LOCAL AGENCIES ENHANCE MAJOR INCIDENT RESPONSE CAPABILITIES THROUGH IPAS-FUNDED MAGIC TRAINING
Representatives from key agencies including Fire and Rescue Service, Emergency Planning, Immigration, Communications Hub, Royal St Helena Police, St Helena Airport, Governor’s Office, Health and Social Care, Port Control, Environment, Natural Resources and Planning, Education, and Solomon and Company have recently completed a comprehensive Multi-Agency Gold Incident Command (MAGIC) training programme, designed to enhance their ability to effectively manage and respond to major incidents.
The training, offered by the International Police Assistance Service (IPAS) and funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) through the Integrated Security Fund’s (ISF) Justice Programme, focused on developing delegates’ confidence, understanding, and ability to perform the critical role of Gold Commander. Three trainers, Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams and UK College of Policing Multi-agency Gold Incident Command Course (MAGIC) delivery team, Tony Brown and Graham Ellis delivered the training on-island.
Trainers Tony Brown and Graham Ellis of the MAGIC delivery team commented:
“It was a great privilege to be invited to St Helena to deliver a MAGIC Course, and to meet with the island’s senior politicians and leaders at an Executive Briefing session.”
The four-day course saw 27 strategic leaders from St Helena’s emergency and public services come together to be trained in effective strategic management of Major Incident situations, with a specific focus on close multi-agency working. This is the same course undertaken by all ‘Category 1 Agency’ strategic leaders in the UK.”
“The level of engagement, professionalism and enthusiasm demonstrated by all of the course delegates was something that they should all be extremely proud of, and made delivery of the course and the multi-agency exercise an extremely rewarding experience for everyone involved.”
“The course allowed for in-depth discussions around numerous challenges that may present during real-life emergency situations, and again the level of mature engagement and discussion meant that challenges and solutions were openly discussed with consensus being achieved.”
“The St Helena Government can be proud of the effort and dedication demonstrated by all of the delegates, and assured that the course was able to deliver improvements in the collective engagement of all agencies required to prepare for, respond to and recover from major emergencies.”
The MAGIC training programme aimed to equip participants with the skills necessary to:
- Define the roles and responsibilities of different agencies during a major incident.
- Take strategic ‘Gold’ command of a major incident.
- Plan, implement, and review civil contingency plans and multi-agency communication strategies.
- Understand the legal framework of a civil emergency.
Through interactive exercises, scenario-based simulations, and expert instruction, delegates gained valuable insights into the complexities of multi-agency coordination and strategic decision-making in high-pressure situations.
Mark Williams, Head of UK National Police Coordination Centre and National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for Civil Contingencies said:
“This course was a fantastic opportunity to work with the Governor, Ministers, and other public sector leaders in St Helena. Being here in person with colleagues from the College of Policing, allowed me to better understand the unique challenges the island has. My colleagues and I were able to share our collective experience and lessons learned from the response to major incidents in the United Kingdom. I am certain that the delegates got a huge amount of learning from it and it was fantastic to see the enthusiasm, professionalism and commitment every one of them showed over the week.”
Chief Secretary, Susan O’Bey, remarked:
“The MAGIC course is very relevant to St Helena where multi-agency collaboration in a major incident is hugely important, particularly given our geographical isolation. The course is designed to support those who are called on to respond to major incidents and help participants to build confidence, and strengthen individual capacity to carry out strategic command roles.”
“The training, which was delivered over four days, was well received. Representatives attended from all of the emergency services, and other key services, including the Airport and Solomon’s and Co, and all participants found it extremely beneficial. Courses such as these are vital in shaping and delivering our response to emergencies, and the lessons learned from this training will equip senior leaders to better understand each other’s operating environments, and enable them to operate more effectively in situations requiring a multi-agency response.”
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the trainers; Tony, Graham and Mark, for their excellent delivery, as well as the FCDO for funding the course.”
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SHG
07 March 2025
