This page is from APP, the official source of professional practice for policing.
Overview
This authorised professional practice (APP) provides guidance for managing incidents that require a dedicated command structure. It sets out guidance on responding to emergencies that have the potential to be declared major and/or critical incidents, as well as planning for non-spontaneous events.
The command structure set out in the APP is scalable in its application. It supports effective joint working with other police forces, emergency services and/or wider partners, through the application of interoperability principles.
Where applicable, responsibilities have been assigned to specific roles, including:
- chief officers
- commanders
- force incident managers (FIMs)
- control room supervisors
- initial responders
The APP applies to both Home Office and multi-jurisdictional police forces. Because of the nature of emergencies, there may be incidents where a partner agency leads on the response. The APP may, therefore, also be of interest to partner agencies.
Definitions
Major incident
A major incident is an event or situation, with a range of serious consequences, that requires special arrangements to be implemented by one or more emergency partner agencies.
Critical incident
A critical incident is an incident where the effectiveness of the police response is likely to have a significant impact on the confidence of the victim, their family and/or the community.
For more information, go to the Civil contingencies APP.