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Annex A: The Nineteen Capability Workstreams

The Three Structural Workstreams

1. Central Response
Lead Department: Cabinet Office [Department website]
Aim: to enhance, improve the resilience of and, where necessary, further integrate central Government's crisis management arrangements.

2. Regional Response
Lead Department: Department for Communities and Local Government [Department website]
Aims: to ensure that the current state of resilience in each of the English regions is fully understood; to identify gaps in resilience; and to put work plans in place to ensure that such gaps are filled.

3. Local Response
Lead Department: Cabinet Office [Department website]
Aim: to ensure sound structures are in place to support a local response to emergencies and disruptive challenges. The Capabilities Programme is the core framework through which the Government is seeking to build resilience across all parts of the United Kingdom.

The Eleven Functional Workstreams

4. Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Resilience
Lead Department: Home Office [Department website]
Aim: to ensure that the country is capable of responding quickly and effectively to deal with and recover from the consequences of incidents involving chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear material, particularly those caused by terrorism.

5. Site Clearance
Lead Department: Department for Communities and Local Government [Department website]
Aim: clearance, removal and disposal of large volumes of rubble and other debris after a catastrophic disaster.

6. Infectious Diseases - Human
Lead Department: Department of Health [Department website]
Aim: to build an effective capability to vaccinate and treat people as part of an emergency response to an infectious disease such as smallpox or a 'flu epidemic.

7. Infectious Diseases - Animal and Plant
Lead Department: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs [Department website]
Aim: to ensure that plans exist and are regularly tested to respond to and minimise the impact of the spread of infectious animal and plant diseases.

8. Mass Casualties
Lead Department: Department of Health [Department website]
Aim: to build on the current preparedness and response arrangements already in place for dealing with major incidents and mass casualty incidents through the establishment of appropriate UK doctrine and an associated operational framework for the NHS.

9. Evacuation and Shelter [More information]
Lead Department: Cabinet Office [Department website]
Aim: to ensure UK-wide evacuation arrangements are in place in the event of a major disruption following a CBRN or other catastrophic incident.

10. Warning and Informing the Public [More information]
Lead Department: Cabinet Office [Department website]
Aims: to educate the public about how to behave in the event of a catastrophic incident; to develop a package of mechanisms to alert members of the public of the need to take action, and to ensure that broadcasters can get timely, accurate and authoritative information to the public, in the event of an incident.

11. Mass Fatalities
Lead Department: Home Office [Department website]
Aim: to deal with fatalities resulting from a major or catastrophic incident; to identify the dead, to investigate causes of death and to dispose of bodies and body parts in a safe and decent manner.

12. Humanitarian Assistance in Emergencies [More information]
Lead Department: Department for Culture, Media and Sport [Department website]
Aim: to ensure that the needs of British people affected by emergencies at home and overseas, are understood and properly considered within Government in building preparedness for, responding to and recovering from emergencies.

13. Flooding
Lead Department: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs [Department website] and Environment Agency [Agency website]
Aim: To ensure that plans exist to maintain provision of flood and coastal defences in England in the event of a catastrophic incident.

14. Recovery
Lead Department: Cabinet Office [Department website]
Aim: To ensure that local, regional/devolved and national responders:

• Have access to comprehensive, up-to-date guidance on how to handle the recovery phase of emergencies, and
• Have plans (and supporting resources) in place to support the recovery of their communities

so that the process of rebuilding, restoring and rehabilitating the community following an emergency takes place as effectively and efficiently as possible. National Recovery Guidance can be found at: www.ukresilience.gov.uk/response/recovery_guidance.aspx

The Five Essential Services Workstreams

15. Health Services
Lead Department: Department of Health [Department website]
Aim: To ensure that plans exist to maintain continued Health Services in England in the event of a catastrophic incident.

16. Food and Water
Lead Department: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs [Department website]
Aim: To ensure that plans exist to maintain continued provision of water and food supplies in England in the event of a catastrophic incident.

17. Transport
Lead Department: Department for Transport [Department website]
Aim: To ensure that plans exist to maintain continued provision of transport services, including public transport and supply chains and freight haulage capacity in England in the event of a catastrophic incident

18. Utilities
Lead Department: Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform [Department website]
Scope: To ensure that plans exist to maintain continued provision of utilities (e.g. gas, telecommunications, and postal services among others) in England in the event of a catastrophic incident

19. Financial Services
Lead Department: HM Treasury [Department website]
Scope: To ensure that plans exist to maintain continued provision of financial services (information clearing house; market information; telecommunications; physical infrastructure; back-up arrangements (private sector); authorities' contingency response) in England in the event of a catastrophic incident.

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