Regular Major Incident training for ambulance commanders
The Department of Health and Social Care and the National Ambulance Resilience Unit should ensure that all ambulance commanders receive regular Major Incident training. The training should include training on HART capabilities, on all the command roles and where they will be located, on how to gain situational awareness through the deployment of sector commanders and other roles, on the importance of getting ambulance personnel to casualties without delay and on the circumstances in which they may use operational discretion.
- Command training and competence is covered by the NHS EPRR Framework and Core Standards, with additional national guidance produced by NARU (Manchester Arena Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard, Cabinet Office, February 2026).
- NHS England is reviewing training to ensure it is evidence-based; major incident training forms part of continuous professional development (Manchester Arena Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard, Cabinet Office, February 2026).
How was this evidence gathered?
Response
Accepted
Response
AcceptedThe Home Secretary made a written statement to Parliament on 3 November 2022 following publication of Volume 2, acknowledging the findings on emergency response failures and stating the government would work with emergency services to implement improvements. The response committed to reviewing interoperability arrangements between emergency services and strengthening joint training and exercising protocols for major incidents.
Progress Timeline
Command training and competence is covered by the requirements of the NHS Emergency Preparedness, Response and Resilience (EPRR) Framework and the NHS Core Standards for EPRR. This applies to all NHS Trusts. Additional national command and control guidance for ambulance services has been produced by the National Ambulance Resilience Unit (NARU). Operational discretion is an area for further development within training programmes. NHS England are currently reviewing training to ensure it is evidence based and defensible. Major Incident Training forms part of continuous professional development, meaning work on this recommendation will always be ongoing.
Command training and competence is covered by the requirements of the NHS Emergency Preparedness, Response and Resilience (EPRR) Framework and the NHS Core Standards for EPRR. This applies to all NHS Trusts. Additional national command and control guidance for ambulance services has been produced by the National Ambulance Resilience Unit (NARU). Operational discretion is an area for further development within training programmes. NHS England are currently reviewing training to ensure it is evidence based and defensible. Major Incident Training forms part of continuous professional development, meaning work on this recommendation will always be ongoing.
Published Evidence
Published assessments of progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.
Government published formal Manchester Arena Inquiry recommendations dashboard on GOV.UK (14 November 2025) tracking all 149 recommendations with implementation progress updates.
Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 received Royal Assent 3 April 2025. Creates two tiers: Standard Duty (200-799 capacity) and Enhanced Duty (800+). SIA will be regulator. Not yet in force -- at least 24 months before enforcement (expected April 2027).
JESIP Joint Doctrine updated to v3.1 (April 2024) following inquiry findings on interoperability failures. Operation Plato reformed to cover all terrorist attack types, not just firearms. Emphasis extended beyond command-level to frontline responders.
NPCC, Counter Terrorism Policing and College of Policing provided comprehensive updates to Sir John Saunders demonstrating "continued drive to improve collective response to terrorist incidents."
View detailed findings
Representatives working with UK Intelligence Community to address closed Volume Three recommendations. Cross-government monitoring ongoing.