Ineffective decision-making by non-command personnel

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 report, reference 113.65, stated that:

We recommend that National Fire Chiefs Council consider whether, and if so in what circumstances, firefighters should be discouraged from departing from their instructions on their own initiative and provide appropriate training in how to respond to a situation of that kind.

In response, NFCC have developed a change request for the Incident command guidance, to deliver a new hazard and control measure. Personnel, including firefighters, who are not in a command role at an incident often work in highly dynamic hazardous environments, where they may face intense moral and time pressures, and significant physical hazards. These conditions require technical skill and personal resilience and additionally the ability to make decisions in complex scenarios under pressure, often in the absence of complete information.

The change request, which was endorsed by the NFCC National Command and Control User Group and the NFCC Operational Guidance Forum, has now been approved for publication by the NFCC Operational Preparedness, Response and Resilience Committee. It has created one new strategic action:

• SA-195286