Emergency Society, Not Emergency Services
Make people Britain's First Emergency Service, says Resilient Nation, a report by think tank, Demos
The public should play a much greater role in Britain's response to disasters and emergencies, a report published today by Demos says. Making ordinary citizens' the central pillar of emergency plans would dramatically improve Britain's readiness for shocks like the recent snowstorm, the report says.
Resilient Nation argues that people and communities are the first line of defence against threats like flooding, terrorist attacks or pandemics because they can often respond faster and coordinate more effectively than the emergency services, saving lives and protecting property.
A combination of complex lifestyles, fragile national infrastructure and the increasing frequency of extreme weather caused by climate change has made Britain vulnerable to emergencies that are too difficult for the emergency services to counter alone.
Author of Resilient Nation, Charlie Edwards said:
"Britain is a brittle society. We face all kinds of risks, from floods and heat waves to snowstorms. The emergency services are vital, but they cannot be everywhere all the time. Having a prepared population is essential to making Britain resilient, but resilience is about much more than sirens and sandbags. It's about government and emergency services giving people the tools to respond, and then trusting them to act.
The four ingredients of this are the 'four Es' of community resilience: Engaging citizens by recognising their role, Educating them on how to respond, Empowering them by building them into plans and Encouraging them to do more."
Using case studies and interviews in the UK and abroad, the research cites examples like the village of Walcott, Norfolk, where a slow response from the authorities in 2007 meant that property was damaged and the evacuation was made harder by floodwater
It was down to members of the village's volunteer flood wardens to alert residents of an imminent flood and coordinate the emergency response when the Environment Agency and local Police station failed to sound the alarm.
In addition to the traditional methods used in Walcott, researchers found that communities in at-risk areas are turning to online social networking sites to coordinate in an emergency and educate the public:
The Los Angeles Fire Department uses sites like Blogger and Twitter to communicate between firefighters and people on the ground.
London Borough of Haringey councilor Alan Stanton has a Flickr site to educate his constituents about the dangers of flooding.
Most recently, Facebook played a part in The Red Cross' efforts after the Italian earthquake.
The report argues that plans for a centralised civil protection force, advocated by all three main political parties, is unnecessary and a potential waste of money. Instead it makes a range of recommendations for putting people at the heart of the Government's National Security Strategy due to be published this summer.
"We already have a civilian force," said Charlie Edwards. "Hundreds of thousands of citizens who are active volunteers and can be called upon in the face of disaster. Bureaucratic, centralized structures will never be a substitute for a prepared population."
Recommendations from Resilient Nation include:
- Local councils, emergency planning officers and the emergency services should use social media like Twitter as part of their engagement strategies.
- Community resilience should become part of the PHSE curriculum.
- Individual resilience should be encouraged by creating goals such a resilience badge for Girl Guides and Scouts.
- Government should establish an annual 'preparedness week' where local communities can learn to develop their emergency response strategy.
- Local authorities and the emergency services should develop live exercises and training for the public.
