that the NOS gives everyone a baseline to work from in terms of ensuring emergency response is as effective as it as possibly can be.
“The Resilience and Emergencies NOS will therefore be vital for supporting interoperability and intraoperability in fire and rescue and the wider emergency services, providing recognised standards we can all train our staff towards.
“Society presents us with dynamic and complex challenges, some are predictable, some are less so, which is why effective emergency response is an integral part of strengthening our resilience overall.”
National framework intended to support qualification development
The Workforce Development Trust explained that the NOS include 11 specific standards for resilience and emergencies. These can be used alongside other occupational standards in areas such as IT, governance and management.
The Trust said these standards can support development of vocational qualifications, be embedded into training and job descriptions, and serve as benchmarks of on-the-job competence.
John Rogers, Chief Executive of The Workforce Development Trust, said: “In a complex and uncertain world, it is paramount that society as a collective takes action to strengthen the nation’s resilience to new and emerging threats, protecting the health and security of our communities.
“Strengthening our resilience requires business, government and civil society to work together to develop the shared capabilities and capacity to re-think, re-adjust and re-align in the face of rapid change.
“Skills and skills development are integral to this, and so the NOS for Resilience and Emergencies provide an overarching framework and common language to support employers and qualifications bodies to work in alignment with one another to achieve this goal.”
National regulators and UKRA integration
According to The Workforce Development Trust, the NOS for Resilience and Emergencies are supported across the UK’s qualification systems.
They are recognised by the Scottish Qualifications Authority, Qualifications Wales and the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment in Northern Ireland. In England, they form part of the Regulated Qualifications Framework.
Hamish Cormack, Head of the UK Resilience Academy, said: “NOS provide an employer-led, multi-sector definition of competence, setting the standards which govern and quality assure skills and skills development across the UK.
“The NOS for Resilience and Emergencies are a significant step forward in terms of supporting a UK-wide approach to resilience and emergency preparedness, providing the foundations for building skills capacity across our nations and regions to mitigate the risks posed by a range of disruptive challenges.”
UK emergency planning boosted with new Resilience and Emergencies standards: Summary
The Workforce Development Trust has published new National Occupational Standards for Resilience and Emergencies.
The standards were developed with input from emergency services, government and critical infrastructure sectors.
The NOS are designed to support emergency preparedness by providing a baseline for training and recruitment.
The NOS align with the launch of the UK Resilience Academy.
There are 11 specific Resilience and Emergencies standards included.
The NOS are intended for use across statutory and non-statutory emergency planning roles.
The standards can be used in vocational qualifications, training, job descriptions and performance assessments.
They are recognised by national qualification bodies in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Dave Walton of West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service said the NOS support interoperability in emergency services.
John Rogers of The Workforce Development Trust said the NOS provide a framework for shared capability building.
Hamish Cormack of the UK Resilience Academy said the NOS support a UK-wide approach to risk mitigation.
